The way to become an expert on poverty in Canada is to get a university degree, run a social agency, join a think-tank or work as a welfare official.
Living in poverty doesn't count. Knowing how it feels to be evicted, stigmatized, dependent on charity or forced to abide by rules devised by middle-class bureaucrats doesn't count either.
"Professional interventions are not as brilliant in life as they seem on paper," said Mike Creek, a cancer survivor who lost his job, his home, his savings – everything but his spunk – to the disease.
"If you are serious about poverty, you'd better have a few poor people at the table."
Creek is one of 14 graduates of a program called Voices from the Street. The 12-week course equips men and women who have experienced poverty and homelessness to speak out, challenge society's stereotypes and become community leaders.
Their "convocation" took place in the Malcomson Theatre at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. The audience straggled in and out. The program was a bit ragged. Nobody cared.
Author and anti-poverty activist Pat Capponi, the group's coach, mentor, cheerleader and den mother, proudly introduced the class of 2007.
"We are more than a speakers' bureau," she said. "We have overcome the barriers of shame, passivity and fear. We've learned that recovery is possible – but we can't wait for the system to recover us."
Then she invited the graduates to tell their stories.
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