July 15, 2008, carnegie newsletter

JULY 15, 2008

camnews@vcn. bc.ca www.carnnews.org ..

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MOCK FUNERAL PROCESSION PRESSURES CONCORD PACIFIC On Ju~ 5th, abou~ 80 ~o~nto7n E~~::e;;s;e;:s~:~f~~~~~:,.a;~~~d{~~;o~:J.;~~i;;r;:~.!~~~1:no~~~;;o;~he Pacific s propose con o eve opm

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t d "Concord· Get Out!" over and over. Then Streams of

~~S::~1:wnw::s~~Z ~ ~:7:; :o/onized by developers from outside the community who are denying.the ~umamty ofthe

community to justify destroying it:

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Hear Ye, Hear Ye What you are witnessing today is the tragic and unnecessary eJimination of a real community at the hands of profiteering developers and supportive city officials.

Recall the explorers of old.

Sustained by financial backing from state and private funders, they sailed off to "discover" new lands, fuelled by a desire for untold wealth and resources.

Their journeys led them to distant places, where they encountered communities of people and complex cultures they did not know or understand. And indeed the land was rich in resources and potential wealth-creation. They earnestly longed to possess it so they used their power to remove the people who stood in their way, through deceptive legal strategies philosophical and theological argumentation, and the violent use of coercive force. Rooted in an ideology of cultural superiority, they destroyed indigenous people and their cultures to clear the way for their own appropriation of land and wealth.

Today we have new explorers; they are the large real estate developers who are invading the community of the Downtown Eastside in order to appropriate the land and -acquire for thems~lves great wealth.

They build condos for wealthy city-dwellers and displace the current low-income residents of the . neighborhood. They promote their efforts as creatmg "communities for world-class living" while the actual community of people struggling with poverty, ill-health and trauma are removed from serious consideration and criminalized.

Real estate speculation, increased rents, soft conversions, loss of land, and the influx of upscale amenities are the local fallout of this invasion of condo development, and it means displacement, evicti~n and increased homelessness for the people of th1s community..

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And city officials applaud and approve this pattern of settlement (aka, community development). They imagine a mixed neighborhood, one more inhabitable for the "deserving" members of the society. Its proximity to the downtown core makes it an enviable place for aesthetic impulses. Using the rhetoric of "revitalization" and urban renewal, they give their stamp of approval to the numerous applications for development permits.

The Downtown Eastside is being appropriated into a scheme of upscale, world-class development, legitimated by city officials and their regional plans, and fuelled by an ideology of free-market investment and visions of a world-class city.

This inevitably entails the loss ofland and services for the majority low-income residents of the neighborhood, the displacement of individuals from their homes, the increase of homelessness, and above all, the destruction of a real, vibrant, creative, courage. ous community. · For this we grieve ... and we resist, by bearing witness to what is happening and by formulating our own vision of this neighborhood, and demanding its implementation.

We are here, and together we are strong.

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Luxury Condo Invasion = Death of Community · We proceeded festively from Pigeon Park with 50-60 people, many in death-mask makeup and carrying dual-use tombstone-picket signs. We first went down to Concord's 58 W Hastings site, with a bagpiper and two I 0' banners proclaiming "Condo Con.~truction means Community Destruction" and "We Need Social Housing, Not Condos."

Expo ..Blvd, Carrall, and Pacific Blvd-- to "ConcordPacific Place." It's just a giant parking lot, equipment dump, and jumped-up condo sales office. It squats on part of what Concord promised would be "9.5 acres o1 : rolling parkland and tennis courts"-- the long-delayed ( 15 years) Creekside Park completion needed by residents of nearby CityGate, Chinatown, TinselTown, and DTES residents. [See False Creek Residents Association website.]

We marched through the Concord parking lot to the A smaller banner with a skull-faced conquistador said presentation (sales) centre, which was locked up tight "Stop Developers 'Discovery' of DTES." Another, with three police on guard. We planted our cardboarc simply "Concord! Stop!-- Terry Hui! Stop!!" Hui tombstones in the grass and garden areas-- each tomb· owns Concord and lives by himself in one of his towstone marked the 'passing' of recently emptied hotels ers on False Creek. and the number of rooms lost. l The Streams of Justice tableau truck met us at 54 W Kat Norris and friends filled the damp air with song ·. Hastings with costumed performers and a shockingly and drumming. From atop the truck, Streams of Jusrealistic effigy of a hanging figure on a gallows, repretice did their tableau performance of DTES resilience ~ senting the possible death-by-condo of the DTES. and resistance despite the development "hurricane" in From there, police held the traffic as marchers did a the neighbourhood that developers want to promote winding, two-Jane parade on Hastings, Columbia, and profit from.

Diane Wood ullulated. Harsha Wallia and Wendy Pedersen wielded the bull horns, led chants, and ,,~, spoke. So did Joan Morelli, Jackie Robinson, Sandra .··· Pronto from CCAP, and Miriam, Anita, Betty, and DJ from the Women's Centre.

The rain never quit, so the two I 0' banners turned to pulp early on. But the marchers never quit, either.

They got satisfactory media coverage, including Global TV, CKWX with comments by David Eby-and CBC radio captured the eloquent remarks of Carnegi~'s Joe LeBlanc: "Concord's telling people 'buy one, rent out the unit, come back in 5-6 years and the poor people will be gone.' But there's no damn way in hell we're leaving." he .said -Rider Cooey '

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Wlizome Cafe *ArtS Venue * communitY SPace· 317 East Broadway .

