February 1, 2005, carnegie newsletter

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14 Annual February 14th Women's Memorial March in the Downtown Eastside Friday, February 14th , 2005 beginning at 12:00 noon at Carnegie Community Centre Main & Hastings

Honouring and remembering the lives of the 29 murdered women and 3 unidentified women from the Downtown Eastside and the 40 women who remain unaccounted for.

Agenda: 11 :30am 12:00pm 1:OOpm

2:00pm 2:30pm 3:00pm

Theatre Opens & Refreshments Served Gathering , welcoming prayer; Red Blanket Singers words from family & friends, song from Dalanah Bowen Join hands and form a circle at Main & Hastings March through the DTES offering of prayers, tobacco & roses Rally in front the of Vancouver Police Station Candlelight memorial at Oppenheimer Park Feast at the Japanese Language School

For mOIl3 information about the Women 's Memorial March, call Marlene at 665-3005 or Carol at 681-8480 ext 233.

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th Herstory of the February 14

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Women's Memorial March In 1991 a woman was murdered on Powell Street in Vancouver. Because of the way the woman W3Smurdered her family, people of the Coast Salishterritorv did a cleansing ceremony at each of the sites her remains we re found to cleanse her Spirit and allow it to travel to the Star Nations to rejoi n her ancestors .

This woman' , murder in particular was the ca talyst that moved women in the community into action.

Out of a sense of hopelessness and frustration that no one was listen ing, and feel ing like they needed to show the larger co mmu nity that vio lence against women - especially in this area - had to sto p, the wome n organized a march through the streets of the downtown eastside carrying placards and banners with the names of women in the community who had died or were murdered.

The march was held on February 14"', VALENTINES DAY, a day that signifies love. The colour purple was chosen because it is the colour of healing. Yellow was introduced as a symbol of hope .• . when women in the community were " M ISSING 111 ever increasing numbers. Red roses and tobacco were left at eac h of the sites women we re murd ered .

Yellow roses and tob acco we re introd uce d to each of the sites women were last secn .

Today the march contin ues , the ever increasi ng names 10 the memorial broc hure is kept as a marker and sta rk remind er that much work has yet to hap pen to prevent and end viole nce against women in this community , Seventy-two women arc on the "Miss-

ing Women List" , 29 have bee n positively identified and 3 arc uniden tified, 40 remai n " Missing" .

Wo men drum mers lead the march. The Women's Warrior Song was introduced by the Lil' Wat Nation fro m Moun t Currie in mem oriam for the wo men.

The so ng signifies tha t there is stre ngth in wom en and that we arc warriors in our own right We eac h have the strength to effect change.

A Hc rstory o f l he Womcn' , M cmorillll\lllrch : The Women's Memorial March is part of a lo ng her. story of organizing and rallying against violence against wo men in the DTES. Women. men and children in the Downtown Eastside gather on February 14'" to honour all the women in our community who have d ied and to remember the women who arc sti ll unaccou nted for. Valentine's Day was chosen beca use it is a day that is universally recognized as a ce lebration of LOVE. O n this day we remember our sis ters, mothers, partners, daughters. nieces, aunties, gra nddaugh ters, co usi ns, grandmo thers and friend s who have been taken from us thro ugh acts of violence . T he Wom en' s Memoria l March is an expressio n o f lo ve, not j ust for those who have passed on to the Star Na tions, but also for those w ho arc living.

The Women's Memorial March is about: • Cherishing the me mory and the unique, va luable lives of the women who have died and tho se who arc sti ll unaccounted for.

• Supporting the fami ly and frien ds of the wom en who have died an d arc still unaccount ed for.

• Jo ining sp iritua l heal ing and political resistance in all our ac tions .

• Engaging in co llec tive action to stre ngthe n the ca mpa ign to end vio lence aga inst all wom en & mobilizing the co mmunity to co nfront and end povert y, racism, homophobia, and all forms of op pression.

• Making local age ncies, organizatio ns, insti tutio ns and govern ment acco untable for ending vio lence aga inst women and demandi ng that they snpport women on our ow n terms .

• Refusing the stigmas imposed on wo men in the DTES around prostitu tion, pove rty, homelessness and addictions.

• Publicly condemning violence against women, \\ hencvcr and wherever it occ urs .

• Dema nding legis lative changes a nd govern ments that work for women in the DTES. The Feb ruary 14" Women's Memori al March is organized and led by wom en because wom en , es pecia lly Aboriginal women, facc physical, men ta l, emotional and spiritual violence on a daily basis. We invite the whole eo mmnni ty to join us in the spirit of the march . We ask that men share their gr ief and show their snpport by respecting the structure of the march

COMING TOGETHER FOR VALENTINES' DAY QUI LT WORKSHOPS FOR Til E FEB.I" WOMEN S' MEMORIAL MARCil DO YOU WANT TO INCL UDE TilE NAME OF SOMEONE WIIO YOll HA VE J.()ST? 2: 00- 3:30 pm At WATARI: Mondn)', J an.31 III - II am At L1FESKILLS : Wed. Feh . 2 1lI- \I am W ed . Feh.9 OPPE NIIE IM ER PARK 11 -12:1111 Fri. Feh ."

11 -1 2 am Fri. Fe h. II A t WISII (for street wurkers) Mon. Feh. 7 6 - 9 pm C A RNEG IE Women' s Sewing Ci r cle 6 - 9 pm T ues. Feh .1 T hur, Fe h.3 9 - II :30 a m T ues. Feh.1I 6 - 9 pm T h u r , Feb, III 9 - II :30 am

T he W omen 's Memorinl Quilt Project has evo lved into a fa bric banner tha t we plan to carryon the Va lenti ne's Day Memorial March. in remembrance of all wome n who have died through vio lence - physical vio lence, alco ho l and dr ug addictio n, HI VIA lDS, poverty and homcl essness.

