First protest in Toronto against sky-high cost of living
Given how expensive life in and around Toronto has gotten, you’re not the only one who may be finding it nearly impossible to make ends meet.
Rent, groceries, electricity, entertainment, and everything else have all increased to unaffordable levels for so many individuals that they are now organizing a large-scale protest to express their outrage.
On June 3, people will assemble in Toronto’s Nathan Phillips Square and other locations around Ontario at noon to protest the high cost of living in the province and to demand better pay, public services, and other things. The local organization Justice for Workers, which organized the rally, aims to convey the message that the Ford administration is failing its residents and that “enough is enough.”
Worried about your rent, salary, health, or grocery bills? Join us,” reads a banner for the demonstration and march. It lists the rally’s final objectives, which include a $20 minimum wage plus general salary hikes, rent control and high-quality public housing, accessible basic necessities like food and gas, and increased taxes on big businesses.
READ MORE: Shift of Two Decades: Comparing Housing Prices in Canada from 2000 to 2023
More than a dozen additional locations, including Brampton, Hamilton, Niagara, Ottawa, and more, have events scheduled for the same day, and other labour organizations including the Ontario Nurses’ Association have indicated support.
Despite the fact that inflation has now started to slow down, prices are still rising, notably for food, and locals are finding it difficult to recoup from the record-breaking rate at which the cost of products and services has increased over the past 18 months.
Housing prices went up by 500%, food prices went up by 120%, gasoline prices went up by 115% from the year 2000 while the wages increased by only 50%!
Many believe the sky rocketing prices and unaffordable cost of living in Canada might be the trigger of social unrests in the near future. While we already witness higher crime rates, shop lifting, car theft, legal protests appear now to be “the new normal”!