Vancouver, BC, Coast Salish Territory

'-Iomesfor All Fundraiser: ustalldfor Housi11g rhursday, July 17, 7:00 Youth Helping the Community is raising funds ,\\\\\' mrchase banner-making supplies for their weeki )tands for Housing. The group a self:.ga~veJ·ne~d.~ md self-empowered committee of youth, ages 1 ~4-plans to go nationwide, raising awareness wmelessness and trying to reinstate the national ;ocial housing program. The evening will include tariety of youth-driven performances. $5-$10 uu1'ru...:.~ ion, but no one turned away for lack offunds.

'Jienna Garramone's CD Release Show rhursday, July 24, 8:00 Join Victoria's avant-folk songstress, G lenna Gar·amone, as she celebrates the release of her new CD, ~easky-Starsong. See www.glenna-g.com. $5

Cafe Rebelde ~riday,

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July 25, 7:00 Join us for this monthly informational and social !vent in support of Latin American social movenents. This month's topic is "Building the Political Platform of the FMLN (El Salvador.)" Free

Bi tire Way, It's Our Cabaret ~aturd ay, July 26, 8:00 Vancouver's bisexual community celebrates Pride Nith an evening of great company and delightful ~offeehouse-style performances. A variety show featuring music, poetry, drag and much more, with ;pecial guests Tire Heartfelt Apologies is open to all oisexuals, friends and allies. Brought to you by The Centre's bisexual social group.

Admission by donation, sliding scale at the door.

In Concea·t: Leirera Trio Thursday, July 31, 7:30 Lellera is a trio from Bangalore, India and Canada.

The group brings together their roots in North and South Indian classical music and Western musical forms to create a genre that is both energetic and contemplative. Vocals in English and classical Indian styles intertwine with Hindustani slide guitar, violin, bamboo flutes and vocal harmonics. $5-$10 sliding scale

Books 2 Prisoners Fundraiser Friday, August 1, 7:00 As part of this year's Prison Justice Day organizing, this event will benefit Books 2 P•·isoners, a Vancouver ce.llective that sends books free of charge to prisoners across Canada. Performances by LOUD, readings by Emma Kivisild and Lora McElhinney, and screening of the film "What I Want My Words

to Do to You: Voices from a Maximum Security." $7-$15 sliding scale {postage to send a book to one prisoner or a box to a group)

Save the Dt1te! .

Rhizome Cafe's Second Anniversary Extravaganza Saturday, August 16, 7:00pm There will be food and music, fun and games, participatory art projects and more!

For. more information: 604-872-3166 www .rh izomecafe.ca rh izome@rh izomecafe.ca

TO MY Love I fight myself out of that shell That shell enclosing me warmly Protecting me from a hostile world\ That shell - your love.

ROOTS ...

VANDU~ ,10TH

ANNIVERSARY

C~l:~!~!-tQ.,:~.l!f.~t~~tlub~~~~ ~"YafdA:> .

As the chick will die if she fails to break through So will I in my spirit die Enclosed forever in your overwhelming all-knowing beneficence Wilhelmina

ceremory .w.Jt.rr g~es. ~ .. uy v .a vre.., . no llvingston,.anlJ Blf9. Osborne to cele:brate' 1"Q:ye~·rs, cif,c6mh\t1hlty.support and ilcilyl~m: IJ\ ~·e. poWh~o~~ .Eastside.

July 19; 12 'prh,:qpp,eiJheimer Par~ (400 Powell). Info' www. vandu.orgl.

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Roots tarnished - not gone Embedded beneath skin Scarred wounds healedHumour runs . Blood pumps courage Love - Lesson from the heart!

Till time ends -Priscillia of the witsuwit'en territo:

EXTRA!! EXTRA!! EXTRA!!!

READ ALL ABOUT IT

t1 e_ News from the Library

Friday night dance changed to SATURDAY NIGHT JULY 19TH

7 - lOPM

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New Books Abigail Carter's husband was killed in the September II attacks on the World Trade Centre. In The Alchemy of Loss (155.93) she chronicles the tumul:. tuous four years trying to come to terms with her loss that day. This is a personal, compelling look at how grief turned one woman's life .upside down.

Scientist, diplomat and spy, Aaron Aaronsohn was one of the most extraordinary figures in the story of the creation of Israel. He created a plan for Palestine's national borders that insisted on partnership between Jews and Arabs. And then, in 1919, he died prematurely and mysteriously. His maps were lost, and his library was destroyed . In Aaronsolm 's Map., (940.48), Patricia Goldstone reveals Aaronsohn 's key role in establish ing Israel, and the enduring im. portance of Aaronsohn's maps in Middle Eastern politics today.

Earlier this year, the Vancouver Art Gallery held · an exhibition of stunning and varied photographs from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Truth Beauty: Pictorialism and the Photograph as Art (779), the book accompanying the exhibition, has just made it to the library. It's full of gorgeous reproductions of photographs by artists such as Julia Margaret Cameron, Baron Adolph de Meyer, A Ifred Stiegli~z, Edward Steichen and Josef Sudek, all part of a movement which so ught to elevate the photograph from a mere mechanical recordtaker to the realm of fine art.