We want to ha ng it where everyone can read the names, and add names over time. It will be a lasting tribute to the wom en we have lost in the DTES. representing o u r com munity, as we sec it. Everyone who fee ls moved to create a panel for the qui lt is encouraged to do so, men and women alike. When yo u co mplete you r piece, give it to Lucy A lde rso n, Marlene Trick or Diane Wood at the Carnegie. All pieces are to be in by February 10. The Women's Sewing Circle from 9 - I I :30 am will be open to men as well on this day for co mm unity involvement in com pleting the quilt for the March on Monday Feb . 14. If you're unable to bri ng your piece in by then, carry it on the March and we' ll sew itto the others later. Two wom en making a document ary for the NFB on missing and mu rdered Aborigi nal women will be filming on the Ill" and the 14'h

I [eatin g th e Com m u n ity 011 February 14, 1995 ,

Valentine's Day, one hundred people gathered at the Carnegie Centre to re member the wom e n

who had been murdered or died from drug overdoses in the Downtown Eastside.

We burned sweetgrass, reci ted pra yer s,

and wept for our sisters who had died alone, "They are 1I0t alone today."

Margaret Pre\OSI said.

Theil we marched

1\ roml 0 1 it th o usand mil l'S l>eg ins wit h th e (irst

thro ugh the Do wnto wn Eas tside.

s te p.

leming a red rose at the Sunrise Hotel,

(SH Ie that WO ll)C) {"'lim!' the> lil<lller 1II11s t begin ilt

the Dodson ,

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Pigeon Park. the alley behind the Balmoral, the Empress, and the Patricia.

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th o e igth time.

M issing Sara h. Womell at /JE We are reading IJ!issi" l! S arah and IUH';ng all event with Alaggie de Vries, th e hook 's author, Feb I I"', IPM at the IJE We S ee Ma ry A 1111 at th e library- for more in/ormation.

Al each spot Elder Harriet Nahance sang and wept for those who had died, and we chan ted as we wal ked ,

"Work for change; slop the violence."

IlIl1<lWSLlTTlR IS A f lJBUCATION Of TI lE C \R 1< U a E COMMtl 1< IT\' C ENTRE ASSOCIATI ON

Al Oppenheimer Park we stood in a circle of lighted candles ill the presence of those who had died and heard the claim Ihey made on us

Amc lcs f( prtsenllhc \'Kws or indi"idual cunllibulOn .AlI not o h hc As楼Jciation

S u h mission Deadline

In grieving together we arc stro ng .

In the ability 10 grieve lies the power of prophecy 11:>1" that" hieh is is not wha t ought

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Work for change; stop the violence.

S~H1d~' Ca meron

Editor: PaulR Taylor; cover art & layout, Diane Wood

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Carnegie Communjy and this

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News/eller, are happening on llle Squamish Natioo's lenilory.

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Be Liberals Ensure Women 's Voices are SII .ENCED

Women ' s Ccntrcs were established for two purposes: (0 provid e sen -ices to wom en in their co m-

munitics, and to work for equality and the respect of women' s lIuman Rights. Unrortunntcl\', women in co mmunitics who access and nced the services of Women ' s Centres arc bcing denied (hose services duc.to the eliminati on of Womcn ' s Ce ntres " funding. lt is because Women ' s Centres have bee n a public and v~al opponent 10 Human Rights infringcments co mmi tted by the BC Liberal go vcm mc nt, as well as go \'cmmcnt.i mplemcntcd measures designcd 10 push women further into poverty, that Women ' s Centres funding was c ut. There can be 11 0 doubt that this is (he sa me reason Women's Centres funding was not restored when it came time to dole out preelection dollars.

TIle decision mad e by the BC Libera ls 10 ign ore the nced to restore funding Women ' s Ce ntres amounts to playing politi cs with wom en ' s lives- the Be Libcrals have scnt a c1car message to women ' s groups that advancing women 's equality and human rights will 11 0 longer be tolerated Denise Darrell 604-536-96 11 Dodi c Go ldney 250 -376-3009 or 376-5426 Debra Critchley 250-542-753 1 or 545- 1'.14 1 Michelle Dodds 604-984- 46'.17

TI,e BC Coalition of Women's Centres was surprised by the announcement made vcstcrdav by the BC Liberal Government that $ 12.5' million 'doilars would be going into women 's anti-violence services.

An increase in funding is not onlv much-needed but is also long overdue, . .

Howe'路er.lhis $12.5 million docs nothing to repair the damage already done 10 BC's women bv the Liberal Govcmmenr's cutbacks and policy changes.

VIOlence against women doesn 't happen in a vacuum: it exists because women' s inequality exists.

Women' s eco nomic sec urity and respect ~r l hci r Human Rights arc essential and intertwined components In the strugg le to end violence against women .

In Be. however. we have seen women forced further into poverty over the last few years. and becoming more and more disenfranchised from their rights.

Over the pas I few years. Ihe BC Liberals have made dcc~ slashes il~IO income assistance, legal aid for family law. childcarc, and other resour ces - cuts which have had a disproportiouar e impact on women. and which have drarnaticn llv reduced the options women have when try ing to ~es capc abusi ve IIC Co alition of Women 's Ce ntres suuatrons The BC Libera ls have also all bill elimiwww.b cwom cn .cjb.nc t I bcwom cnsetclus.nct 100 Mill.' House I Campbel l River I Chdw)11d I COIllOX Valnaicd women 's access to redress thro ugh Human Icy I Crunbrook I Fernie J Fort Nelson I Fm1 St. John I (Joldl-' 1 Rights mechanisms, by eliding legal aid for poverty I ( hand Forks [Howe So und I Knml oop s I Kelown a ] Kuunar ] law. eradieatillg the BC Human Rights Com mission Nauahuo I North Sho re I l'cnti cton I Port Coquit lam I Q!ICl.11 and eliminating funding to Women 's Centres in " Cha rlo tte Island s I Qucs ncl ] Richm ond I Rid ~c Meadows I March 2004 .

