August 15, 2006, carnegie newsletter by Carnegie Newsletter

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The Voices Of The Carnegie Newsletter So many people have written for the Carnegie Newsletter. So many people have helped put it together. We can' t name them all, but we can name some of them. If your name has been left out, we apologize. Hundreds upon hundreds of people have helped to keep the Newsletter going. Some of those people have died over its 20 year history. We remember them with reverence. They are part of our living community. As Leith Harris wrote in one of her poems, "Their spirits live within us And keep the circle strong." Each name brings up memories, and memory is the mother of community. Here are the names of some of the people who have helped with the Carnegie Newsletter over its twenty years: Paul Taylor, Bud Osborn, Tora, Sheila Baxter, Dan Feeney, Leigh Donohue, Irene Schmidt, Steve Rose, Dave McConnell, Sandy Cameron, J ancis Andrews, Tom Lewis, Margaret Prevost, Terry Flamond, Shang Lung Liao, Mike Kramer, Videha, Jeff Sommers, Garry Gust, Anita Stevens, Maxine Gadd, Diane Wood, Bob Sarti, Dora Sanders, John Ferguson, Sam Roddan, Leith Harris, Shawn Millar, Carl MacDonald (Mr. McBinner), R. Loewen(AI), Daniel Rajala, Taum, Robert Lemieux, Frank Parker, Ga Ching, Robert Rich, Wilhelmina Miles, Fred Arrance, Robyn Livingstone, FudolfPenner, Kevin Annett, Earle Peach, Paul Wright, Luka, Ken Morrison, Rolf Auer, Jean Swanson, Beth Buchanan, A. Kostyniuk, Libby Davies, Charles Fortin, Muriel Marjorie, Colleen Gorrie, Ian MacRae, Jenny Kwan, Willy Munro, Dean Ko, Patrick Foley, Michael Bohnert, Larry Mousseau, Sarah de Vries, Gram, Jorge Escolan-Suay, Henry Dutka, Mary Ann Cantillon, Delanye, Michael Clague, Harold Asham, Gena Thomp~on, Savannah Wailing, Ann Livingston, Muggs Sigurgeirson, Sandy MacKeigan, Stephen Belkin, Stephen Lytton, Mary Duffy, Sue Blue, Shelagh Day, Marlene Trick, Mike Guy, Gerald Wells, Maureen Kerr, Christiane Bordier, Grasshopper, Yukon Eric, Brill Preston,j a douglas, Sharon KJ:avitz, Lisa David, Crystal Asham, Bonnie Stevens, Jim Leyden, Bharbara Gudmundson, Richard Tyfman, M. J Kelly, Sam Snobelen, Peter Fairchild, Vickie Dutcher, Meta Jacobsen, Susan Henry Charo Neyille, Colleen Carroll, Roger Brouillette,

Beth (our librarian), Marilyn Young, Ayisha, Sophia M. Freigang, Louisa de Plume, Kat Norris, Raul Gatica, Jacqui, Mariner Edelson, Nahid A. Nasirabadi, Ellen Woodsworth, Norma-Jean B., David Eby, Marie Lands, T. C., Sylvia, Sharon Isaac, Bill Easlie David Jaffe,, Mike Hughes, Susan Boyd, James McLean, Jaya Babu, Cecine Lam, Rosetta Stone, Sam George, Don Larson, Seth Klein, Atiba Mathew Mathew, M. McCormack, Doris Leslie, Elaine Woodhall, Tracy Knight, A. K. Hawley, Jayce Salloum, Michael McKim, Isabel McCurdy, Wendy Pedersen, Rick Pambrun, Miriam, Julia Manitius, Steward Gonzales, Penn B, sparrow, Angela Sterrit, Zeina Waheed, Yun Quan Liu- and many, many others. The Carnegie Newsletter thanks you all.