Henry Pepper (821 LUK) is a series of poems set in a Strathcona full of flophouses, artist grottoes, bed bugs, organized crime, and capitaHst landowners all fighting to make the place their own. Henry Pepper wanders the alleys of Strathcona pondering deep and not-so-deep questions (Do my feet rub my socks and my socks rub my boots. Or do my boots rub my socks and my socks rub my feet), counting puddles, and pooing.

Sentenced to Light (821 WAH) documents a series of artistic collaborations between Fred Wah and diverse artists, including performance artist Bev Tosh; visual artist Marian Penner Bancroft; multimedia artist Haruko Okano; video artist Henry ,Tsang; and photographer, poet, and painter Roy Kiyooka.

Beth, your librarian

in the Theatre

"PANCHO AND SAL & BA NDA LOCA" Born in Argentina, Pancho has been writing poems II his life. When he moved to Europe, he began )uring in many countries and became a troubadour tyle musician in the 80's .. During this time, he con·ibuted to making more popular the Spanish and • :outh Amencan mus1• c.

With the Gypsies in the South of France, he created 1 new dimension of fl amenco guitar and rhythms. \fter many years of musical exchange with other nusicians, his folk music has country, blues, reggae, >eruvian, Spanish and Mexican influences.

Sal, who was born in England and raised in Canada, :tarted playi ng accord ion and clarinet at an early tge. She met Pancho in Peru and compliments the nusic with accordion, shakers, chachas, bombo and ~u itar.

Singing in Span ish, English and French, their music md translations inspires the audiences to participate md sing along.

EXTRA!! EXTRA!! EXTRA!!!

Hum101 Documentary Film Night ~

changedto IFriday, July 18, st:uting at 6pm in the Theatre.

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I Theatre Events in July Volunteer Dinner: Wed nesday, July 16, 4-6pm Documentary Film Nieht: Friday, July 18, 6pm Live Dance Band : Saturday, July 19, 7-lOpm Emergency Preparedness: Monday, July21, 2-4pm Street Nurse Workshop: Monday, July 28, l-5pm

CEDAR PROJECT: Aboriginal youth participants, • for your Number 7follow-up!

45 W Cordova, across from A&N. 604-685-6356 Cya soon! (Lyn, Kat & nurse Matt)

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Maintenance You have a right to live in a home that meets minimum health. safety and housing standards. YOU HAVE A RIGHTTO • A home with a working toilet and (hot and cold) running water • A home with working showers and heating, • A home free of mold, bedbugs, cockroaches, and mice.

You can make an anonymous complaint about building conditions to the City ofVancouver property use inspectors at: 604.873.756( Produced by Pivot legal Society

PIVOT

IVW\'/,ptVOIIegai.Ofg 604.255.9700

·Guests You have a right not to be charged guest fees. Make sure you get a receipt fo r guest fees that are paid with YOUR name o~ the receipt so you can file for arbitration to get the money back.

WARNING

Evictions

You have the following rights by law. Most landlords will not illegally evict someone who makes a complaint, but some will.

• If you are going to challenge your landlord, make sure that you are prepared to face an illegal evict ion.

• The police have a po licy o f refusing to prevent illegal evictio ns.

• The Residential Tenancy Branch may not be able to hear your application about an illegal eviction for weeks.

• The C ity o fVancouver's current policy is to condemn a bui ldtng rather than require a landlord co fix and maintain it.

You have a right to proper notice before you are evicted.

You have a right to fight that eviction notice.

• To fight your eviction you must submit an application for displ resolution within five days of receiving the notice for not payir rent; I0 days if you are being evicted for cause; or I5 days if yc are being evicted so your landlord can use the property or if you no longer qualify for subsidized housing.

• The landlord must use the official two-page eviction form fron the Residential Tenancy Branch.

• If you are being evicted, you should visit one of the advocates • listed on this card to get advice as soon as possible!

Discrimination You have a right not to be evicted, harassed or refused service by a landlord based on what you look like (race), whether you have an addiction, or if you're on welfare or disability.

More information Below is a list of serv,ices that provide free legal advice on tenant issues in the Downtown Eastside: Downtown Eastside ResidentsAssociation (DERA) 604.682.09

Privacy

TRACTenant Resource & Advisory Centre 604.255.0546

You have the right to privacy and freedom from disturbance by a landlord in your unit. A landlord is only allowed to ente r your unit if: (I) There is an emergency, like a fire or flood OR (2) You give the landlord permission OR (3) You are given at least 24 hours written notice, with the date and time between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. of when they want to enter, and given a fair reason for entering.

Atira (Women only) 604.331 .1407 ext. IOS

Security deposits

The Residential Tenancy Branch

You have a right to have your security/damage deposit returned whe n you move.

• To keep a security deposit, your landlord must do an inspection at the beginning and end of your tenancy. share the results of the inspection with you, and request your signature on the tnspectiOQ forms. · ....

• You must give an address where the cheque can be sent to you when you move out. You can give the address of a friend, agency or relative. or your new address.

• You can make a claim for the repayment of a security or pet deposit anytime wtthin two years of the end of your tenancy.