South SUlTcyfWh itc Rock I Sunshine Coast I Surrey I Tl-1TlICC I Uelnd ct I Vancouver IVl.1110n I Victoria I West f(ooICII<:I YJ Williams Lake

To a grieving poet: Le t th e Li ght Shine Until now Milton, Spenser. a nd Shakespeare Where known only to us - Kept for our own on the insid e:

SILENCEIS VIOLENCE

Now. in the dar k of the night, Th ey shine resplende nt 10 the world outside.

Sa ying to all \\ ho pass by: "Joi n us. for the literature and learni ng on the Inside ."

A . Lumi nous

VISIT the Carnegie Art Gallery Thanks to the generous donation ofan anonymous patron, we now ha ve three secured display cases on Thank youThank youThank youl the Jrd floor.

Our current exhibits arc:

Display Case # I

Wo men 's M emorial M arch A bea utiful collection of photographs from past marches and artwork in honour of women who have died or are missi ng in the Dow ntown Eastside.

Display Case #2

Photograp hs by J ohn Ferguson -----_ ._-------_.----------_.-~

"LOVING YOU"

A VALENTINE'S DAY WELLNESS WORKSHOP Presented by Sophia Frcigang , We llness . Cou nse llor and Life Skills Coach Drop into Strathcona Community Ce ntre's "Skills Connection" at 60 I Keefer Street

Friday, February ii, 1:00 - 3:00 p.m.

(Valentine's goodies provided) Just in time for Valentine's Day, exp lore and dis cover some ideas about loving yourself. Take ajourney down the road of "wellness" and uncover some of the healing choices you could make for a happier, healthier yo u. Let's get together and dream up new possibilities for o ur lives that set our hearts on fire !

i, Treat \'Ourse!fon Febmary I Ith.

For more information call 604 .713 .44 64

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Our security supervisor is not onl y a talen ted musician but a nature photographer. Come and view what he's ca ptured in his own back yard and wi n a big hug from John if you guess what the mys te rious orbs are .

Display Case #3

Art in th e Pa rk Oppenheimer Park ru ns this exci ting art program every Friday from I - 4 PM. See how the participants express themsel ves through various art forms.

N" inquiries, please contact Rim at (604) 665 3003.

H EROIN Ileroin spits out another overdose

And I'm so lucky this time wa s pretty close, I'm so messed up and a ll' s not clea r Anyone who loves me I won' t let near, The war wound s are all they'll see, If at all they recogn ize me.

I kow the answer is blatantly clear, But even thinking of it brings too much fear What a wimp, a s issy, a total loser God, why can 't I be just a soc ial user Cuz the war wounds are all they'll see, If at all they recognize me Kati (Kd)

7

Sun Editorial about Non-Profit Organizations Well Intentioned but Off-base Vancouver's dail y broadsheet newspaper, The Vancouver Sun , published an editorial on December 21 2004 titled " Non-profit groups and charities are thd glue holding us together."

It talks about " the Christmas Moment," a time of " understand ing of the love and the sense of community behind the colourful gifts ...". It finishes by . urging people 10 give to various non-profit organizations and charities.

Although the editorial may indeed be wellintentioned I object to it for a number of reasons.

One reason is that it conveys the false impression that non-profit groups and charities can make up for the cutbacks in social services which are being foisted off on the public on the grounds that these are " unaffordable." (Th e Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives has published papers showing this assumption to be untrue.)

As I wrote in a previous article, a quote from Jean Swanson's book , Poor-bashing : The Polittcs 0/ Exelusion, highlights this previous reason: "Keep your lax loopholes but take a can of food to your New Year's Eve party. Feci good about it. Maybe even get praised in The Gazelle. And don't even give a thought that VI has been slashed, that wages .are low , that welfare is too low to live on, that necessity forces people in poor countries to subsidize your luxuries with their cheap labour. The economic system is doing fine for me, and this can of food will suffice for those in need."

This feeds into another reason I objcet 10 the editorial : why should we suddenly become concerned for the well-being of others at around Chrislmas time" Shouldn't it be a year-round goal? The editorial brushes the edges of what Jean has identified as " poornography" , which is when the media choose a particular family or event to illustrate the kindness of charity, thus exposing the recipient of the media attention to a kind of hideous compassion, resem bling in some ways a sort of attention elicited by pornography.

Another reason I object to the editorial is because it conveys the impression that government can't or won 't meel social needs, and thus non-profit organizations and charities have to take up the slack (helped oul by the public, of course, but never by corporations which could easily do much better than the public in that regard).

In Murray Dobbin's book, The Myth a/the Good Corporate Citizen, there is a revealing quote: " In Canada the corporate.. . goal is 10 ratchet down the expectations of the majority of Canadians regarding their standard of living and the quality of life of their communities. The strategy is 10 attack government on a whole series of fronts with the intention of lowering expectations of what the slate can or will do ."

In this editorial, the intent is to allow the pubhc to believe that lowering their taxes won 't resull in harm to social programs (such as , for example, funding non-profit organizations) and place the resulling burden on them in the ludicrous expectation that the public's charitable donations will somehow make up for the cuts.

I'm not saying it's wrong to give to non-profits or charities; I JUSI queslion the motives of the corporate-driven media, and also their liming in raising this issue.

By ROLF AVER

and we mu st now pay arrent ion or the poss ibi liti es of flood s. earthqua kes and othe r e fforts o f mother earth to awa ken us w ill manifest qu ickly .

Th er e is a specific ca ll for peopl e around th e world to joi n in prayer. medita tion o r whatever meth od o f sp iritua lity one engages in to protect humanity from disaster. An open invitation is extended to humanity that wi sh to j oin thc Mayan peopl e fo r the Waxaq ib B'at z ce remo nies o n February 12'h in Guatemala.

Aga in. th is is a stro ng message. not m eant to drive us to rea ct in fear, fo r this wi ll o nly negati vely impact the level of destruction and o ur 0 \\ n circumstance. This is an oppon unity for humanity to risc 10 the occasion and come togcthcr along thc stro ng

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lines that unite us and ov ercom e the

o bs tac les that divid e us .