The Carnegie Newsletter Is Twenty Years Old! Twenty years, I tell you. Unbelievable! Our Carnegie Newsletter has been giving people a chance to define their own reality for twenty years. The Carnegie Newsletter has a passionate sense of j~stice. It is information, entertainment and inspiranon all together. It is a celebration of resistance against those who attempt to exclude the people of the Downtown Eastside, and destroy our community. It is a declaration that we live here, that we are somebody. The Carnegie Newsletter has been bringing hope for twenty years. Congratulations to the editor Paul ' Taylor, and to all those other volunteers who have worked over the years to write and publish our paper. It has been coming out twice a month for twenty years, and has only missed publication a few times. There have been many occasions (too many) when Paul Taylor has stayed up all night putting this paper together so we would have it on time. The Carnegie Newsletter is paid for by the Carnegie Community Centre Association, and 1200 copies are printed each time it's published. When AI Mettrick arrived at Carnegie in the summer Âˇ of 1?86 to help set up a newsletter, no one thought that It would still be going twenty years later. AI ~ust walked around inside Carnegie, asking everyone if they would like to join the newsletter group. Paul said, "Yes," although he didn't know much about newsletters. He did know how to type, however, and he understood that words spoken or written at the

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right time can help to change the world. The Newsletter started on August 15, 1986, and Alleft in December of that year. Paul, contributing since its inception, became editor when AI Mettrick left, and he has been the editor ever since. He wanted to give everyone a chance to speak with his or her own voice, and he knew that if we didn' t speak, those with wealth and power would speak in our place. Putting even one Carnegie Newsletter together takes a huge amount of work, so putting newsletters together every two weeks for twenty years as a volunteer, takes an exceptional commitment. Paul's commitment extends beyond the Newsletter. He has sat on the Board of Directors of a number of Downtown Eastside organizations, including the Carnegie Community Centre Association, and also puts out the very important Help in the Downtown Eastside. In 1988, Paul was chosen as Carnegie' s first Volunteer of the Year. Where does Paul' s strong sense of commitment come from? Through iHness he learned what it was like to be shunned and excluded. Travels in India and Nepal (with virtually no money) opened his eyes to the poverty and suffering in the world. In Norway he became involved in the resistance to the building of a dam that would flood land belonging to aboriginal people. His work with a socio-spiritual organization strengthened his commitment to service, sacri-

fice and surrender (non-attachment to the out:) come of one' s actions). He learned to live according to his principles. For example, Paul believed in the Carnegie Newsletter so strongly that on three occasions ~ in the early days, when the soon-to-be ousted Board of Directors tried to kill the paper by refusing to pay for it, he paid for its publication with his own money [medical welfare] Some of the stories came to Paul on bits of paper, written by people who had never written before. Paul would help people with their stories, or send them to the Learning Centre for help. Sometimes he would clarify a story so others would be able to read it. His purpose was to publish the voices of those who had been excluded by the corporate society. He wanted the Carnegie Newsletter to speak ,...out strongly on issues of social justice, and to cct the joy, pain, beauty, courage and compassion that he saw in the community every day. The book, " The Heart of the Community: The Best of the Carnegie Newsletter," edited by Paul and published by New Star Books in 2003 , shows that he succeeded in making his vision a reality. But Paul didn' t do tlus alone. Many people helped him over the years. Dan Feeney, with his powerful ·writing and technical skills in newsletter publishing, helped in the earlier days of the Newsletler. Lee Donohue, Dora Sanders, Dean Ko, Vidcha and Sandy all helped with writing and with putting the paper together. More recently Diane Wood, with her artistic skills and writing, has helped enormously. She is a fine artist who has drawn many excellent cover pages for the Carnegie Newsletter. One of her artistic works has been shown at the National Art Gallery in Ottawa. So many people have helped in the past So many people are helping now. They have all helped to give the me mbers of Carnegie and the residents of the Downtov.m Eastside an opportunity to express their own authentic voices. The Carnegie Newsletler has a website:

www.carnnews.org The Ne wsletter has supported the life-giving services that our community needs such as the safe inj ection site, the Life Skills Centre, the Pender Street Clinic and the Powell Street Clinic. It fought Coun-

cillor George Puil' s plan to build a recycling incinerator plant at Terminal and Main in the early 1990' s because of the pollution problems for the Downtown Eastside. When Councillor Puil saw the resistance to his plan, he withdrew it. Paul knows the Carnegie Newsletter will change as the times change. He hopes, though, that it will never lose its feisty, grassroots feeling. He hopes that it will always fight for justice, and that it will always be a voice for low income people. Congratulations, Paul, on the 201h anniversary of the Carnegie Newsletter. May it continue to reach out to people, giving them an opportunity to say in a strong voice, "We are somebody". By Sandy Cameron

