Abbotsford homeless encampment residents push back 

she is more concerned about words than she is about danger and violence.

She’s worried about it being called a violent encampment, while using a burned down RV as a backdrop…

Drug users will always bring crime, violence, intimidation, and property damage. You need to get rid of the users.

I lived in this encampment for 5 years and addiction and mental health issues are the root of the problem. It’s extremely hard to get help if your trying to get out of that world and more housing won’t help. The amount of drug usage in the shelters and low income housing is insane. It is definitely very violent and everyone rips one another off and uses machetes or bear mace against each other. I’m one of the lucky ones to get out and stay clean and have full time employment

Ya, get her to walk thru that encampment at night when the mayor's security and police chief are not there. Maybe she'll change her tune

The reporter strikes me as clueless... Worries about the reputation of the homeless, doesn't worry about the danger they pose to themselves and others.

I was homeless in my car for ywo years in the valley I got myself out of it and into a place last summer. I never parked there or any place even close to this place or any like it. I would park where i was not a nuisance, and i got up every morning and got myself to work. I didnt leave a disaster behind and even to the surprise of my employer who had no idea of my situation until the floods in 2021 did not suspect i was struggling to get my feet back on the ground. The voices that are being ignored are the many people i know and have met that ate forced into cars vans and rvs that are elderly and on pensions or disabilities that don't keep up to the cost of living now. I can work and i can fight to help myself but these peoples vouces are not being heard. That older guy in his RV there...Hes one of those many unheard ppl. I've spoke to him before. And btw i am a recovered addict...I was an addict 30 years ago on these same streets. I got myself clean in 1993 and I've never looked back. It was all very hard to accomplish ...i shared my addiction stories and recovery with addicts on these streets. Every one i spoke with was trying to ..and wanting to get clean but simply unable to go that extra mile. I hope i planted seeds with those ppl. Gave them some hope to want to save their lives. There is a huge stigmatization on homeless and I felt it first hand. Its quite disheartening to know your being looked on as an addict just because your in your car while you are a 30 yr recovered addict who works and abides by the law. There so many facets to the problem from addictions to ppl simply falling thru the cracks. I really take serious exception to once illicit dangerous drugs being allowed into the streets. That is simply enabling addiction instrad of intervention and help. How did i find myself homeless? I moved back here from provinces away and there was a blunder with my 2 yrs of holiday pay at my last job that had me still on payroll which inhibited me getting hired with the same company here in BC and getting my holiday pay which was for my deposit and rent. The other money i had i was now forced to live off until the matter was straightened out. And as i found out many ppl are not to keen to rent to a clean cut working guy who fell on hard times and wound up living in his car...seems a slight stigma is attached to that so i couldnt rent nowhere until i found ppl who didnt have blinders on. Life is much better now thank God.

the price of basic housing is a true crime

Let's not call violence what it is. That will fix everything!

There are two types of homeless people. Drug addicts and people that work but cant afford rent. Clearly this place is not safe and it's not the only one. These are everywhere. Homelessness is a billion dollar industry and it's not going anywhere. In fact, it's getting worse.

CBC report...say no more.

CBC you are beyond help! Yes let's not hurt the violent peoples feelings

You have your security? She understands the irony of that statement right? This is the most left wing new piece from CBC I have seen in a long time. I would love to see her stay a week on camera at this encampment. She understands that labels can be put to use to describe her right?

The reporter shows up with security "I don't usually role with such a big posse" then turns around and says "why is the local government and police force using that label?" Hypocracy much?

Of course the CBC journalist is more concerned with stigmatizing the violent criminals, than the violence itself.

"I had no where else to go" is so untrue. He has a MOBILE home. There are a million places in BC to discretely park a travel trailer. He wants to be there...for some reason.

"Violence has quadrupled since 2015" -Police "Do u think its more violent here?.... I prefer anecdotal evidence over statistics" - Reporter

This reporter more worried about language used, such as "violent".... Same reporter needs security during the daytime, homeless with axes and machetes, someone shot last week, covered in zombies... The reporter IS THE PROBLEM 🤬

Animals don't live that badly! Time to clean up this mess up and haul that trash away!

I would say Lien has a preconceived impression she is trying to promote . That is not journalism .

People need to worry less about the words used to describe a person in a situation and more about what put these people into the situation in the first place. More importantly how to solve it! If its been called the most violent encampment, you need to remember that is relative to other encampments and is based on statistics you won't ever see... Thanks for getting the word from the people...

This is my hometown 😢 it's sad to see its gotten the way it is now

No one can live for free. Move on.Go north. Find work. Get off the sauce. Earn your way like the rest of us

Is this woman insane. Talking about the language of violent encampment. Like oh you can't call them violent. Then she says got my security here. Fire this woman for God's sake. It is violent encampment. What a silly PC woman.