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URGENT CALL FROM TIlE MA YAN ELDERS OF GUATEMALA

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Th rou gh th c ancient techniq ues of divination and tools o f prophecy. the Mayan elders arc ca lling forth to humanity at thi s time to pay close r attenti on to thc messages bcing sent fo rth by mother earth a nd 10 im medi a tely ta ke the action s th cv ha ve bccn calling fo r. to unite in a n cffort to br ing ba lance agai n upo n our planet TI,C recent destruc tio n that manifested in Indonesia is predi cted to no w occur ra pid ly up on fivc co ntin ents of the earth . Thi s message is not meant to induce fear. 10 thc contrary. il is a ca ll for bra very a nd fo r acti on . Th c elders arc concerned abou t \\ hat has been presented in their recent di vinations and they

ca ll to a ll humanitv to wa rn thcir leaders a nd to wo rk very hard at a spiritua l level to prevent the impending destructi o n. 11,c hurrican e in thc US a nd the ea rthqua ke a nd tsunami in Indonesia have been warnings

Message issued by Mav a n elders in G ua te ma la a nd del ivered via : Ca rlos Barrios. I\la, a n Ajq 路ij. Antig ua . Guatemala & Adam Rub el. Co-Directo r. Saq ' lie" : Organi zat ion for Mayan a nd indigenous Spiritual Studi es. ~':~.~'"~;Wfcg roa d .o rg

Garbage Leachate: Be Aware

Since thc summer of 1991 , I have been attempting to sto p the release of garbage leachate onto the stree ts and lanes of Vancouver . Compactor garbage trucks have been traveling the streets of cities on the North American continent since 1938 . When they first began to be used there was no lining in the trucks at all . Fluids flowed freely . We do not know what can happen when you begin 10 combine various types of bacteria, fungi and molds etc . lt was hazardous en ough to have this happen in 1938 but, with the amount of chemicals we 've created in the past 50 years, combining them all and releasing them onto the streets in this mann er is deadly. Either the gar bage leachate is released from the truck ont o a wet surface where the rain mixes with the leachate and traffi c sprays it all over everything and everyone, (rain then washes the leachate

Government Legislation Directed Against Poor People isa Major Reason for Poverty In Canada

into our water systems ie. the Burrard Inlet/Crab Park! Stanley Park! Fraser River etc.) or, the leachate dries & gets mixed with all of the dirt and dust on the streets. Eventuallv this dried leachate winds up being part of the Ii~e particulate matter in the air we breathe. This has been happening over & over for many, many years.

I'm happy the present Vancouver City Council has ordered a new flect of leak proof garbage trucks (to be delivered in 20(5). This will address 50% of the garbage pick up in the city. The 50% pic ked up by the private haulers must be addressed to stop this from happening in Vancouver. Most of my work has becn done resulting from priva te haulers releasing leachate, sometimes sitting over a sewer and press ing down their load with the plugs open to drain the leachate, sometimes leaking leachate where they travel. The priva te haulers say it's cheaper to pay a line for a leaky truck than it is to pay a line for an overweight truck so release their leachate everywhere they travel to lighten the load. There arc private haulers who make a lot of extra money in bonuses by taki ng more bins in less loads and getting rid of the fluids to be ab le to pack in more solids .

This 50% can't be allowed to continue wit h these practices .

I have continually asked that peop le be informed this is happening to them but to date there has been no release of info by the media (except East [",,1 Courier s, politicians or the staff who work for them to ensure the public begins to watch for and protect ' their families , themselves & their communities from being subjected to this hazardous substance.

If you sec this happening try to get the name of the company on the truck , the number on the truck or the licence plate, what time and where the spill occurred and the direction the truck traveled in. Phone Doug Roberts at the Vancouver Environmental Protection Office and the Vancouver Police Commereial Vehiele Unit and make a report.

By BHARBARA GUDMUNDSON

On April I, 1996, the federa l government in Ottawa abolished the Canada Assistance Plan (CAP) which had enabled Canada to keep its interna tional commitments to the Universal Dec laration of Human Rights and the United Nations Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rig hts. The CAP contained two important human rights that were eliminated when it was abolished. These were ( I) the right to income when in need : (2) the right to adequate income. These were rights for ordinary people. They were eliminated by law.

When the right to income when in necd and the right to adequate income, were eliminated on April I, 1996, prov incial governments were frec to slash income assistance, and to refuse assistance to people In need . The way was open to third world poverty in Canada. The growing food-bank lines , the increasing number of homeless people, and the increasing number of panhandlers arc a direct result of the loss of the human rights that were contained in the Canada Assistance Plan.

An Associate Professor of Law at the University of Toronto, Craig Scott, spoke against the elimination of the Canada Ass istance Plan , and its replacement WIt h the Ca nada Heal th and Social Transfer

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(CHSD . TIle CHST contain ed no human rights, and Craig Scott said the CHST "will place Canada in a position of breakin g human rights law . The rights of a vulnerable minorit y arc being treated , nol as priorities, bul as dispens able privileges." (I) In other words , the federal govern ment was breakin g interna tional law when it abolish ed the human rights in the Canada Assista nce Plan . Paul Martin was the fed eral Minisler of Finance at the time. Most of us would agree that breakin g interna tional law is a more serious crime than panhan dling.

In British Columb ia the legislat ed minimu m wage is 100 low, and there are workin g adults, with their children, in the food bank lines . The legislat ed wclfare rates arc often at half, or less than half, the poverty line, and some people are forced to panhan dle or become sex-tra de worker s in order to slay alive.

Consid er this : In 1980 single people on income assistance in B.C. receive d SI91 for support (rent is a separat e categor y). Today they receive SI85 for suppor t- that is for all their expens es exce pt rent .

