John Clarke is an anti-poverty activist who lives in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. As of 2019, he was teaching at

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

Activism

A native of

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

, he moved to

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

and became an organizer there.Keenan Kusan
Workers being held down, activist says in Sudbury
''

Sudbury Star ''The Sudbury Star'' is a Canadian daily regional newspaper published in Sudbury, Ontario. It is owned by the media company, Postmedia. It is the largest daily paper in Northeastern Ontario by circulation. History The ''Sudbury Star'' began as ...

'' (March 26, 2016). He was a leading figure of the

Ontario Coalition Against Poverty The Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP) is an anti-poverty group in Ontario, Canada, which promotes the interests of the poor and homeless. The group uses publicity-generating direct action techniques such as squatting and demonstrations w ...

(OCAP) group until he retired from it in January 2019. ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'' reported in the year 2000 that Clarke's "guerrilla activism has pitted him against police countless times during the past decade."Margaret Philp
Activist to fight bail terms
''Globe & Mail'' (August 10, 2000). Clarke was arrested with three other activists and charged with inciting a riot for his role in an OCAP protest at Queen's park in June 2000. Clarke appealed his restrictive bail conditions in August 2000. In 2003, a judge stayed the charges and Clarke walked free. The ''

'' described Clarke in 2016 as "a 25-year veteran of activism." In 2019, he announced an online fundraiser asking people to contribute $25,000 for his retirement.

Teaching

In 2019, Clarke took on the post of Packer Visitor in Social Justice in the faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies at

. The position is for two years.

References

External links

Justin Podur interviews John Clarke
May 2004

''Eye Magazine'' July 19, 2001

''Eye Magazine'' August 7, 2003 {{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, John Canadian anti-poverty activists Living people Activists from Toronto Year of birth missing (living people) British emigrants to Canada Academic staff of York University