Paul this is just a short note of congratulations on 20 years of excellence. hope you get in another 20 . all my respects hal

Dear Friends, I wish to congratulate the Carnegie Newsletter on its 20th Anniversary! To me, the newsletter is all about "keeping it real" it' s the straight up truth without any "spin.'' When people want to know what the Downtown Eastside is all about, I tell them to go read the Carnegie Newsletter. The Carnegie Newsletter is without doubt the best demonstration of the dynamic and close knit neighbourhood that is our Downtown Eastside. I am always inspired and educated by it, and it helps me to represent our community better in Ottawa. Thank you everyone at the Carnegie Newsletter you are all amazing, especially under the wise editorial guidance of Paul Taylor. Here's to another stellar 20 years of insightful and thought provoking one of-a kind journalism! Sincerely, ... •

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Libby Davies, MP (Vancouver East)

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Regular Carnegie patrons may recognize some of the faces on these pages. Other faces may not be as well known. The one thing that they all have in common is that they are volunteers for the Carnegie Newsletter. Twice a month, these folks donate several hours of their time and energy to collating, stapling, folding and distributing 1,200 copies of the newsletter. Their jobs do not have the glamour of writing or making art for publication, and they do not have to worry about someone criticizing their work like the layout person and editor do - " Look what you did to my poem!" - but their work is a vital link to providing the publication that we all look forward to reading. I know that Paul, for one, greatly appreciates their efforts. So, thank you to all of you for your hard work and Âˇ Âˇ "

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Harold A.

Camera shy:

Jean Harold D.

On vacation:

Videha

Taking a well-deserved break: Sandy

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To PauiR Taylor, editor, 'The Carnegie' Congratulations, Paul and the team for 20 great years of quality reading! I remember its forerunner - a news sheet via DERA to keep D .E. residents up to date and informed of happenings in their part of the city and I requested a copy. The Editor said she would be willing to send me one, but as I didn' t live in the area, a donation to cover postage would be appreciated. I still receive ' my copy (now, The Carnegie [Newsletter]) and what a joy it is - information, articles, art, poetry, laughs and tears. Nothing can come up to its quality. My most recent copy arrived and I was delighted to see that it was a well-earned tribute to that " Teller of Tales & Sayer of No'' Sandy Cameron. In the same paper was Jean Swanson' s powerful section about hotel evictions, the Vancouver Agreement and, of course, her report on the campaign for the longawaited & much needed upgrades to the assistance rates - and at last I am beginning to feel that are nearer than ever before! I salute you all; a super team and roll on the next 20 years. Yours ever, Margaret Davies

Missing Women

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Like the dawn the heartbeats of our missing women continue their voices echo like music in the wind,

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Carnegie volunteers at the Powell Street Festival, spreading the word about the "Raise the Rates" campaign.

Have You signed the petition yet?! their whispers cry for justice throughout this land like an eternal flame their justice must not be denied or forgotten Once again their fight is our fight

their plight is our plight loved and not forgotten. Stephen Lytton

To Diane Wood The words of her spirit came through as having made their way to the surface of a caldron. " We're th white trash, th drunk Indians th niggers, th spies, & half-breeds We're th ones U call Stupid, Ugly, Lazy, Dirty, Good-4-Nuthing, Only Good 4 One Thin •••

This poem was the lightning that first struck me the talent and depth ofDiane Wood' s art. In 1998, the full text appeared in the October 15th edition of the Newsletter. Diane submitted some of her graphic art in fits and starts over the following months, and I recall one of the frrst times she was in the office . ' agttated about having to decide which memorial to attend because there were so many of her friends and acquaintances dying in the wars of the Downtown Eastside. I gathered that an intimate had just died as a direct result of the predations of one or more drug dealers - Diane voiced her fury as "I feel like committing murder" - and left saying "I have to get out of here for awhile."