This amount is S6 dollars less than in 1980, yet the cost of living has gone up by well over !OO percent between 1980 and 2005 . Ifsingl e people on welfare today were receiving a suppor t paymen t equival ent 10 the paymen t people were receivi ng in 1980, they would be getting at least S380 in support . Instead , they're getting $ I 85. Govern ment legislation is deliberately making poor people poorer while with lax breaks for the wealthy , for exampl e, it is deliber ately making rich people richer.

The extrem ely compli cated applica lion process to get welfare in B.C. lakes at least three weeks. Many people find it imposs ible to handle the bureauc ratic red tape . The rule that require s applica nts for income assistance 10 prove that they have been financially independent for two years, plus the two year lime limit which is still law, makes it very hard to obtain, and secure, welfare in this provinc e. The result is growing homele ssness and panhan dling.

First United Church has secn the number of people who arc sleepin g in the church double in the past 2 years . A draft Homele ss Action Plan by the City of Vancouver points out that in 200 I aboul 15 percent of homeless people in Vancou ver were not on welfare. By the summe r of 2004 , at least 75 percent of homeless people were not on welfare . Most of them could not overcom e the barriers to getting welfare .

The draft Homeless Action Plan said that the sys tem was broken and that barriers to welfare should be remove d - barriers that are a major reason for the increasing homele ss ness in Vancouver.

Legisla tion thai hurts poor people can be replaced by legislation that support s poor people. Gandhi said that when he looked at new legislat ion, he always asked the questio n, "How docs this legislation help poor people?" The minimu m wage should be raised.

Welfar e rate s should be raised. Barriers that make it very difficult for people to get welfare should be elimina ted. The human right to income when in need and the right to adequa te income should be elearly written back into Canadi an law , as they arc written in international law . A provincial election is coming up on May 17th. Make sure the issue of legislated poverty is on the agenda . Speak out.

Sandy Camero n

(I) Submission by Craig Scott to the Standing Commit-

tee on Finance , House of Commons, Mal' 8, 1995.

PACIF IC BLUEGRASS & HERIT AGE MUSIC SOClE IY presents A VARIE TY OF BAND S with BLUEG RASS, FOLK & COUN TRY MUSIC

Feb. 16 th 7-9 pm Carn e gie Thea tre

Increased Fares are Unfair: Just Where is Translink Taking Us? Translink's latest fare increase on January 1st continues a number of trends that arc worrisome at best.

Fare Increases On January 1st, Z005 Translink increased transit fares again; since June ZOOO fares have increased by 50%. This time, Translink claims that bus service will increase by 9.5% while stating that over the past 3 years, service has increased 14.5% . Inflation , meanwhile, has increased by less than 10%. Add it all up and...well, it simply doesn't add up.

The fare increase in June ZOOO was aceompanied by promises of huge increases in the bus fleet (531 new buses by Z005) as well as bus service ; instead we lost all Night Owl service. The next increase (April ZOOZ) saw Translink tell us that hundreds of new buses would be bought and put into service, but over a longer period of time. At the beginning ofZ005, not one new full size bus has been put into service (Z8 "micro-buses" were bought in ZOOZ ). Now we arc being told that we arc "Helping to Pay for Better Service for More People" . Perhaps in a year or two when the next increase is proposed, Translink's slogan will be "Making More People Happier Everyday" or "Smile you 're on Translink's Security Camera."

An alternative to this endless spiral of fare increases

is to charge workplaces $1 per day for each employee who travels in the region . This would raise more money than what Translink currently operates

with but only adds IZ to 14¢ per hour to the cost of each employee's wage or salary. For wage -slaves making Gordon Campbell's inhuman $6 per hour, that's a Z% increase; for most of the rest of us, it's less than 1%.

Funding bus service in this way would allow all $Z7 million's worth of those pathetic fareboxes to be removed , saving almost $150 million in bureaucracy every year. Most of the newly hired "enforcers" that make riding the SpyTrain a dangerous and unsettling experience, could also be removed. But best of all, transit users would no longer have to pay a toll (fare) on their movement, finally making transit compctitive with the private automobile and even bicycles.

The Upass programs at UBC and SFU show just how successful and efficient this kind of funding! fare strategy can be. But then again, is it safe to put so much money into Transl ink's hands?

White Elephant I'roiects 11,e RAV line has been well-documented as a topsecret project that privatizes the operation of a ncw $Z billion miniature train; it replaces the well-functioning, "state-of-the-art 98 B-Line service, After the billion $ Millennium Loop-de-loop, perhaps the next project will be a $4 billion submarine service to replace Scabus.

Most of us know that this-our-money would be belter spent elsewhere, Iike:doubling the existing trolle y fleet with low floor, bike-rack equipped buses that are improved to virtually never fall off the \~ires (-$75 million) ,extending the trolley wires to cover the entire City of Vancouver (-$50 million),building a ground-level LRT line ($330 million) or a Curitiba Brazil-style bus corridor ($100 million) along Broadway from Commercial Drive to UBC, and doubling existing bus service levels, both during the day and all night ($500 million) . And we would still have more than half of the $Z billion left over!

Privatizing Public Services In Translink's Z003 Annual Report, CEO Pat Jacobsen wrote , "Trans Link met its Z003 objectives ."

This probably comes as a surprise to most transit users since not one bus was added to its fleet, despite the big promises made in ZOOO and ZOOZ .

But then, perhaps Ms. Jacobsen's objcetives are not the same as yours and mine.

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A quick look at Ms Jacobsen's work history shows that she worked for Mike Harris' ultra -conservative Ontario gove rnment from 1998 to 200 I , where she helped create Canada's first pri vate highway, the 407ETR. This Electronic Toll Road was a secret sweet-heart deal from which the Toronto region and entire Province is still trying to recover. Not only is this road the most expensive in the world to use, the corporate owners have recently raised the rates without government approval and are defending this "right" in court . Meanwhile, so man y motorists receive inflated and incorrect bills-even those that don't use it-that t-shirts have popped up with the s logan "Extre me Toll Rip-ofT." Let me offer another perspective to try and understand how the CEO ofTranslink could write that it met its 2003 objectives . Managing public services into dysfun ction is an important step towards privatization . After a servi ce has lost enough credrbihty and respect, government/corporate interests next proclaim that the only way to fix it is to privatize it.