A bit confused... Her immediate & seemingly primary issue is the "language" being used, not if there are facts to substanciate the language being used? Frequency of police calls? Frequency of fire calls? Per square ft incident calls compared to maybe other encampents? (giving us, not 100% accurate, but something to compare to). Interviews/stories from the police/firefighters? If we simply take the word of people saying "yeah things are good here, don't know what they're talking about" -then why do we need "investigative journalism". Educate the viewers with facts>feelings, this should not be an opinion piece or an attempt to make a serious topic (homelesness) a feel good story. #feedback #journalism #factsoverfeelings

Used to live in Abby for 6 months, that particular location is a greasy, greasy area.

I am a big supporter of CBC. But holy snap! This reporter is making it hard... Need for security. Burnt vehicules. Yup... No violence here.

Why do they leave such a fricking mess!

“Know about circumstances “ …. We all go through circumstances. There comes a time to just suck it up and carry on living Existing in a garbage dump behaving like an animal is not moving forward. How the heck do some pay for a cell phone , cig’s and pot but can’t pay a room or ….?!? I’m no rich guy just was told by my folks to DO something as life ain’t free

Hope that old man finds somewhere soon

Wow, a cbc report that allows comments!

Ain’t no way they paid for them flowers though. Literally saying they aren’t criminals 😂

The place is disgusting. City dumps are cleaner. I always wondered why the city has never put in garbage cans for the people there to use and keep it clean. Then a few days ago they finally brought in a garbage container for people to start cleaning up in there. Kind of wonder if they knew this reporter was coming.

She reallllly wants it to not be unsafe! Not exactly good or ethical reporting.

She's lost in the woke sauce. Her: "Are you sure its actually violent here? Are you sure its not just the reputation?" Them: "We use the machetes for self defense." 🤣💀

That's ok. I'm sure Trudeau cares about these Canadians

The minister of housing is a joke. Most MLAs and MPs have second and third and more investment properties.

well those people should be working if they are working then he should be demanding that they be allowed to rent a place at reasonable levels

Completely biased reporting. Try and live near one of these neighbourhoods. Your big assed security did not escape notice.

You don't have a residence if you are a vagrant. Camping does not constitute residency. Making the taxpaying locals responsible for these homeless ppl trashing their neighborhoods and making it unsafe for them is ridiculous.

I fixed a truck there man holy amount of junkies

Put the drug addicts into incarceration and into treatment programs. The remaining homeless need Safe, Secure, Affordable Subsidized Apartments to get them off the Streets and to hopefully minimize, if not, stop the crimes. Edit: ...to also give the non-addicted homeless therapy, training, and gainful employment.

Abbotsford and Chilliwack used to be places we would stop as a family, on our way to Vancouver. Not any more. Last time we went there were no locks on public toilets because they needed to get overdosing people out of the toilet on a regular basis. We saw an unwashed guy screaming and smacking himself in the face while sitting on the ground of a regular car lot business. It was terrifying. We are not planning to come back to this area ever. Other than to get gas if we need it. Although I understand that woman is right. This could happen to anyone given the right set of unfortunate experiences.

But the issue is there are violence there.

Not only was this my home town - but my mom was part of that camp and now the whole camp is fenced off and the folks had no where to go. I haven’t seen my mom since they put up the fencing. Where will folks live this winter? It’s getting colder and I worry every day.

I’d be very interested in knowing the ethnicity/race of the machete wielding thugs. Why did she try to make the place seem less dangerous and shape the gentleman’s answer.

Highly recommend a book called Sanfransicko. A lot of “meant well” policies don’t work because the policy makers aren’t stepping into the shoes of the homeless/addicts. They make policies that help no one and waste tax dollars.

Go back at night without security.

"So nobody has tried to cut your head off with a machete ?" So u feel safe right ?

Bam. Here is the biggest reason why nothing can get done about this. We are more concerned about hurting violent leeches on society's feelings.

Real reporting, very refreshing

This Reporter was so bias and bad at her job I could not believe most of what she was talking about she is part of the problem not the solution !

Homeless are not criminals remember that 😊

Fun Fact: in the original Resident Evil 4 the residents carried ''axes and machetes''

Just went by there today. Completely cleaned up, fresh gravel over the lot, blue fence around the entire property, security guard in a car. Not a trace of what was there when this video was filmed. In fact I have seen it look way worse in the past than this video shows. All cleaned up now. I can’t wait to gtfo of Abbotsford. What a depressing hell hole this is. Worst place I’ve ever lived.

4:51 - "I need ore holes in my face".

It's a financial issue because of inflation and rotten investors

Homeless people would get more slack if they weren’t such slobs. Garbage fences and burnt out hovels draw contempt. I think if they were tidy and clean, crafted art, repaired things, played musical instruments, and engaged with their host societies in a respectful manner, they wouldn’t be treated as enemies.