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Beginning about 2000 or 2001, Diane began sharing layout duties with Shawn Millar and I had my frrst lesson in the consequences of changing just the size and layout of a respected artist's work (even though it was mandated by space requirements and budgetary concerns). I recognised her sensitivity to editing, making " a note to self' for future reference. Over the next 5 or 6 years Diane's art, poetry and writing became more and more an integral part of the Newsletter, especially augmented by her additional work doing the partial and then almost complete layout, issue after issue. Her cover art began to appear and adorn each edition, laid out to make a statement on its own and introduce the lead story. Excellent all! She also encouraged and recruited others in the ' hood to get their ideas, experiences and opinions on paper and hand such in for consideration. There was consultation on logistical matters, and also on the appropriateness of some stuff. The two of us had differences of style and opinion but for the most part such were not breakers of the working relationship involved.

About mid-June of this year I made a mistake regarding the sanctity of Diane'~ graphic art, looking for a relevant illustration for a piece and just cutting a portion of a previously appearing cover art and using only that bit for the current space. I'd haphazardly done such for years to graphics found in magazines or other publications, taking a portion of a whole for the specific allusion such would imply or add. They were anonymous and months/years old. Not so with Diane's work. And this incident apparently illuminated other things in her perception of my respect for her; while the collation of the June 15 issue was in progress, she emotionally announced her withdrawal from the publication and has since reaffirmed her choice to engage her energy and talent in other endeavours. Diane has been recognised from here to the National Art Gallery in Ottawa for the level of her talent. Her people skills are far superior to mine and I can only wish her the very best. For others reading this, please consider the Carnegie Newsletter a voice, mine and yours, to express the dynamic spiritual power of the Downtown Eastside. Respectfully submitted, PaulR Taylor, editor.

7 Women's Stories Told (The Province, Page A20, 08-Aug-2006)

A book of the life stories of seven women who have triumphed over addiction, poverty and illness on Vancouver's notorious DowntownEastside has won the George Ryga Award for Social Awareness in B.C.Writing and Publishing. Leslie Robertson and Dara Culhane compiled In Plain Sight: Reflections On Life In Downtown Eastside Vancouver in an attempt to counter what they saw as the misconceptions that surround Vancou_ver's inner city. "Readers will have found neither the idealized nor demonized images of the junkie, the prostitute, the underclass hero, the victimized woman, the AIDS sufferer, or the homeless aboriginal woman in these accounts," the editors say in the afterword. "Rather than these conventionalized figures," they write, "you will have met seven women, exhausted by... their daily struggles who have for reasons of their own chosen to tell you their stories." The book is gritty, at times dark and depressing, but is also pervaded by optimism, though the optimism

is painted across a backdrop of mental illness, drug addiction, prostitution and desperate poverty. One of the women whose tale is told is Anne. Sexual abuse, mental illness, trauma and poverty are threads woven through a life in which she is trying to raise a child alone. The father is long gone, a heroin addict somewhere. "I don't know if our stories will~help, " writes Anne, "but that's my hope. I need to leave my child a better place to live in. If I don't actively work in my community to change things and make them better, even to some small degree, then I believe that as a parent I have failed." Ken Smedley runs the George Ryga Centre in Summerland. He said the women portrayed in In Plain Sight are the kind of people with whom Ryga, who died in 1987, could easily have sat down and enjoyed a long conversation over coffee. He said the book displays the "multidimensionality" of people often discarded by society as down-andout and losers. "It was so much of what [Ryga] represented in all of his work," Smedley said, "the disenfranchised and the marginalized. This piece was representative of that kind of multidimensionality, Things have not looked up for that segment of the population." Among previous winners of the award is Maggie De Vries for Missing Sarah, the author's story of her sister who vanished into the Downtown Eastside. Sarah De Vries's DNA was later found at the farm of accused serial killer Robert William Pickton.

