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These statistics are not just numbers; they represent real families that are being left behind by policies that fail to address the unique burdens placed on Black Canadians. For instance, Black renters in ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ face discrimination at unnerving rates, with property owners routinely rejecting them in favour of white applicants, regardless of financial qualifications. Also, Black home ownership remains the lowest among racialized groups, forcing families into a cycle of unaffordable rentals and substandard housing. The direct link between housing instability and food insecurity cannot be ignored. When more than 30 per cent of a household’s income goes to rent, food becomes negotiable.

For years, federal, provincial, and municipal governments’ responses, albeit steps in the right direction, have turned out to be half-measures that fail to disrupt the racial inequities fuelling these crises. Short-term rental assistance programs and modest funding initiatives barely scratch the surface of the problem. For example, the federal government’s , which aimed to create 200 new Black home ownership opportunities by 2023, is commendable. But let us be honest, 200 homes barely put a dent in the crisis, especially when thousands of Black families are being displaced due to rent increases and discriminatory rental practices. And once displaced, finding another home becomes nearly impossible due to the limited affordable housing stock. 

The time for surface-level solutions that follow the same ineffective pattern has passed. Policy Band-Aids are no longer sufficient because they do not address the underlying issues in the system. The CBPN’s latest policy brief provides some powerful recommendations on implementing real and actionable policies that confront these crises with the urgency they demand. A national housing and food data strategy is a great start toward systemic change. Without race-based data, it is impossible to craft policies that accurately target the problem. Statistics Canada should be mandated to collect, analyze, and publish detailed data annually on housing and food insecurity segmented by race, income, and neighbourhood. 

Addressing housing inequity requires more than promises. It demands targeted investments that prioritize Black-led housing projects and foster private-sector partnerships to increase affordable housing stock. The CBPN’s recommendations proposed that initiatives to this effect should leverage existing frameworks under the to ensure measurable outcomes beyond symbolic gestures. Black home ownership, rental access, and housing stability must become national policy priorities, not afterthoughts.

Making food security a reality rather than an aspiration for Black families calls for a shift from short-term, one-time grants to multi-year funding agreements that support Black-led food initiatives. Long-term investments would allow these community-based organizations to plan, implement, and scale effective strategies with measurable outcomes.

Every moment of inaction deepens the crisis, and the cost of inaction is paid in Black families being priced out of homes, forced into food bank lines and pushed further to the margins of society. Governments at all levels must move beyond the rhetoric of racial equity and implement targeted action to create safety nets for Black Canadians and dismantle the barriers that have left them drowning in food insecurity and housing instability.