Pivot Legal Society 604.255.9700 UBC Law Students 604.8221661 First United Church 604.68 1.92-H Downtown Eastside Women•s Centre (Women only) 604.681 .&

The Residential Tenancy Branch has all of the forms you nee1 online at www.rto.bc.ca The Residential Tenancy Branch main office is located at 502 Kingsway in Burnaby.The closest Skytrain station is Metroto· There is a Residential Tenancy Branch officer who can answE questions, give you forms, and accept filings every Tuesday afi Thursday from I :00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Pathways, in the Fou Corners Bank building at the corner of Main and Hastings .

Funded by the Vancouver Foundation and Central City Foundatior

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7 0 0

Artful Sundays A Multimed ia Outdoor Visual Arts Market

Napier Square (Napier at Commercial)

Every Sunday-July 27 111 to August 31 51

12:00 noon to 5:00 p.m. {

Artful Sunday on July 2i 11 will include: • Books and Records Sale/Fundraiser for Vancouver Cooperative Radio • Downtown Eastside Artist, Diane Wood (collage, fiber arts & mixed media)

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Crowds mill in front of the mainstage at last summer's Powell Street Festival. Read on for this year's festival line-up!

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The DTES Youth feStiVal

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Hosted by DEYAS- Change the Future August 161h, 2008. lOam - lOpm

Goals: To raise funding for youth street outreach, raise awareness of DEY AS, create understanding around homelessness, addictions and mental illness.

Overview: Saturday August l6 1h at 1Oam where we orientate the visual artists about the DTES, take them on a tour and invite them to set up at or around pigeon park to paint their perspective on homelessness, addictions and mental health.

At I lam we set up primed graffiti painting boards at Pigeon Park where we invite the community to come paint their perspectives and give youth an opportunity to create some modern artworks.

At 3pm we begin our at Victory Square. During t~at time we will have; M11sicians (Our opening act is by a rapper who wrote a song just for this event voice of tile Street!)

BBQ A FREE STORE

DEY AS TABLE, selling pins, t-shirts and memberships and subscriptions.

We also hope to give out prizes that day, but have yet to line that up.

WE NEED HELP ! TOGETHER WE CAN CHANGE THE FUTURE!

We are looking for volunteers to help with; • Collection donations of nice free clothing • selling t-Shirts, pins memberships and subscriptions; • running the free store/table • Hand ing out the food and drinks • Putting up posters • Promoting the event by word of mouth GET 11-JAT FACEBOOK ACTIVE!!!!!!!

WE NEED MORE SPONSORS! Clothing Hamburgers, Hot dogs, Pop, Coffee T-Shirts with DEY AS designs on them Prizes for the youth For more information or to get involved please contact Anna Jones at 604-961-9262.

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Some time ago a man punished his 5-year old daughter for wasting a roll of expensive gold wrapping paper. Money was tight and he became even more upset when the child pasted the gold paper so to decorate a box to put under the Christmas tree.

Nevertheless, the little girl brought the gift box to her father the next morning and said, "This is for you Daddy."

The father was embarrassed by his earlier overreaction, but his anger flared again when he found the box was empty. He spoke to her in a harsh manner, "Don't you know, young lady, when you give someone a present there's supposed to be something inside the package?"

The little girl looked up at him with tears in her eyes and said, "Oh, Daddy, it's not empty. I blew kisses into it until it was full."

The father was crushed: He fell on his knees and put his arms around his little girl, and he begged her to forgive him for his unnecessary anger.

An acciden t took the life of the child a short time later and it is told that the father kept that gold box by his bed for all the years of his life, and whenever he was discouraged or faced difficult problems he • would open the box and take out an imaginary kiss and remember the love of the child who had put it there.· In a very real sense, each of us as human beings have been given a golden box filled with unconditional love and kisses from our children, family, friends and God. There is no more precious posses.

SIOn

Submitted by Adrienne '

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Ayisha, Diane and Harley are the hosts of East Side Story, a weekly radio show of interviews, news updates, music and poetry from the neighbourhood. We're the voice of the Carnegie Action Project.

CAP does research, pub Iic education and action to improve the lives of the low-income residents of the DTES. Eastside Story comes to you live every Monday at 2:00, on Co-Op Radio, CFRO 102.7 fm.

Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture The average Canadian may be unaware that the Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture exists. Located in Toronto and supported by federal grants it is restricted to the effects of torture and war in distant lands. For the most part it deals with refugees . .. Declared to be a voluntary organization the Centre accepts donations. It provides counselling, lawyers, university resources, medical aid and other ameni.• tics to those requesting aid.

This raises the question of whether victims of torture in Canada are no less entitled to these benefits.

Cases have arisen where proof of medical experi ments performed on unwilling inmates in Canadian institutions have been compensated . Those reported are few in number and disappear from the newspapers after the initial report. The word "torture•• is never mentioned. The inference that criminal abuse in Indian Residential Schools was not deliberate removes claim to the extremities of the experience.

While the Canadian Centre for Victims ofTorture does not assume responsibi lity for accuracy andreliability of information it nevertheless must investigate claims in order to provide assistance. The provision of lawyers by the Centre would indicate that '~riminal proceedings against perpetrators of crime are being brought to justice.

By VELMA OEMERSON

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Dear Friend, We had hoped that in six months or more you would have fou nd ample reason to support the Vancouver CommunityNet with yo ur membership or donation.

If you've simply overlooked sending it to us, we understand and look forward tn hearing from you.