We've seen that with health care for decades and we've begun to see it with Translink-j ust think Millenium Line or RA V. In the meantime, huge corporate porkbarrels are rolled out to corporate frie nds (Bombardier, SNC-Lavali n/Serco). How else can yo u explain these huge megaprojects that are both unnecessary and hugel y overfunded?

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Fight Back! Farestrike!

In April 2002 , for 6 months or more, hundreds of transit user s in the Lower Mainland were riding for free by showin g driv ers the Trans frce Solidarity Far eStrike Pass. Bus dri vers aren 't paid to enforce the fare, so most accept or ignore these passes--to do otherwise would undermine their own j obs.

These FaraStnke Passes have resurfaced to counter the current fare increase and to support the recent Bus Riders Union one day Farestrike. Farcstrikes are a popular response to corporations and governments that arc unfair. Recent farestrikes in Chicago, Dublin, Rome , and Stockholm have stopped governments in those cities from regressively increas ing fares. Smart unions throu ghout history have imple mented similar strategies to put pressure on their employers; for example, instead of getting themselves locked out in 200 1, bus driv ers could have simply put their hand over the farebox.

For most of us, there isn't much to do but farestrike, Anyone who has written a letter to Translink (or any government entity) knows full well the empty (if any) response that provokes. And attending a Translink Board meeting is as enjoyable as visiting a sewage treatment plant. As individuals against a faceless and heartless system like Translink's, what options do we reall y have? Some can afford to buy a car and get stuck in traffic, while others are able to ride a bike if they can avoid being run over. Most transit users obviously prefer to use our public service . By joining forces and farestriking together, history has proven that we can be very successful in making the powers that be listen to peons like yo u and me.

By DAV E OLSEN

N ews From The Library

End Your A ddiction Now by Charles Gant . A nutritional g uide to ov erco mi ng addictions Shush wop Journey by Harold Eustache, An neeou~t of Seeweperne peopl e, Tho mpson river area.

Resist! A grassroots collect io n o f stories, poetry , photos and analyses fro m the Q uebec City FTAA protests and bevond.

Fin ding ~v Tdlk by A gnes Grant, How fourteen Na tive wo me n reclaimed their lives afler Resi de ntial School

DR/lAMS

Black Hi.torv Month Display..Chee k it out in display case on 3'" floor! and mark yo ur ca lendar for visit of our friend Mai Ruth Sa rsfield wh o eelebrales th Black Histo ry Month with us in the Gallery Feb 7 at 3pm with a readi ng fro m her novel.

The Main & Ha.ting Book Club.

Time to come back !. All welcome . Co me join us in the LC on Tuesdays at 12 noon .. ." Books help us escape reality." ..quote fro m a Carnegie patron .

The followi ng arc some new titles in the library : Passing: When people can't be who they are by Brooke Kroeger... "an eye-opening, ta boo shattering book" ---Newsday Tour of Duty: John Kerry' and the Vietnam War by Douglas Brinkley..New Youk Ti mes Bestseller Still A live: A Holocaust Girlhood Remembered by Ru th Kluger. " A book of breathtaking honesty and extraordinary insight" Common Birds of British Columbia bv J . Duane Sept. Information plus lips and tec hniqu es for bird

watching

Like a dream we the audience are ga there d togeth er as we awa it the 2"" performance of the evening. At this point we've been wa iting for so me time ...

The mood in the air starts to change ; a fee ling of unrest as the temperature begin s to rise. You ca n sense peo ple's patie nce be gin waverin g, to and fro, and so me even walk ing out.

Te ns ion bu ilds and mood swi ngs arc now a pparenl.

Sudde nly a masked figure ap pears , out of the sha dows . to ta ke cen tre stage. In silence, the masked one looks abo ut. The audience is totally locked in.. not a so und is made. We arc transfi xed as if under a spell.

TI,e mask ed o ne dances - we dan ce . His (or her?) gaze is sad but mesmerizin g; still we dance, lost to the world , but when yo u' re alive in the dance tim e mean s nothing. Th e seeming spell co ntinues, neither reveal ing fantasy or dream, yet as the mask ed one mo ves , we move, in the palm of its hand.

Th e mask ed one has suceeeded! We are slaves to the master of the dance, asl eep ye t awake. At ce nter stage the masked one goes to a box laid at the knees, digs deeper, dee per , paper flied everywhere, and fina lly a sundia l mask appears. Th e masked one admir es its beauly as it rises h igh er and high er, yet ever more slow ly, until it fall s wi th a resounding smash - go ne! - sca ttere d to all creation. The masked o ne remo ves the mask an d she screams, cries . and screams again.

The so undi ng pitch is so eerie tha t it awakens us.

Tru ly a nightmare - chaos rules .

Stephe n Lytton

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Now the dictionary definition Of a castle Goes so me thing lik e this "Fortified building used as a residence By powerful uobl es in fe uda l times

WHAT PAULA SAW It's //1/.\ wa~ for c hildren T hese beings of lo ve and light So fres h 10 the fold II a ppea rs they rod e a ca rpe l T hro ug h the stars

Well, we arc st ill here In Our Home fortifi ed , pro tected Loved and ca red for By the arms of this Building Its peopl e

Galaxies before us Seeing what we don't see Remembering \\ hat we forget

Aud so it was for Paula Two yea rs ago At the age of tw o Returni ng fro m Disn ey on Icc She po inted and sa id "Look" - it's a Castle!"

