With over 500 homeless people dying on the streets of Toronto since 1989, housing activists accross the city are calling on the City of Toronto to make use of the hundreds of abandoned buildings scattered across the city so they can be converted into safe and affordable housing for the poor.

After being thrown away by Police for trying to break into the abandoned building behind him, a housing activist shouts out to the crowd surrounding this abandoned building. Organized by the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP), housing activists attempted to enter abandoned buildings in the wealthy High Park neighborhood in order to convert them into affordable housing to alleviate the growing housing crisis in the city.

These housing activists were were met with resistance from dozens of Police officers who were under strict orders to defend these abandoned properties located in the wealthy High Park neighborhood. Tempers flared on both sides and many of the participants accused the police of being overly aggressive.

After forcing the activists away from this abandoned building, police officers stand guard to keep them away. Some of the demonstrators pointed out the irony of the fact that their tax dollars were being used to pay police forces to "protect" these abandoned buildings, rather than on providing viable alternatives for poor people living on the streets.

After being forced away from the abandoned buildings by police the housing activists marched to Mayor David Miller's residence nearby. Here, they are gathered on Miller's doorstep shouting angrily about the Mayor's lack of interest in alleviating the growing housing problems in Toronto. Since David Miller came to power in 2003, the City’s welfare reserve fund has shrunk from $94.4 million to $8 million .

The Women Against Poverty Collective (WAPC) organised a housing takeover of an abandoned building in downtown Toronto. WAPC is a group of women and trans people who are working together to advocate for safe, affordable and accessible housing for women experiencing violence.

A small group of women broke into the building before demonstrations began, and before police could find out which building would be targeted. Police surrounded the building with the women inside. “We’ve learned through history that sometimes we don’t get anything unless we struggle and demand to get it,” says Anna Willats of WAPC, "(today) we will create our own housing. Housing that is controlled by us, for us, that is safe and accessible.” Willats explains that the building being taken over is one of hundreds of buildings in downtown Toronto that have been sitting empty and unused for years.

With the police surrounding the four women inside, demonstrators gathered outside the building, surrounding the police, in solidarity with the women inside. Demonstrators set up tents in front of the house and in the park across the street prepared to camp out there as long as it took for the police to back down and allow the women to begin setting up the building as a safe house for disadvantaged women and trans people.

As the tension mounted down below, Jennifer Plyler, one of the women inside the building, led the chants "Housing for women by women now! Housing for women by women now!"

Later in the evening, waiting for the rain to come pouring down (making it very difficult to document), the police decided to make their move. They surrounded the demonstrators, trampled over the tents, and began forcing the demonstrators back away from the building.

During the scuffle, one officer can be seen here attempting to restrain a colleague from getting overly aggressive.

Despite the surprise move by the police, demonstrators refused to back down, linking arms and responding with songs and chants. After the initial struggle, rows of police and demonstrators squared off in the middle of the street staring each other down, waiting for someone to make the next move.

As the rain continued to pour down, rows of police and demonstrators squared off in the middle of the street. Both sides can be seen here taunting one another.

After a long standoff, the police eventually lost their patience as it became obvious the housing activists were determined to stand their ground to protect the four women inside the building. Several officers on horseback moved in from the side creating a panic among the demonstrators who fled in terror from the intimidating charge. Some of people were trampled amid the chaos and are now pressing charges against the Toronto Police Department.

Having successfully forced the crowd away from the abandoned building the police line up to block the street. The four women in the building were arrested and eventually released.

A closer look at the photo above. This looks like the same officer (on the left) who needed to be restrained by a colleague moments earlier (see photo above) still mouthing off after the crowd had been chased away. More of his fellow officers appear concerned by his behavior.