Doing M_y 5it Riding the No.8 bus down to Carnegie, we pause at the light on Main at Hastings. As people turn to look at the scene outside the Centre, I always say (in a very loud voice) " Did you know there is ballroom dancing inside Carnegie?" The look of amazement on their faces is wonderful and I know they won't ever view the Carnegie Centre without thinking /5allroom D ancing! I'm doing my bit to change perceptions one bus ride at a time. Kelly

Celebration

AWESOME ASAHI This past Sunday Aug ih at the Oppenheimer Park softball diamond, the inaugural exhibition game between the Oppenheimer Park Pirates and the Asahi Japanese team representing the renowned Asahi Nine was played. The game was to commemorate an all-Japanese baseball side from Vancouver that was one of the best of the pre-war era. The Pirates were made up of mostly Carnegie and Oppenheimer Park staff and volunteers. Popcorn, lemonade, watermelon and hotdogs were among the . refreshments graciously served by harried yet cheerful participants. The food was meted out by means of old ball park style neck strap box trays. DJ Cody provided the authentic ballpark ambience with 30' s big band and swing style music. The lemonade was especially welcome as it was a perfectly hot summery day for a game of softball. Although the Pirates were handily beaten by the well coached and coordinated team of Asahi, the Pirates did make a valiant effort to provide competitive opposition for the Asahi. The Pirates lack of practice time was evident in the number of miscues they committed but rest assured that the rematch will not result in such a lop sided score next year. Thanks to all who showed up and especially thanks to Sandy, Colleen, Diane and the rest of the Carnegie and Oppenheimer staff for organizing and putting on the event. Also thanks to the Asahi themselves and their contingent of friends, family and supporters. We would also wish to thank the Harbor Light crew for providing additional players. The approximately 75 spectators attested to the popularity of this game and next year it should prove to be even more successful. So don' t forget to put this event on your calendar for next summer! AK47

A Gala Celebration Japanese people rich in culture ri~h in history Japan, her people past, present, future emerge in the ' hood like decades before her people .. welcome us with open arms • srrens scream m the distance Vendors selling their wares • • voices, music laughter everywhere there' s a feeling a deep connection of being here, there sharing her beauty calm, peaceful, holding her hands but for a moment Japan, the land of the rising sun •

Stephen Lytton

PIVOT Legal Society is re-locating in September to

668 East Hastings Street 604-696-1322

cent tax on legal services. His point was that the tax is a barrier to low-income people obtaining justice. The Supreme Court of Canada will hear the case next March. In recognition of Christie' s contributions, the Carnegie Association has allocated $200 to provide free legal education materials in Carnegie. Thanks, Dugald, for all you have done for the community. Almost at the same time that Dugald Christie lost his life while trying to help people, another individual who also had a big impact on the Downtown Eastside also died. But Gilbert Paul Jordan' s contribution was of the very negative kind. He was no friend of the community. Jordan was the " boozing barber" who caused

Dugald Christie - a friend indeed. Dugald Christie died as he lived - fighting for the legal rights of the low-income community. Christie, 65, was struck by a van and killed in a traffic accident on Aug. 1 in Ontario while pedalling across Canada as part of his life' s crusade for access to justice for all Canadians, especially the poor. The tall, lanky lawyer -a Scotsman- will be remembered in Carnegie as the founder of the lawyers' free legal advice clinic. He believed strongly that nobody should have to face court on their own and without help. (The clinic still goes on weekly on Carnegie' s third-floor.) Christie was a successful establishment lawyer with a big house and expensive car in West Vancouver when he had a complete change of heart. In 1982, he house was destroyed by a rampag ing creek, and he realized that there are more important things in life than j ust making money. He wound up living in a room at the Salvation Army and working for practically nothing. The free program he founded, now called Western Canada Access to Justice Society, runs 6 1 clinics in B.C and has 400 lawyers donating their services for nothing (" pro bono") .. An avid cyclist, he was travelling to Ottawa to _ lobby the politicians for judicial reform. It was his third bicycle trip across Canada for that purpose. At his death, there is still an outstanding court case that he launched against the province's seven per

the death of at least ten women by inducing them to drink alcohol in lethal quantities. Most of his victims were First Nations women who he picked up in beer parlours. They died in local hotel rooms and in his barber shop on Kingsway. He would lure the women to his room, then ply them with drinks, telling them, " Down the hatch baby," and " Twenty bucks if you drink it right down."

An alcoholic himself, and a life-long anti-social creep and lawbreaker, he got away with his killing spree for years because - like in the missing women's case - police failed to notice any pattern in the deaths. Finally, in 1987, he was convicted of manslaughter for one of the deaths and was sentenced to 15 years in prison, reduced to nine on appeal. When he got out, he continued to be a menace, prowling bars in Vancouver ·a nd Victoria, but always being watched by the police. He was 7 4 when he died.