From a \\ indow In a whil e ford pick -up

Or perhaps it was a mini-van She ma y h vc as kc If the Castle belo nged 10 Ci nde re lla or Slee ping Bea uty He r exac t words arc now

Difficult to recall Unclear

What is clear is that She sa w throu gh the Unde rwo rld To a Shield of Lig ht Her young eyes Bright Wi lh Wonde r

She succeeded in missing our blind Spots The poverty The addic tio n The dealers

The sex workers The violen ce T he homeless The litter The illn ess The pain an d the rage The down side Of the Down town Eas tside And she poi nted to a Cas tle

This Carnegie Saves li ves every day .

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And we arc still here In O ur Hom e Nob le, powerful as e ve r Despit e the lie of lack Enfo lding us wi th heavy wings Encircl ing every soul Th is culture's vultur e

Crue ifies sha me lessly e very da y

Yes. we ofCamcgic Arc wealthy in ways The Cult canno t imagine And we ourselves forget at times Or do not kn ow Whal Paula saw Wa s this diamond Under pressure

Forming this jewel O n Na tive Land s And I'm nol ce rtai n But I like to think

Thai on that night The G rea t Spirit Th e G rea t God dess Spoke 10 her

Shining through the wind ow s o f the dark S mi led bac k a t her Spoke the tru th to her Abou t this Castle Our Hom e

About Us Sophia Marina Frciga ng

Forum leads to action workshop on homelessness and welfare cuts If you're worried abo ut homelessn ess and welfare cuts yo u're invited to a worksh op to learn a bout the City or Vancouver's draft re port on hom elcssness and how we can usc it to impro ve housing, inco me, and services for neighbourhood resident s.

The works hop is one conc rete resu lt of the Carnegie foru m on social progra m cuts that wa s held on Janu ary l -lth in the Carnegie Theatre. It " ill be held o n Wednesday, February 2nd from I to 3 pm in the 3rd floor ga llery.

We hope we ca n then lea rn mor e abo ul the c itv's dr aft plan, make recom me nda tions to the Cam~gic Board abo ut the re port, and unite with the local

John Rich ard son o r Pivot Leg al Soci ety sa id the cuts to legal services have had a big impa ct o n wo me n. For example. low incom e wom en ca n't get legal represen tati on to light for custody o f their children . li e also sa id that cuts to legal sen ices for the poor had the lon g term impac t of changi ng the law to adverse ly alTecl the poor bee ause peo ple with the mon ey 10 gel lawyers win their cases more often.

At the end or the meet ing peo ple discu ssed the need for all low inco me peo ple to vote and for more public pressure 10 be pul o n the government and the NDP 10 restore social program s.

By Jean Swa nso n

communi ty to work on them.

TIlCcity's draft plan is impo rta nt to our co mmunitv beca use it says endi ng barri ers to gelling on wcl far~ is the first priorit y for redu cing homeless ness. It also ca lls for more supportive housin g to be built and for more services for peopl e with health issues.

At the forum on J anuarv l -lth local resid ent s and wor kers told their stories of the impac t of government cuts, including · an increase in homclcssnc ss: · cuts 10 welfare support; · the elimination o r the $ 100 earnings exemptio n for peopl e on welfare ; · cuts to after school programs for low income student s.

After resi dents spoke, Susan Henry, an advocate at First United Church, report ed on what the Faithful Public Witness Co mmittee is planning , Th is in\"01 \ 'C5 me mbe rs o f Chris tian churches wh o want to do a 40 day Lenten vig il in so lidari ty with peopl e who arc sufferi ng fro m the cuts. The vigil woul d go from Feb. 9th 10 Easter .

Jill Davidso n, the author of the city's dr aft plan on homelessness. then talk ed abo ut her rep ort wh ich " ill be dea lt wit h by City Co uncil in Ma rch, She said the barriers to gelling and stayi ng on welfare arc the biggest cau se of homclcssncss in Vanco uver .

T hese inelu de the 3 week wait for peo ple wh o apply for welfare, the 2-year financia l independe nce rule, the need to co mply with employ ment plan s. and having to deal" ith the Mi nistry o 'er and over.

Worried about homeless ness and welfare cuts'!

Wanl to do something?

You're invit ed to a work shop a bo ul the Citv o r Van co uvcr's dra ft acti on plan on homel essness ,·Th c rcpori has over 80 recom me ndatio ns about ending barriers 10 we lfare, build ing housin g and providin g services for 10\\' incom e peo ple. · Learn " hat the rep ort says · Fig ure o ut if we agree with the reco mme nda tio ns · How do we eneo uragc the Ci l~ 10 act on the re port '! · How can we unite the conu nuuitv 10 work o n the recom mendations we like? .

Time: W ednesda'·, Fehruarv 2 frnm I tn j I'm l'lace: j '" flnor g~lIery· at C;,rnegie, 4111 Main Sl. Spo nsored by Carneg ie Learning Cent re For info. call 604 (,65-301]

<ARNf6if .TY (OMMV Nf

Wednesday, February 9" Classroom 2 @ 2:00pm All Volunteers Welcome

'Vo l u nt~'Cr Dinner Ail of the volunteers give so much , this is an opportunity for the staff to serve you for a change!

Wednesday, February 16" Theatre @ 4:30pm Sharpl lf vou have 16 volunteer hours in this mont h, please

pick up ticket from Colleen or Sindy.

9 Ball & Snooker Annual Challenge â&#x20AC;˘,

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'\1 II: I IO M EN O lU CKS Sunday. February 6 t h @ 11 :00 am

:Cam egie Ball Breakers /. Reg and Rick Peltier Mark Danae, Dave Jack - Bill Piggott and AI W.

Homenehuks Len, John, AI and Elmer Fred and Howard , Mary-Ellen

HAIRC UT S

HAIR WI111 I1EART _ Hair Culs styled by volunteer hair maes tro 'Sergio' First eome firs l served Sundays 1 - 4pm on the 3r d Floor Ga llcrv sign up at I" Floor Info desk .-0-, -

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DJ M IX-MOVE TO TH E GROO VE Friday, February 04, 2005 7pm - 10pm Carnegie Theatre GI:T DOWN AN D GEf FUNKY TO CODY'S UNIQU E BLEND OF TUNFS Refr eshm ents served to the thirsty

For those Vol unteers who atten ded part 1,2 and 3, this is yo ur long-awaited fo llow up. Although this is Part 4 of a series of Custo mer Service traini ng, eac h seminar stands on its own as well.

