THIS IS A TRANSFORMATION FROM ABOVE - NOT FROM BOTTOM UP!
MYTH 1: This
transformation was started by the East End clinics. These clinics hired the consultants
‘Public Interest’ , which first came up with the recommendation of
mergers in 2013 [1]
FACT: Actually, LAO first proposed mergers in 2010 [2]
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MYTH 2: East End Clinics first
“wanted to plan out their futures” and this idea subsequently “expanded across the GTA” [3]
FACT: LAO proposed cuts to space/admin in 2012:
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MYTH 3: Clinic users have been
widely consulted
FACT: ‘Focus groups’ do not equate to democracy
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PRINCIPLES OF POVERTY LAW:
Gerald Lopez critiques lawering that positions lawyers as ‘experts’: “In the reigning vision of democracy, we govern ourselves through experts who ask questions only to confirm what they already have decided to do, often only to hang on to their power.” [4] SOURCES/FOOTNOTES: [1] “The evolution of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) Clinics Transformation" -LINK [2] LAO 2010 at 13-14 - LINK [3] February 2014 Newsletter -LINK [4] Gerald Lopez, "Living & Lawyering Rebelliously" at 2047 - LINK |