I feel she cherry picked the most approachable looking person there (I mean come on, he addressed the officer by "sir", and lives out of the shadows in a well kept unit), I wouldn't be surprised if she headed it with something to the effect of "I'm trying to draw sympathy for these people, can I interview you to destigmatize and show they aren't all violent" because when asked about them he says "they aren't violent but when asked how he feels living there he follows up with that he's scared. The mayor is right. The officers are right. Facts are facts. My heart breaks for the people who are victims in that situation, but no amount of charity changes that some of the people there are violent and are a hazard to the people around them.

This part of Abby has been like this for sometime now! They started under Hwy 1, along the railway, then eventually squeezed out the semis parked there. Now it's a garbage dump! It's an eyesore! To think that every human being has a choice to go in whatever direction in life! Which way did you go?

So, on the one hand the Police chief say violent crime has quadrupled since 2015(convenient date, but a denizen of the encampment says it's not violent at all.

Worried about them being labeled. How about worry about them being on drugs with no actual place to live. Go and embed yourself in the lonzo parkland ride for a few nights and see how Worried she is about labels

A bit rich they are focussing on a homeless encampment when discussing violence in Abottsford.

I seen another video she did on homeless and it seems she picks the places where not much is happening ,Hey little girl go where the druggies are and the VIOLENCE is ,or are you scared..without security like some other independant media go...!!

Why is anyone surprised? Thank you Justin for where you have led this country.

Just relocate them to Nunavut.

“I’ve seen this going on” HER: “ do you think that’s because people are telling you that you feel that way” This woman is stunned beyond belief

is she a reporter or trying to prove her point?

Sad when a reporter needs security to do a story...and then she is concerned about the language that is being used!!!!??? Talk about complete disconnect.

That reporter is not one pay cheque away from being homeless....that is ridiculous. And if a person's house burns down, there is something called insurance. And what does she mean she "is normally a truck driver, but now she looks after her disabled boyfriend"? None of that makes sense.

That one RV probably had a furnace or stove fire. Say they just lit it on fire sets false pretense of lawlessness.

Poverty is violence.

biased interviewer leading questions and preexisting assumptions

The housing standards are to high so when folk don't qualify these makeshift camps happens. Why can't there be people barns just to keep the down and out sheltered and out of sight.

Homelessness is a failure of the government……

This is for trucks man not junkies

tell it like it is and do what needs to be done out of love, regardless of the pushback. If its right, DO IT.

This reporter lives in la la Land. If it's a violent encampment then you call it a violent encampment. To sugar coated it or spread sunshine and butterflies around the description of the encampment would only endanger the surrounding people and first responders. Maybe she can come up with a more significant and effective resolution to the encampment than just a pathetic attempt to change verbiage. What a joke!?

My friend's great grandmother was brutally raped there by drugged up thugs.

I was born in kelowna as ricky delourme. then adopted. I spoke to my aunt rose once . anyone that can reconnect me with my family?

Blame yourselves, you voted the people in that don't do anything about the problems.

“Since 2015, our violent crime rates have quadrupled,” said the police officer. And yet, the police and government persist in “labeling” and “stigmatizing” the community by calling it a dangerous place to live. Instead of this kind of unfair rhetoric, it should be called a “safe” and “welcoming” community so that its residents feel better about themselves. Then everything will be okay. 🙄

The government solution is to have CbC normalizing living on the street. The liberal government knows these encampments are gonna get a lot bigger in the coming years

Oh no some where to go where and when to go?

This really is some bad reporting. She went in with a bias and didnt budge on it.

Thr cop tell the truth

They walk together so they have witnesses

Just put all drug addicts in a jail with mechanized cleaning and give them all the drugs if they want till they die of overdose. Or, they can choose to stay sober and leave the jail whenever they are certified detoxed and clean.

It means your drug control program is not working.

Don't Blow It Keep It Simple Count Your Money

to the older fella that needs a place to go... ,lives in his trailer, lets chat, i own a few acres up north from You, not to far.

Your second generator is safe. We just wanted to steal the first one. Cool…. Cool.

This is reporting with a bias. Couldn't be more obvious.

Bus some of those migrants out of Cali to Vancover BC, they would welcome them with open arms

Shut the door. we're here worried about our safety and you're worried about language. Go back to school and learn journalism. The city needs to clean it up asap. Let the mayor and police do their work.

Fail reporter, send someone who actually knows what they’re talking about.

Time to clean it up..

I am so damn sick of hearing people play semantics because of stupid wording. Its absolutely ridiculous that this reporter thinks she knows more than the POLICE who have seen firsthand what violence is in that place, and feels entitled to pass judgement. She should be fired for trying to push woke ideologies rather than reporting the news.

We are a family ……

The ones they interviewed there at 5:59 sound like they were drug addicts a little?