Otherwise we'd be interested in hearing why you're not supporting us or whatever feedback you may have about our system.

We have very limited resources, and they are spread over a large number of users. We offer services that include providing free access to the internet, email and webspace, public access sites, training and support for both individual and not-for-profit orgs.

We depend on voluntary membership for our survival, but if users do not become members, we are faced with the problem of how to sustain operations.

So please think about the value of our system that provides access to the whole community, and send us your membership ifyou are able.

Memberships are: $25 Regular, $40 Family, $15 Low Income, $75 Premium, $1 0/month Sustainer and $200 Really Special! ** Donations of $25 and over arc tax deductible** Make cheques to Vancouver Community Network 41 I Dunsmuir Street, Vancouver, BC, V6B I X4.

Please make a note of your phone# and Login ID on the cheque.

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DTES Celebrates

National Aboriginal DaY Oppenheimer Park was the place to be on June 21 as many First Nations people, Metis people and Inuit people gathered to celebrate their rich culture through traditional songs and dances.

Traditional stew and other foods were given to all that attended, One man that attended the afternoon celebration was Hus-Tu-ees from the Heiltsuk Nation at Bella Bella. He currently works just blocks from the park at the Health Contact Centre. He was celebrating 13 years of being clean and sober and came to Oppenheimer to speak to the people about having a clean lifestyle. "I use to come to this park to shoot up and now I come to spread my message of helping people," he said.

The afternoon ended with traditional drumming as everyone slowly left the celebration at the park.

By Jackie Humber

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The insane have the planet they wanted and have been waiting all this time for what it's worth; life might be better on the next planet we take over, after the fall of Earth, give me black cats and sidewalk cracks to cross over. to and under the ladder I go, if I was getting married J guess we'd have run into each other Oh No! After the fall of Earth why does tomorrow let alone yesterday never arrive?

Tomorrow this tomorrow that tomorrow mass sorrow I've never been a leader so I will follow, Pompeii was a fairly brutal start where there is war there is art but how long has art existed in one form or another with everyone living or dying playing their part, like a reprieve from the governor and/or voices in my head overhead while laying in my bed, I need voicemaillike a hole in my head, in between voices cheer me on and off- Real Voices I like to chase and perchance destroy at random someone's life. Do you own this world? Your name is not at the head of the list; according to our head count you simply do not exist - silence time while we recount.

You needn't worry as we are voices that don 't count like former best friends who foolishly thought things don't end, I've got, have had my lot and maybe will at some point again but just prying the lids off my eyes I only see loose ends, like a day stretched out as empty as a pocket on Welfare eve, then come the excuses: everything I owe 1 stole and then got ripped off by a thief, quick before they steal home and land here Trust SO Thick here it si written in quicksand, your video games and. professional sports being replaced by any and every war, every channel another sad battle between them and those.. giftcards will be griefcards ARE YOU IN? Up to my waist as I wonder how quicksand tastes - yeah, I'm in, There's another stain in the sky don't worry gift counselors are nearby as they stand on guard for thee Oh Canada you could've been the coolest coun try & flushed it all down for all to see and they saw!

ROBERT McGILLIVRAY "History teaches us that men and nations behave wisely once they have exhausted all other alternatives."

Abba Eban

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reduce to debase to nothing . ¡ . .

I tr.ied calling but you were on the line so I guess that means we won't be meeting for breakfast. Last ; night you looked exhausted, when after walking and deciding not to go to a movie you caught a cab home. Before my bus arrived after you left I realized there was nothing open around me. The buildings in the day do not seem to be as noticeable. A bronze statue of a Chinese man sits like a watching guard, in the second story window of an old building.

There is no fanfare about the building's functionality; the bare minimum is employed to make it useful, presentable. Even without all the people, there is a feeling of humanness unlike the glass and polished every other part of downtown, When trying to aspire to illusions of better than, we lose our humanity. The shallowness and harshness of everything is reduced to appearances. There is little interesting community here. This city is designed to be accommodating to the lowest level of culture. Public space is corporate run and we are disenfranchised by this. We lose our humanity in the mechanization, in the speed by which we get things.

There is a rudeness that replaces connection. Our ¡ last attempt at participating is reduced to gossip and perceived personal slights, real or imagined.

Ego centered, paranoid and suspicious, we greet our

fellow with distrust. Women are reduced. Men are reduced. We are enacting a conformity of non reality. The discourse of anything has been systematically reduced to polarities and reductionist ideas. We have not developed relation. The family is cynical; children hate their parents, have no respect for the elders, and are raised absently, without love.

The "omegas" line up in groups waiting to get into Au Bar, or other college frat-like events, that are about nothing.

I watched one pretend to throw something at a bicyclist, after scaring them by running up to the rider.

It is all a joke, dehumanized outsider.

The desensitization required to assault a handicapped person in a parking lot, for saying something about two young men parking in the handicap parking spot, is a typical aggression that this city fundamentally operates from.

I'm not sure when Fort Lauderdale took over Granville street, but the spectacle of it is like Barbie barfing in an alley as Ken drops a date rape drug in her drink while she is gone.