We will be taking a look at how our beliefs, behaviours and manners affect how we think and fee l in a very useful, interesting way. Eita n, our fearless leader , will be teaching us how to change some beliefs that tend to trip us up.

For all wh o are interested, there will be a follo w- up support group to encourage and support one anot her to carry out the thi ngs leam ed in these workshops .

Monday, February 21". gam - Ipm Learning Centre 3rd Floor Gel a ticket from Colleen or Sindy, Volunteer Program Breakf ast Coffee and Muffins. I.linch Provided

Abo ut Gerry

REOTAL

TIIC Downt own Eastside Poet s went on a road trip to CEEDS . We met Gerrv and all the other workers \\ ho were dedie aled to organic fanning.

Gerry did the talk and walked the wa lk, with his co ws and pigs roa ming freely and ehiekens uneaged, and the soil re mained unpolluted. He wanted 10 be ready for the Revol ution.

Gerry was a warm and friendly man, bo th hard wor king and with a vision. He'll be missed.

Shei la Baxter

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) Vier Ems te Gesange (Fo ur Serious Songs)

Reports of my Death havebeen Highly Exaggerated with

Cliff Ridley, barit one Danielle Marcinek, piano

clo wns man j ust don't know the Wea thermen don 't make the west wi nd blow this zephyr blow s yo ur mind eve ry free king time

Thi s cycle of so ngs is one of Brahm s' most hard hitting and profoundly movin g work s, tacklin g the subjects of human vanity, injustiee, death and the redeeming power of love.

We warm ly welcome yo u 10 eo me and share this work with us !

Admiss ion free .

For my baby g irl, I leave behind the tou gh ness it takes to be kind Don' t pay no mind 10 what people say Do what yo u will.. what you wan t.. do n'{ mailer e ither way

Saturday, February 5 at 1 PM Carnegie Theatre

To my gangsta son long may yo u r un

Doctor G's ADVICE COLUMN ... f or Carnegie Volunteers who give so much, Dr. G wants to g ive something back.

Now that Dear Abby and Ann Landers (kno wn favorite adviec givers, mother figures and eo nfidantes) have gone on to eterna l syndication, who is there 10 answer all of our question s'? Don't despair. If yo u need hclp don't ask Heloise or be so rude as to bother Miss Manners, and yo u don't need to see k the advice of the Playboy Advisor. You have your very own Doctor G. Clearly, readers are still look ing for sens ible, crca tive answers to their evervdav (and not so everyday) problems, and Doctor G. "is h~rc to len d a hand~ Just submit your questions for me to Paul Tay lor, the Carnegie Newsletter Editor, and wait for the next ed itio n. These submissions ca n be anonym ous or otherwise. You will know who you are .

"The truc measure of a mas i. how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no ~ood. "

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Never say die! Keep the fight alive.

Live like it's last ea ll You 'll alw ays be right here at my side.

For Ihe ones I' ve loved and losl Life takes so much away at sueh a heavy eos t But keep on loving life With out love all is lost.

To my brothers in the ' hood Drink my killer's blood .

Take ea re of business the way yo ur friend wo uld, R. Loewen

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A Methhead's Reality There's still month's yet to go , The reality of the situation I do know I have to slay in this recovery hou se But it seems to me a dread As I count the days in my head I know it's for my own good But as I think of the lime ahead I know I could leave, sometimes I think would But I want 10 complete this , I want some achievement Out of all the times I've fail ed I want some clear thinking out Of the wasted limes I've flailed I need things to change To prevent myself from becoming deranged There's nothing like a methhead's hell I'm going crazy as I hide in my shell They try to fix me, try to make me well From our own fears psychosis forms I hear voices call my name To eac h our own it's never the same A thousand times before the y came As I lay to sleep I am trapped in delusion I cannot think. nor can I escape this confusion Another hallucination provokes my fear As my demons again reappear They arc cold as I fccl them draw ncar These nightmares are an outcome of my own actions Now I'm afraid of the darkness of my room Figures loom, insanity blooms Things seen onl y by my eyes Yet I never let out any cries I hear the silence so loud I can't face what I think is oul there I cannot breathe the open air These things unreal, yet to them I stare 11,e things they say I cannot bear I look at a doorknob's reflection I see them in my room They never go away They never leave me alone They follow anywhere that I call home I cannot believe them 10 be real, I cannot admit I hope that I can gel rid of it Because I hate all of this shit

I thought 1 had friends I was wrong All I did was follow along I thought I was frcc Now look what happened to me! ?

I was dead "Tong But I hope I can make it right If I am willing to fight these demons away Th ey would've killed me anyway Th ey fucked up my mind I cannot find what I left behind I forgot my trusted ones and things important I must escape the only world I know Though it's not easy.] must learn to grow Sobriety is the only solution No more drugs, no more procrastination I hope that someday I can say my goodbycs To these delusions, My wa ys of destruct ion And to myoid enemy and friend Crystal Meth

Desirae Demas

KARAOKE with Darrell Friday , February 11 , 2005 7 pm - 10 pm Carnegie Theatre

SHARE YOUR VOID, wrru US [YOUR SILENCE WONT PROTECT YOUIl Refre shments served 10 the song birds.

WHO DO YOU LOVE? The

get us in the mood for Valentine's Day come to the POdry reading

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The InterUrban Art Gallery 1 East Hastings (across from Pigeon Park) Opening is February'B, 3 pm, Gallery Hours: Wed. to Sat. 1 - 5 pm, The Art of

SAM RODDAN

His unique portraits of life in the Downtown Eastside, his home, his ' country' , are made more profound in that Sam didn 't start painting until he was almost 80.