Standing up for what is right is a part of who I am.
When I started my medical studies I began to make the link between our health and the health of the planet. I found like-minded colleagues at the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE)—where I have served on the board of directors. At CAPE, we led campaigns to ban coal fired power plants in Ontario and made sure corporate interests did not interfere with the 2019 Canada food guide.
After I completed my medical training, I worked in inner-city Hamilton, Sioux Lookout, Whitehorse, and at shelters across Toronto Centre before starting my own practice in Regent Park. It became clear to me quickly that my second act as an activist would be against the legislated poverty crisis that is a national shame and a local emergency.
As Chair of Health Providers Against Poverty, I called out the City of Toronto for its inhumane shelter and drop-in conditions, and successfully advocated for the introduction of new standards for 24-hour respite sites across the City. I also advocated for increased social assistance rates, and investment in social and supportive housing.
I’ve been called relentless in my work towards safer and healthier communities where every one has a home. This year particularly, peace and freedom for all in Palestine and Israel feels so far away when even in Canada the suggestion of solidarity with the suffering of innocent people is condemned. I have advocated for a free Palestine for decades and am a part of both IfNotNow and the Health Workers' Alliance for Palestine.
I am running to become the MP for Toronto Centre to take your stories and my relentless energy to Ottawa. Like all that I have done so far, I promise to be strategic in approach and uncompromising on principles.
— Samantha Green