The gallery, the money, the important, rich ones, the politicians, the beige, the right, the boring; have turned this city into nowhere. lesadeetree

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Carnegie Learning Centre Join Our July/August 2008 Activities We offer one to one tutoring in all subjects from English to computers. S~gn up and we will match you with a volunteer tutor. Ask to help assess your learning and match you wtth one of our volunteers Come to our regular Learning Centre meetings on Thursdays at 11 :OOam Writing for Fun with Diane on Tuesdays, 1 - 2 pm in Classroom 2 . . .

Intro to Computers (Chinese)- Tuesdays 9am to 12pm, FULL, wattmg list Seniors Basic English - Tuesdays 2pm .

Carnegie Education and Library Committee Monthly Meetmg, .

Homelessnation.org- Thursdays, 1:30 to 4:30pm, add your ideas, videos and blogs on homelessness to thts website with Colin's help . . . . .

SHIRE Seniors Digital Storytelling Project- storytelling, scriptwriting, creatmg dtgttal stones about semors, housing, isolation and other issues- contact Marlene George for updates 604-665-3005

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Trans joke Bus drivers with shite in their heads, if all of you were to despair one night would anyone notice let alone know what to dread, they haven't a sliver of brains then there's the Skystains with their wooden & electric bats (tasers for you travelers) Please come again!! not with a loaded gun to my head, you'll .I. have to do better than that when you &/or me are • dead. Progress pushes us back into Stone Age travesties, like waiting 5-20-30 minutes as every other bus goes by ... us on the same page? we're not even in the same library; 20 bucks more to do something yo u've done every day then I see the parade of 'Sorry Not In Service' First, I don't accept your h~lf­ mast apology; Second, no one has been able to tell me where Not In Service is or was supposed to be; Third, you 're our Province's biggest joke - with buses every 20-30 minutes how do you keep your team afloat, a lot of them are also jerks today's example a driver speeds up as a few people want to get off but Not on His Watch "You stay on till say stop! !"I watch said driver park his bus to get a coffee while his passengers wonder 'what the F%x7!'

Then 3 in-a-row the first two just go & wouldn't you know the 3rd has vomit all over the back seat. "Do you know ? Do you even care!??" I repeat don't you even dare say 1'm sorry. I think I found Not In Service is it supposed to smell like an unwashed armpit?

Security this, security that, to the next driver I see just a friendly fair warn ing: choose well & wisely the next person at whom you're going to scream/ yell/berate make irate, hesitate until it's too late; do Not mention raises & higher fares or you'll be talking to your higher faith the first or next fare-related death may be yours but back to the driver above bus #2337 as th e passengers & I beg in the 17-block walk (some went even farther) I pulled the string to STOP! Waiting to go the other way don 't even look at the . time one little peek as stupid thoughts emerge about defacing a public bus [in other words Crime] I think I now know why people prefer driving alone & very fast, your half-mast apologies mean nothing to you or me but sooner or later it's someone else' s job & tragedy ... these are the last words at least for now & forever - life is about as simple as predicting the weather one more time, for now, ROBERT McGILLIVRAY

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Coast Mountain 'proudly' operates ...

It's not the intent of this writer to paint all bus drivers with the same brush - of having uncaring, aggressive, reckless or even vindictive attitudes towards low-income people, seniors, people with disabilities and others. When incidents are related it should and must be viewed as pertaining to certain individuals who display these negative characteristics and act out against people who only fit into their predetermined stereotypes. *An incident whereby a #3 Downtown bus, piloted by a be-turbaned driver, has stopped at the Skytrain at Terminal and Main. An older person steps on and asks the driver if he can get a ride to Hastings. The driver yells, "No. Get off my bus!" The person steps down, mutters "F-you" and walks away. The driver unlatches his seatbelt, reaches under or behind the seat, pulls out a small spade, dashes off the bus to run up behind the man and smack him in the back between the shoulders with the flat ofthe blade. He gets back on and, while replacing the spade, a wornan sitting close to the front says "You just committed an assault with a dangerous weapon! " He eyeballed her and said "Shut up or get off." She called the Bus company's "Comments" line with the bus

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number, time and location of the incident. She didn't call the police. *An incident of an very senior man getting on and as soon as he had shown his pass the driver took off from the stop at a rapid clip, causing the bus to sbake and undulate. The senior man said, "Would you slow down? People are being bumped and banged." The driver slowed and the man let go of the bar at the very front and took a step toward one of the handholds and a seat. He reported that "As soon as I let go of the front bar and was not holding on for a step, the driver just floored it accelerator, making me run to keep upright and crash into the first seat. He did it on purpose." He went on to say that medical reports on buses have at least 2 calls a week for broken hips, banged shins, falling and oth· erwise insecure experiences of passengers.

It has to do with insufficient handholds on the nev buses but there is also a statistic that bus-related injuries are up a whopping 43% since the introduction of the newer buses. There is a serious public relations problem with the reputation of these new buses being almost uniformly bad or of drivers being insensitive to the needs of frail passengers.

This isn't so much a call for bus horror stories as: call for Coast Mountain to wake up and educate some of their more bigoted or even racist drivers t• stuff their attitudes where the sun don't shine. As usual, most of us wish only to be on board when such incidents occur and maybe see if our 'hero' daydreams can give us a chance to stand up for someone getting the bad treatment. Tit for tat, if someone gets on and starts abusing the driver or another passenger, stand up then too.

