By Lucas Lelardoux Oliger
In 1988, after 40 years working as a priest, Father Emmett Johns became “Pops”. Enthused by the story of a Toronto man he heard about on the radio, Johns got in contact with him to import his plan to Montreal: a motorhome to help young people on the street. Pops could provide them with food, clothing, and someone to confide in.
At the time, the homeless crisis among youth was one among many societal problems. This era is recognized as being at the beginning of “invisible homelessness” in Quebec. Housing was being de-regulated, and the number of shelters was decreasing. Youth on the street were particularly vulnerable. They were often runaways and youth protection cases. There was ample opportunity for them to be lured into prostitution or drug dealing. Many of them were punkers, with an accompanying contempt for authority and the opinions of others.
But Pops didn’t want to leave anyone behind. In this spirit, in 1993 he created Le Bunker, an emergency shelter for youths. In 1997, he followed this up with the Centre de jour chez Pops, a day centre that offered a school, health care, reintegration programs, and art workshops.
As social activists, Emmett Johns and the current leaders of Dans la rue were, and still are, trying to fill a gap too often left by provincial and federal governments. The most recent provincial report on homelessness says that 20% of Quebec’s 10,000 homeless are under the age of 30. Many advocates involved in the fight against poverty, poor quality housing and social exclusion argue that governments aren’t motivated to help the neediest members of society. In 2022, 18,700 meals were served by the Dans la rue motorhome (La Roulotte), and there were 12,600 visits to the Centre de jour.
The programs launched by Pops ae admirable. But sadly, none of them can completely solve what Nadine Mailloux, Montreal’s Ombudsman, describes as a “humanitarian crisis in the heart of the city.”
Emmett Johns’ life was often affected by his own vulnerability. He suffered from chronic depression and suicidal thoughts. He did not hesitate to open up about his struggles, even though at the time these topics were more taboo than they are today. In 2008 his family doctor declared that “the idea of Bon Dieu dans la rue really healed him.”
Pops knew despair and loneliness, and understood when youth were experiencing the same. Seven years after his death, Dans la rue remains a social work model that is, above all, resilient.
Photo courtesy of Archives Dans la rue
Leave a Reply