By Bob Sarti

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Electronic Recycling Association Hope you are doing well. My name is Bailey Smith · and I'm contacting you on behalf of the Electronic Recycling Association. We are a non-profit organization focusing on the reuse and recycling of computer related equipment and other electronic~. Each month, a percentage of collected eqmpment gets refurbished by volunteers and distributed amongst many charities, non-profits groups and children's facilities etc. This month we are in desperate need of more donations of laptops and computers to cover all the charities and non-profit groups requesting equipment. Please get back to me if you are able to contribute by donating 10 pieces or more and I'll be happy to send out a truck. If you have any other equipment for donation or recycling please contact me also. Thank you www .era.ca

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New Librarian Hello Carnegie. My name is Mark Kocp. I will be your librarian for the next 7 months while the fabulous Beth Davies is on maternity leave. Please feel free to drop by my office anytime to ask questions, share ideas or just to say hello.

Writers Workshop with Drew Hayden Taylor Monday, August 28 from 2pm to 4pm in the Carnegie Centre Theatre Drew is an award-winning playwright, author, columnist, filmmaker and lecturer who has spent the last two decades travelling the world and writing about his experiences from the Aboriginal perspective. In this workshop he will be talking about the writing process and answering questions from participants. There are many books by Drew Hayden Tay lor in the Carnegie Library's First Nations Collection. Look under the call number 822 T A Y for his plays or under 828 T AY for collections of articles by him . New Books Thanks to a generous grant from the Friends of the Vancouver Public Library, and the enthusiastic shopping skills of Montana, April and Ken, Camegic has a new influx of books for youth, chosen by youth. There arc new science fiction titles, gaming books, and a whole range of weird and wonderful books - look out for the round green "chosen by youth, for youth" stickers.

Two to Compare ·

Picking Blackberries with Jean Berries are the luscious jewels of summer, And blackberries are the most prized of all. Most berry-pickers I know Guard the location of their blackberry patches Better than many countries protect state secrets. So, I am honoured to accompany Jean t o "her" spot . She doesn·t even ask me to wear a blindfold. The morning air is cool as we start out. It is a treat for me to see green spaces, And to hear the birds calling to one another. Jean and I enjoy the silence while we work. Is it a coincidence that the thistles and berry bushes Grow in close proximity? Thoms, thorns, thorns . But we are determined to claim the treasure. ' Wading in, ignoring the scratches And pretending not to mind the spiders l' m such a city girl! I fill my small pail again and again. Later, I assess the damage: Stinging flesh, Lady Macbeth hands, A broken fingernail - all minor. l had fun. I return home, triumphant, And bake a fresh blackberry pie For my beloved. •

Lisa David

Can you see me clearly through your inverted eyes As they jitter and dart around, askew Maybe some skittish nerves, fraying apart now Can you sense or have a feel for a few? You seem to slightly cry, to wince, at such trivial meaningless thoughts of recent wanton woes It appears it's always trauma~ live or die, with you - like a helpless wisp of wind - I never know, With you it' s always touch and go ... with a small little stack of crumpled scripts in your crunching, possessive, chilling fists Are you really that taut, intense and, truly, subdued -come what may I don't think more or less of you. Does the hurt run so loud, so deep, in a terrible, boiling turmoil that twists and steeps And the feel fo an addled, malaised mind, with an ongoing steady drum that numbs the heart in kind Don' t tell me of the day the twain shall meet, when the souls of a select few will tum around, become complete I believe you when you spout loving these thoughts to see what your time in life has wrought Excuse me when I make my shallow (false) excuses because I too remember long past suppressed abuses ' Get over it. ' as I've been told I instructed to do, that's never worked for me and may not ever for you So we will always be leaving home, with no roots to share; with no place to ground, nor roam where life was messy, tortured and forever long where we fought for our lives and breath, hammer and tong Maybe some day, some when, somewhere, somehow we shall deservedly discover a shared and settled peace - with a will to never again compare The then, the now, and to lie relaxed in a serenely silent and justly perfect ease. Robyn Livingstone

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Barrie Zwicker the only Canadian journalist on television to expose the mass deception of the official 911 conspiracy tale, will be making a special appearance in Vancouver to present his new book, '

Towers of Deception: The Media Coverup of 911'. This extensively researched book is filled with dozens of illustrations and Mr. Zwicker's DVD exposing the history of false flag operations. Given the agendas that have been directly enacted or fueled as a result of911, this is a must-attend eventmore timely now than ever!

