PETITION: Stop Jailing People for Having Mental Illness – Help Them Instead
In Canada today, our jails have become warehouses for people living with mental illness. That is not justice and it is not care.
We know the facts:
- Almost half of all Canadians will face at least one serious mental health issue by the time they’re 40.
- The criminal justice system has become the largest provider of mental health services in the country.
- Forty percent of people living with mental illness will be arrested at least once in their lifetime, most often for public nuisance offences directly tied to their symptoms, not serious crimes.
- In Ontario alone, more than 40% of incarcerated people show signs of severe mental health problems.
Our jails are full of people who need treatment, housing, and support, not punishment. When we criminalize mental illness, we make communities less safe, health outcomes worse, and the cycle of homelessness and incarceration even harder to break.
We call on all levels of government to:
- End the practice of using correctional facilities as default mental health care providers.
- Invest in community-based mental health services, supportive housing, and crisis intervention teams.
- Reform policies that criminalize symptoms of mental illness.
- Create alternatives to custody that prioritize treatment and recovery.
Every person deserves dignity, safety, and a chance to heal. Let’s stop punishing illness and start providing care.
Add your name and join the John Howard Society of Ontario in calling for a system that helps people instead of jailing them.