"The caste system is a creation oft cunning intellectuals of the Medieval Age. In the Vipra Era they wanted to perpetuate their privileged position for their descendants. To achieve this end those cunning intellectuals wrote thousands ofbooks and compiled thousands of God-centred verses only to show that :he caste system is a creation of God. This was a ?Sychological way of infusing the illogical idea [of :asteism]." (PNS-4) "Politicians want to accomplish everything through their grandiloquence. By identifying the weaknesses . in others and by resorting to bombastic language, they incite one section of people against another so that they can usurp the seat of power and cling to it.

Human beings will have to remain vigilant against · "''.,._ .... persons of this type." (POD #26)

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Here Again My dear friends, I hope your journey has been a safe one • I hope you have found your inner child Praying to the Great Spirit each day Will give you guidance.

It will help your inner child grow, Grow up to be a stronger warrior.

PRT

Take everything in perspective Never feel that you are alone There are a lot of sisters & brothers Going through all the pain & suffering.

Hunger for Simplicity ...

Livid bleeding heart - lost without a safe secure shelter

Give thanks to all creatures Any one may be your guardian angel It may be your source of power.

Torn scared body- emptiness fills the aching tummy.

Banish inhumane mind - egotistic developers raping Mother Earth

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Cleanse yourself by the waters Give thanks to Mother Earth For all her healing medicine.

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Wait Together each of us From all walks of life Can merge as one to unite!

So my dear friend Go on your healjngjourney.

All my relations, Bonnie E Stevens

Priscillia Tait •

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DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE .

NEEDLE EXCHANGE VAN·-. .3 Routes: ..

604-685-6561 .Q!!- 5:4~pm -ll:45pm Overnight -l2:30am8:30am . "

YOUTH ACTIVITIES SOCIETY

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Downtown Eastside~ 5:30p~- I :30a~ 1 CFRO 102.-7FM CO-OP RADIO •

604-251-3310

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Tuesday, July 29

' Free Showers for homeless persons at 327 Carrall Wed 7-8:30am; Sat 7-10am; Frl WOMEN ONLY 6-BPM ... .. . . ........ .... .. . . ... ·· · .... •

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l'HIS NEWSLETTER IS A PUBLICATION OII'I'HE · CAICNEGIE COMMUNITY CENTRE ASSOCIA'fiON · We:aoknowledge-that;Cih'iegi~Commu~lly:Otinlre; and·thll~, ArUcles re.Jresent ..., views or IndividuAl I Newitetter,·· •r•·li•*'oinlna.o1Ube.8q~•ml.h:Natrdn'e ' t enltory. contributors And not or Ihe Assodntfon.

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: -Edi~r7 p-;..;ir{ TaYto;; Ja;ut l~lp, Li;a Da~id. -: W1 A N T E 0 1 Cover Art by Priscillia Tait 1 Artwork for the Carnegie Newsletter

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TIM STEVENSON I\-. ~ ., , CITY CO UNCILLOR ~H*t trtm~ ~~!t: SERVING THE COMMUNITY WITH PRIDE

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• Small Illustrations to accompany articles •

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CITY HALL 453 WESf 12,. AVE. V5Y 1V4

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Phone: 604.873· 7247 Email: llan. stcvenson®vancouver. ca

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and poetry Cover art- Maximum sfze: 17cm(6·3/4") wide x 15cm(6") high.

Subject matter relevant to Issues pertalnlng to the Downtown Eastside fa preferred, but all work will be considered Black &while printing only If Size restrictions must be cons1dared (I.e.,

your place Is too large, It will be reduced andlor cropped to fit) . Jenny Wai Ching Kwan MLA • All artists will receive credit for their work

Working for You

1070-1641 Commercial Dr, VSL 3Y3 Phone: 604-775-0790

• Originals will be returned to the artist after

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being copied for publication Remuneration: Carnegie volunteer tickets

Please make submissions to: · ,··· · ·~- ··Paul Taylor, Editor.::.~.·..-·· 2008 DONATJONS: Barry for Dave McC.-$250

Many of the drawings of faces used as illustrations in this issue were done by James Dewar.

Anne P.·$40 Margaret 0.-$40 Paddy ·$70 Michael C...$50 Judy E.·$10 Alayne K.·$50 libby 0.-$70 Callum C.-$100 The Edge ·$2QO Jenny K.-$22 Penny G.-$40 Wilhelmina M-$30

Jaya B.·$100 Mell.·$50 Pam B·$50 Rolf A.-$50 ~~.!~.!!..~.::.~!~9 ·.Greta P:-$59. Anonymous -$50

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Atira Women's Resource Society Creating collective employment and income-generating opportunities for and with women in the Vancouver's DE.

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H-6R.SToR.y Atira Women's Resource Society is a feminist identified organization that op programs women, and their children, affected by violence and/or abuse. In 1987, the Society opened its first transition house, Durrant (formerly Atira) House, in the South Surrey I White Rock community. Since then Atira has expanded services to include three additional specialized transition houses, several support and outreach programs, community kitchens, and the Maxxine Wright Community Health Centre and Wraparound projects. In Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, Atira also provides residential and shelter programs, as well as the EWMA program, legal advocacy services, and a Stopping the Violence counsellor. In 2002, Atira Women's Resource Society launched a for-profit social enterprise, ATIRA Property Management Inc. All profits generated by the property management company will be used to support the not-for-profit activities of Atira Women's Resource Society.