Wednesday, August 30th, 7:30pm St.Andrew Wesley Church Burrard & Nelson, downtown Vancouver. Entrance: sliding scale: $5-$20 www.necessaryyoices.org for more details.

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On the Stadium Your worship and council, I'm standing here quite by accident. The product of two young people unable and unaware of the commitment and planning it takes to raise a family. Due to this factor, I spent much of my childhood until the age of 8 shuffled between two rough neighbourhood:. the Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York and small town Trinidad and Tobago. I remember both areas and, as dangerous as they were, we kids always found creative and typically safe ways and places to play. Because safety was heightened there was always someone watching out for you. At the age of eight, I was sent to live with my Father's family here in Vancouver at 17th and Oak. In \ spite of my grandparents love, tennis, swimming and violin lessons, I was miserable in this picture perfect neighbourhood without my parents. If living in a nice, safe, gentrified neighbourhood means happiness, TV shows like Dynasty, DalLas and Desperate Housewives would never make it to air. One of the few memorable highlights of this period of my life was going to a Whitecaps game; with my Uncle and wearing my Whitecaps raincoat proudly to school and soccer practice. For the last 13 years I've made Gastown my home in spite of the much discussed noise of planes, trains,

automobiles and movies, movies, movies. With the backdrop of a brand new stadium, Vancouver will really look like the model of the dystrophic American inner city. Two weeks ago at Special Council I heard a Whitecaps advocate use the term " our Gastown". I would like to use that terminology to reflect on pride of place. It's never our Gastown when the drunken sons of the suburbs are urinating in front of residential buildings. It' s not our Gastown when women go missing. It's not our Gastown when the sons and daughters of the suburbs get stabbed and shot. It's not our Gastown as you sit comfortably locked in your air conditioned car on a hot day wondering why Main and Hastings is a mess of people who have been forced out of their hot, rundown hotel rooms. In spite of all this I'm proud to say Gastown is my home. I' m proud of how hard the largest police department on the West Coast tries to handle the comings and goings of hundreds of addicts, tourists, residents and businesses. I'm proud of the Salvation Army for their commitment to this area. I'm proud of the legacy of people like the late Bruce Eriksen and Harry Rankin I' m proud of all the business owners who give residents a neighbourhood discow1t. I'm proud to say I live in affordable building that once housed the likes of Douglas Coupland and many struggling artists and musicians. I' m proud to see how Brian Adams took years to retro-fit one of Vancouver' s' first brick buildings into a world class recording studio. I'm disappointed that the Whitecaps believe their only constituency is Vancouver. I'm sure North Vancouver, Burnaby and New Westminster would gladly consider welcoming them as part of the municipal team we all call the Lower Mainland. I'm disappointed that the Whitecaps are not able to facilitate a mixed usc arrangement with GM and BC Places. Gastown residents and business owners do tlus everyday for movies and tourism. Finally I would like to say thank you to council and the planning department for creating a process, rather than putting out a fire. Raising a community is like raising a family. Without the input of all stakeholders the larger community suffers; in particular the ones who are the most vulnerable and voiceless. .

Thank you Sean George

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DEYAS Needle Exchange Van Schedule

DOWNTOWN

Telephone (604) 6'7-6~61

EASTSIDE

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2006 DONATIONS Libby D.'-$1 00 Rolf A.-$50 Barry for Dave McC-$100 Christopher R.-$30 · Margaret D.-$40 Bruce J.-$15 The Edge-$200 Mary C-$10 Penny G .-$50 MP/Jelly Bean ~$20 RayCam-30 Janice P.-$30 Wes K.-$50 Paddy -$60 Glen 8 .-$25 John S.-$60 Leslie S.-$20 Wm.B -$20 Michael C.-$80 HumanitiesiOI-$100 Gram -$20 Sheila B.-$20 Ben C.-$20 Brian $2 CEEDS -$50 Joanne H.-$20 Wilhelmina M .-$10 Saman -$20 Phyllis L.-$200

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,N E \It! s·L E.,. T E R THE NEWSLETIER IS A PUBLICATION OF TUE CARNEGIE COMMUNITY CENTRE ASSOCIATION. Articles represent the views or individual contributors and not or the Association.

