During the past few weeks, our crew has been on the front lines with groups like Ryan's Hope and the Busby Centre, working to defeat bylaws proposed by Barrie City Council that essentially made homelessness illegal and compassion a crime.

Apparently, much to the surprise of Mayor Nuttall of The City of Barrie, hundreds of people joined the cause of ensuring that it would not be illegal to give a homeless person a sandwich or some money, as was supported by all councillors unanimously. Our crew attended two rallies and also twice at a tent city protest on the front grounds of City Hall. At one point, it seemed clear that the presence of our cameras might have deterred law enforcement from tearing down and removing the tent protest. Such is the power of truly independent media.

In the end, the Mayor and Council backed off and stayed the proposed bylaws that they tried to sneak through the council without any warning to the public. Their proposal now is that the language will be reviewed and modified and that staff at City Hall will review the proposal to be brought back to chambers in September.

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Videography by John Ironside, Tiffany Scott, and Sarah Bianco.

Post-Production by Sarah Bianco and Tiffany Scott

This video is a service to the community donated by Five Points Media.

Produced at Big Blue Box Studios in Barrie, ON. Home of Five Points Media and 3B Solutions.

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