Michael Shapcott

Michael Shapcott

Michael Shapcott is a Canadian social activist and academic best known for his work on housing and anti-poverty issues in Toronto.

Trained as a lawyer (though he decided not to go before the bar,) Shapcott came to public attention in the late 1980s and early 1990s for his work in BASIC which became the "Breads Not Circuses" coalition which argued that the money being spent on Toronto's bid for the 1996 Summer Olympics could be better spent on housing.[1] His detractors vilified him for helping compromise the city's bid for the 1996 Olympic Games.[2]

In 1989, Shapcott, Bart Poesiat and future Toronto mayor Barbara Hall created the Rupert Pilot Project[3] to fund affordable housing initiatives which received substantial funding in the early 1990s from Bob Rae's NDP Ontario government.

Shapcott is a founding member of the National Housing and Homelessness Network[4] and the Toronto Disaster Relief Committee[5] and the Toronto Environmental Alliance, of which he continues to be a board member.[6]

Currently, he is the senior fellow in residence for public policy at the Wellesley Institute (WI).[7]

He was previously Executive Director of the Community/University Research Partnerships (CURP) program at University of Toronto's Centre for Urban and Community Studies,[8] where he promoted links between academic research and social justice activism.

Prior to that, he was manager of government relations and communications at the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada (Ontario Region).[9]

Michael got his first housing experience working at the Christian Resource Centre,[10] then as a manager at both Houses Opening Today (HOT) and with the Homes First Society.

Earlier in his adult life, Shapcott worked as a reporter, columnist and editor for several newspapers and has worked on such newspapers as the Northbay Nugget and the Calgary Herald.

Shapcott is actively involved in the Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid and is regularly on television and in the media. In spring 2008 he appeared on the Michael Coren show and made an argument that the Palestine/Israel problem could easily be solved with a secular one-state solution.

Shapcott entered electoral politics by running as the New Democratic Party's candidate in Toronto Centre in the 2004 federal election[11] placing second to Liberal incumbent Bill Graham.

He made his second attempt in the same riding in the 2006 federal election,[12] increasing the NDP vote to its highest level ever in the riding.

References

  1. ^ "Group urges help for homeless, not a home for Games". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. June 24, 1990. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=AT&p_theme=at&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB7C47EB148A3D7&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  2. ^ "MAN WHO BACKED TORONTO FOR 1996 OLYMPICS EXPRESSES DISMAY". The Buffalo News. September 23, 1990. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=BN&p_theme=bn&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB195A9E83743B1&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  3. ^ "Paul Rodgers, 68: Social activist fought psychiatric system". Toronto Star. August 10, 2004. http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/107906. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  4. ^ "Protesters demand Martin create affordable housing". CBC News. November 14, 2003. http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2003/11/14/housing031114.html. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  5. ^ "Counting the homeless". Canada Free Press. June 29, 2005. http://www.canadafreepress.com/2005/toronto062905.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  6. ^ "City gets low marks for failing to clear air" (fee required). Toronto Star. October 11, 2006. http://moreresults.factiva.com/results/index/index.aspx?ref=TOR0000020061011e2ab0000r. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  7. ^ Byers, Jim (December 19, 2006). "A protest with fixings". Toronto Star. http://www.thestar.com/News/article/162834. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  8. ^ "Activists Push One Per Cent Solution for Canada's Rental Housing "Crisis"". Realty Times. October 10, 2002. http://realtytimes.com/rtpages/20021010_carentalhsing.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  9. ^ "Unfamiliar to Canada - lack of roofs". The Christian Science Monitor. January 14, 2002. http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0114/p1s3-woam.html. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  10. ^ Morris, Ruth; Colleen Heffren (1988). Street People Speak. Mosaic Press. p. 8. ISBN 9780889623644. 
  11. ^ "NDP in celebratory mood as campaign kicks off". CTV. May 23, 2004. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20040523/elxn_ndp_party040523?s_name=&no_ads=. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 
  12. ^ "St. James Town's political awakening". The Globe and Mail. January 6, 2006. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20060106.wxelxnjames06a/BNStory/specialDecision2006. Retrieved 2008-12-13. 

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Michael Donaghy — For the former VFL player, see Mick Donaghy. Michael Donaghy (May 24, 1954 – September 16, 2004) was an award winning New York poet and musician, who lived in London from 1985. Contents 1 Life and career 2 Death 3 Honours and awards …   Wikipedia

  • Hofmann, Michael — (1957 )    Born in Freiburg, West Germany, son of the German novelist Gert Hofmann (1931 1993), he grew up in the U.K. and now lives in London. His translation of his father s novel The Film Explainerwon the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize in… …   British and Irish poets

  • Complete results of the Canadian federal election, 2004 — This is a seat by seat list of candidates in the 2004 Canadian election. For more information about the election see Canadian federal election, 2004. Contents 1 2004 federal redistribution 2 Candidates and ridings 2.1 Newfoundland and Labrador …   Wikipedia

  • Green Party of Canada candidates, 2006 Canadian federal election — The Green Party of Canada ran a full slate of 308 candidates in the 2006 Canadian federal election. Some of these candidates have separate biography pages; relevant information about other candidates may be found here. The candidates are listed… …   Wikipedia

  • Liste des candidats de l'Ontario (Élection fédérale de 2006) — Résultats de l élection canadienne de 2006 (Ontario) Ceci est les résultats de l élection fédérale canadienne de 2006 dans la province de l Ontario. Les candidats sortants sont en italiques ; les gagnants sont en caractères gras. Sommaire 1… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Resultats de l'election canadienne de 2006 (Ontario) — Résultats de l élection canadienne de 2006 (Ontario) Ceci est les résultats de l élection fédérale canadienne de 2006 dans la province de l Ontario. Les candidats sortants sont en italiques ; les gagnants sont en caractères gras. Sommaire 1… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Résultats de l'élection canadienne de 2006 (Ontario) — Ceci est les résultats de l élection fédérale canadienne de 2006 dans la province de l Ontario. Les candidats sortants sont en italiques ; les gagnants sont en caractères gras. Sommaire 1 Ottawa 2 Est de l Ontario 3 Ontario Centre …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Résultats de l'élection canadienne de 2006 (ontario) — Ceci est les résultats de l élection fédérale canadienne de 2006 dans la province de l Ontario. Les candidats sortants sont en italiques ; les gagnants sont en caractères gras. Sommaire 1 Ottawa 2 Est de l Ontario 3 Ontario Centre …   Wikipédia en Français

  • New Democratic Party candidates, 2004 Canadian federal election — The New Democratic Party ran a full slate of candidates in the 2004 federal election, and elected nineteen members to become the fourth largest party in the legislature. Many of the party s candidate have their own biography pages; information… …   Wikipedia

  • Toronto Centre — Infobox Canada electoral district province = Ontario caption = Toronto Centre in relation to other Toronto ridings fed status = active fed district number = 35093 fed created = 1933 fed abolished = fed election first = 1935 fed election last =… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”