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OKA=NADA OUR HOME'S ON NATIVE LAND KANEHSATAKE MOHAWK WOM EN ASK UN FOR HELP HIGH COMMISSION FOR HUMAN RIGHTS IMMEDIATELY DISPATCHED Finally! Action at the international level. Three Mohawk women from Kanehsatake addressed the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues this week in New York about the current dispute in their community. Tewatonhawitha, Warisose and Wenhniseri:iosta of the traditional government spoke to the Forum on Tuesday morning, May 17th. Their message was plain and simple. They brought greetings from their men , women and children of the Mohawk Nation at Kanehsatake, "which lies within the colonial boundaries of Canada". They desc ribed the Canada/Quebec policing agreement which was being forced on their community. "These agreements are an infringement on our sovereignty". We "are suffering because of the conflict that these agreements have caused amongst our people". They have caused nothing but anger and uncertainty. Some of our people have even been banished from our territory by outside white courts. They can't make a living and the court orders has split up our families. We are constantly threatened with armed police invasions into our community by the RCMP, Quebec Police and the Aboriginal police force established under Canadian government authority. The Canadian government continues to refuse to deal with our traditional government. It does not respect our right to make our laws under our own constitution, the Kaienerekowa. Canada's Bill C-24 is designed to tum our territory into a Canadian municipality. It is
meant to destroy our ancestral rights and use of our land. We never agreed to become part of Canada. We have no representation in Canada's parliament. We are not even being consulted about any of these moves. Canada knows we would never consent to its outrageous proposals that violate our human rights under international laws . They insist on dealing only with James Gabriel, who has been voted out of office by our people. The Canadian government has used referendums to force its legislation on us. "Our traditional method of reaching consensus avoids conflict and confrontation". The Canadian procedures imposed on us are adversarial and divisive. Over half the voters on their electoral list live outside our community. We invited members of the Permanent Forum to visit our community to see the situation for themselves. We cautioned them not to believe what the high-priced public relation s propaganda financed by Canada and Quebec. Th is negative stereotyping is being fed constantly to the mainstream media who are making sensational stories portraying us as criminals and gangsters. Mediation established with the consent of all parties involved is the only process that will diffuse the tens ion . Force of arms and threats will not bring peace. The United Nations stands for finding peaceful resolutions to disputes. It must intervene immediately to bring peace to our community.
Canada's response to this message was to walk out of that meeting. The reaction from the UN was swift. On May 22, two members of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights arrived from Switzerland at the Longhouse in Kahnawake. Rodolfo Stavenhagen, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of Indigenous Peoples, along with Pablo Espiniella, a Human Rights Officer, took bundles of written information from the Kanehsatake and Kahnawake people. This will be used to make a report to the UN about the human rights situation of Indigeneous peoples in Canada. Right on! We, the people, want the final authority over all of our affairs. We want an end to secret decision making about public matters. We want a forensic audit. We want to know why our land was passed to a private company. We want to know why our community is in receivership and why there has been no money for education and health care at a time when people like Richard Walsh were being paid extravagant salaries. He was haired for over $100,000 even though James Gabriel and the OPP had evidence that he was a convicted fraud artist. We want to know why 67 heavily armed native police officers suddenly descended on our peaceful community on January 12, 2004 , and took over our police station. Why was our police commission ignored? Why have the people who questioned this been subjected to criminal charges? Why are four councilors and the Canadian and Quebec governments making decisions for our community and signing agreements on behalf of our people from an outpost in a distant city? Kenneth Deer, Editor of the Eastern Door, presented the UN representatives with documents on the sovereignty position of the traditional government of the Mohawk people. He said, "We have our own constitution, the Kaienerekowa, which we
follow . Our responsibilities are carried out 3 through the clans and we are a matriarchal society. Our way precedes European contact. We never gave up our sovereignty to become citizens of France, England or Canada; we have not lost our language, culture, identity or way of life. Canada tried to destroy all this. We have a staunch sense of our nationality. When there is a breach of our fundamental rights, we react. Canada does not want to recognize us as a nation .. . With the UN's help things are beginning to look better. We need to keep getting the word out internationally because Canada is determined to defame us and to keep us silent. How can we protect ourselves from their dirty tricks? They are determined to keep our issues as their "internal problems" . MNN Mohawk Nation News. Kahnawake Mohawk Territory. May 24, 2004. orakwa@paulcomm.ca kanehsatake_ indymedia@sympatico.ca
KANEHSATA:KE ATTACKED AGAIN BY JAMES GABRIEL'S FEDERALLY-FU DED MILITIA June 18th, 2004 Throughout the morning, Grand Chief James Gabriel's federally-funded militia has been actively provoking incidences on the Territory. The Militia has attempted to run community volunteer patrol drivers off the road. These intentional acts of aggression are believed designed to draw attention away from the recent exposure, by Photo Police, of James Gabriel's involvement in the hiring of a convicted felon, Richard Walsh , to spy on his political opponents. This was another federally-funded "secret" policing agreement, signed in 1997 between Gabriel and the federal government.
