This report examines the various ways racialized people and communities face insecurity of housing tenure across Canada. This review encompasses municipal, provincial, and federal jurisdiction with special attention to the potential role of the federal government in alleviating the circumstances described.

The paper is comprised of three parts:

1. The first part provides an overview of the particular challenges facing racialized persons in Canada in relation to security of tenure. Specifically, it examines the displacement of communities and the widespread racial discrimination faced by individuals and households.
2. The second part briefly reviews existing federal legal commitments and human rights protections for racialized persons in the housing context.
3. The final part closes with paths to reform regarding the challenges discussed in the report, including recommendations for the Federal Housing Advocate.

Through this analysis, a number of structural conditions faced by people of colour that impact housing security become clearer, including: the scripting of people of colour as outsiders or non-citizens; discriminatory lending practices and other barriers to homeownership; unsuitable housing and poor housing conditions; a severe lack of affordable housing; the deep historical roots of current racial inequality; the nexus between labour, education, and housing; and the terrible impacts of COVID-19 on racialized communities.

There are a number of actions that the Federal Housing Advocate could take to work towards security of tenure for racialized people and communities in Canada. As an initial undertaking, this report proposes that the Advocate generate race-based data on housing nationwide and establish race-specific assessments and protections in relation to development (urban, infrastructural, and other forms), displacement, expropriation, and dispossession. It also suggests that the Advocate work with provinces and territories to regulate local housing markets more effectively and to protect homeless populations, and that they advocate for the construction of more public and affordable housing across Canada.