povertyandhumanrights.org » Gosselin v. A.G. Québec

Gosselin v. Attorney General (Quebec): Autonomy with a Vengeance (2004)

phrc — Sun, 01 Aug 2004 16:22:41 +0000

In Gosselin v. Quebec (Attorney General), the first poverty case under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to reach the Supreme Court of Canada, the Court ruled against the applicant, Louise Gosselin and the class of social assistance recipients she represented. The decision is deeply divided, and the majority decision turns on a finding that the evidence was insufficient. Therefore, as precedent, the outcome of the Gosselin case may not be particularly significant. However, the majority’s assessment of the evidence is unpersuasive. The challenged social assistance regulation embodied a negative stereotype of young men and women who are reliant on social assistance, which, sadly, the majority of the Court embraced.

The majority decision contrasts sharply with powerful dissents of other judges who found that reducing social assistance for young adults in need to a below subsistence level violated ss. 7 and 15 of the Canadian Charter as well as s. 45 of the Quebec Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Gosselin v. Attorney General (Quebec): Autonomy with a Vengeance (2004)

Majority embraces stereotype of the poor (December 2002)

phrc — Sun, 01 Dec 2002 01:14:50 +0000

Majority Embraces Stereotype of Poor

by Shelagh Day

The majority decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in last week’s welfare rights case,

Gosselin v Quebec, is a disturbing one. Five judges endorsed a Quebec scheme that

consigned thousands of 18 to 30 year old welfare recipients to extreme poverty, and

found that it did not harm the human dignity of these poor young people.

The majority decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in last week’s welfare rights case, Gosselin v Quebec, is a disturbing one. Five judges endorsed a Quebec scheme that consigned thousands of 18 to 30 year old welfare recipients to extreme poverty, and found that it did not harm the human dignity of these poor young people.

Majority Embraces Stereotype of Poor

Poverty is a Human Rights Violation (December 2001)

phrc — Sat, 01 Dec 2001 15:54:19 +0000

This paper is about obstacles to an understanding that poverty is a human rights violation.

Poverty is a Human Rights Violation (December 2001)