Pf-tl LOSOPH-Y: We believe women and children must have the right to live free of violence and abuse; women must have the right to self-determination; women must have the right to define what family is for them; violence against women can only be analyzed on a political and social level; violence and abuse must always be considered within the context of power and control; and, violence against women is a crime.

Enterprising Women Making Art (EWMA) is a program of Atira Women's Resource Society. The program was launched in 2003 in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES). It focuses on supporting women who are interested in arts and crafts production to work together to develop an alternative fonn of business or employment that is grounded in their needs, goals and realities. The program also supports Creative Women Craftworks, a developing artisans' co-operative in the DTES. The social mission of Enterprising Women Making Art is to improve the economic and personal well being of women who are socially and economically marginalized and who face multiple barriers to employment.

The program addresses issues of women's economic security, social inclusion, and independence from • violence/ abuse and street engagement, by means of a social collaborative model of enterprise ·, development.

Women Elders in Action invites

CONTACT US

unattached senior women living on limited incomes to help with our new project:

EWMA Project Coordinator ~

Rebeccah Parry Phone: 604-331-1407ext.11 0 Fax: 604-688-1799 ) ~rr Email: ewma@atira.bc.ca

Lessons Learned: the lives and limes of elder women in BC

Join with us now at 411 Senior Centre to record the life stories of other senior women in the lower mainland.

Enjoyable training is part of this work!

Learn how to interview, record and work with the· stories once they've been told. Collaborate with other likeminded women to create a book capturing the wisdom of your generation.

Get involved in this w orthwhile proj ect, call Jan at 604-684 ·817lloc. 22 8.

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WARNING WOMEN BE AWARE: A number of aboriginal women in the Downtown Eastside have been sexually assaulted by both aboriginal and other men using · Date Rape drugs and horse tranquilizers.

Women, please do not leave your drinks unattended even for a short moment in any bar, even when you are with friends.

Please report any incident of rape to the Vancouver Police immediately. This is the only way these perpetrators will be stopped. rty.fiy.fiy.ft>.

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Be Apart of Vancouver's Famous

PRIDE PA

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August 3, 2008 CCAP is looking for volunteers to march or help out at this year's Pride Parade. It's going to be an awesome day full of fun and festivities!

You could ....

1) Wear a cardboard box home 2) Wear a Poverty Olympic Costume 3) Hold a banner 4) Help push the Poverty Olympic Torch 5) Assist with selling T-shirts, buttons, handing out leaflets at the table To walk in the march - you will need to be available to make costumes and possibly attend a dress rehearsal (dates tba). Your creative ideas are welcome.

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announce:

The r;econd Annual fearless festiVal 1 "

Sunday, August 24 2008 from 3 to 9 pm •

in and around Pigeon Park.

We want to get ns·many people who live here or work here or even who just love this 'hood to come out and celebrate.

When we first came up with the idea for this fest it was in reaction to the Vancouver Srm article c~lling the DTl!S utile four blocks of lletr•. Wo thought: 11 Why can't we have a party down here just to show em?., So we did. Those of you came last year had a great time and our festival was featured on Shaw Access Fearless TV a few times tool We are looking for artists, performers, volunteers, and most of all involvement from you. Even if you just show up on that afternoon, we'll be happy. Our neighbourhood is under real danger from gentrification and developers: it Is even more Important that those of us we live here get together in solidarity to have some fun.

If you want to help us celebrate tho diversity and beauty of the DTES, either as a performer or a volunteer, please contact: Michelle at .. mlchellerlchard@yahoo.com.. or Steve at "~rduncan@shaw.~a .. or give him a call at 604-788-8340 e

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solder & sons 247 Mnin Street

Coffee, Boo

Electronics & More

If you are interested in participating, please contact Anna at 604-562-9912 or ann

FREE DENTAL HELP in the DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE The Eastside Walk-In Dental Clinic 455 E. Hastings 604-254-9900 Open Mondays and Fridays, 9:30 - 12:30 Volunteer dentists will help with fillings, \ crowns, root canals, etc.

The Vancouver Com1nunity College 604-443-8499 For cleanings

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Reeular and Double-Shot Coffee

JULY Special: Iced Tea for $1.50 I

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CCCASGM The President of the Carnegie Community Centre Association (CCCA) hereby calls for a Special General Meeting (SGM) of the CCCA on Thursday, July 31, 2008 at 5:30pm, to be held in the Carnegie Community Centre's Carnegie Hall.

The specified business of the meeting is to give the membership the opportunity to call for a recount of the ballots of the June 5, 2008 Annual General Meeting (AGM) elections to the Board ofDirectors. This is the entirety of the business that will be brought up at the SGM. The reason for calling this SGM is because there is a question as to whether members present at the AGM wished to have a recount. Because this was not taken up at the time, and the Chair at the time was unaware of the situation, there is a desire to give the membership another opportunity to ask for a recount. There is no obligation to take this action: it is done to attempt to respond to the concerns that some members may have. · In order to vote at the meeting, persons must hold a membership card valid from at least 14 days prior to the meeting, that is, from July 17 or before. To hold the meeting, there must be a quorum of at least 30 qualified members present. · Matthew Matthew President, CCCA •

ASkLfDN®

just poke a hole in the son-of-a-bitch ...

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