Contributors may not malign, attack, or relegate any person, group or class, including drug users and economically poor to a level referred to or 'less than human'.

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acknowledge that Carnegie Community Centre, and this Newsletter, are on the Squamish Nation's territory.

HANDCRAFTED IN VANCOUVER CANADA

Edito11: PauiR Taylor; Layout & photos, Usa David.

BY DIANE WOOD

Submission Deadline for next Issue: Tuesday, August 29

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e-mail: flianeew@vcn.bc.ca

Coni ad

Jenny Jf'al CJ.Ing (wan MLA •

NEW CONCESSION HOURS:

9am-11:15am; 12pm-4pm; 5pm- 8pm II

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1070-J6.tl Commcrdal Dr VSL JVJ Phone; 775-0790 Fa1: 77!1i..{)881 Downcown Eastside Residents Association 12 E. Haastlngs St, or call 682-419J I

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=DO YOU HAVE A LEGAL PROBLEM?

workang tor You

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Come to our Free Clinic on Carnegie' s 3rd floor UBC Law Studen~s Legal Advice Program

Tues, 1Oam-8pm; Wed & Thurs, IOam-4pm I•

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Words to recognise 20 9ears

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Most of the comments in this issue of the Carnegie Newsletter are positive, even laudatory, with words including commitment, courage, justice, respect, quality, service, sacrifice and various synonyms. Thanks. This paper, with its best face forward, has been and hopefully will continue to be a vehicle for spiritual progress and social change. I' m not sure if there is or ever has been a ' worst face'? As editor I've been accused of being an arrogant asshole who can' t keep his fmgers off of other people's work, who changes things, is self-centred, insensitive, even "that fuckin' retard" ... The most fun to be had here always seems to exude from situations wherein someone or some group or some organisational staff get really pissed off about the views expressed in the newsletter about him, her, them and/or it. Mostly this comes from saying stuff that the object of exposure doesn' t want said. For some people even us having the temerity or just balls to disagree is an insult. "Who do these 'pests' think they are?'' or words to that effect. It's always astonishing how any public statements about ' opposition to' or just a different view is blatantly obvious as an expression of some kind of generic superiority complex. Such persons talk and/or act in condescending, patronising and viciously stupid ways to put us down and kick us out of the way.

Anaounceaa,eat UNTIL SEPTEMBER

Chalk Fastels by

Stephen Belkin are on display on the Jnt floor at Carnegie The show is called

"Isn't )t Good» t!sc£m~d"M

Part of the problem is that most of these self appointed overseers of just about everything are too stupid to argue with. Why waste time and paper giving them or their views equal space? If you want to get the " right" answer you just have to turn on a TV or get a daily paper and " their" views are front & centre, while "our" honest opinions or just factoids are extreme-leftwing-radical-marginalised garbage. Yeah, right. Guidelines/rules for submitting anything to the paper are: No racism; no sexism, no personal attacks on members of our community, nothing blatantly illegal (like libel), no crap. And someone has to decide what can and can' t go in. For the last 20 years that someone has been me, and I've never tried to please everybody. Thanks to you all! Respectfully submitted, PauJR Taylor Volunteer editor.

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It's Time to Sing the Old Songs Again It's time to sing the old songs again The times they are a changing. Not the way we meant or wanted But we knew this time would come round again. The rough beast is on its way to be born Afool can see the portent. The same old games have begun We never learn: our memories are all short term. Lest I name myself Cassandra or put a sign on my door Beware the ides of Mars In which case Iwill become like all the others Raving to an indifferent populace. So I shall go my careful way: not upsetting le carte Oo we need one more prophet - surely we have had enough Instead I will play the old music: sing the old songs Revolution is neither cool nor imaginable. Wilhelmina

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