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u The Sfirete du Quebec has informed Chiefs Steve Bonspille, John Harding and Pearl Bonspille that the KMP, otherwise known as the Militia, has, as of this morning, cut all communications with the joint RCMP-SQ forces named by Quebec. The Militia is acting on its own and has breached the TriPartite Policing Assistance Agreement. Chief Harding stated that, "Kanesatake currently maintains good relations with the SQ and continues to work with them on interim arrangements to patrol the community and answer emergency calls. The voluntary community security team also patrols the territory twenty-four hours per day. We cannot understand why the Liberal Government of Canada, particularly those individuals with full knowledge of the situation, Anne McLellan, Andy Mitchell and Paul Martin, continues to support violent attacks upon the Mohawk people."
FLOODING IN MOZAMBIQUE KILLS THOUSANDS LEAVES MILLIONS HOMELESS. SA W A BLUE JA Y TODA Y. PEOPLE CAN'T SMOKE IN PUBS OR REST AURANTS; CRACK IS STILL BEING SOLD. SA W A BLUE JAY TODAY. WAITER CHARGED AFTER FIGHT IN REGENT HOTEL. MAN IN COMA. SA W A BLUE JAY TODAY. MAN DEAD AFTER GUN ATTACK ON WEST BROADWAY. SA W A BLUE JAY TODA Y. SIX- YEAR-OLD BOY SHOOTS SIX YEAR OLD GIRL IN USA . SA W A BLUE JAY TODAY. PROTESTERS' WITHDRAWAL DEFLATES APEC PROBE. SA W A BLUE JAY TODA Y. BY TRIPLE-O SEVEN. CARD CARRYING MEMBER OF THE CCC! OH KANA -DU! OUR HOMELESS CORRUPTED LAND. By Carl MacDonald
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DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE FULL OF CRIME. SA W A BLUE JAY TODA Y. SASKATO ON POLICE BLAMED FOR TWO NATIVES FREEZING TO DEATH. SAW A BLUE JAY TODAY.
Throughout history , it has been the inaction ofthose who could have acted ; the indifference ofthose who should have known better; the silence ofthe voice of justice when it mattered most; that has made it possible fur evil to triumph.
Haile Selassie
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.., WE GET MAIL Letter to the Editor, Following is a response to Christiane Bordier's Just Imagine article. It is an anonymous contr ibution as I wish to avoid confrontation. which would likely happen with those in a negative mind-set. I was on welfare for 3 years and then on Disability for 4. Fortunate circumstances allowed me to get off the system 3 years ago. Funding for school is available: $7000 a semester $5000 is a grant and $2000 is a loan. If! received $7000 every 3 months, I could easily live on $5000 and pay back the $2000 immediately. On Disability one is allowed to work, even fulltime, and retain disability status for life. I did it and I know 3 people doing it right now. One can work while on welfare and earn up to $200 a month - $50 a week - which I agree is a pittance, but someone told me it was increased to $100/wk a few years ago and is still that way. Poverty, addiction, homelessness, etc. is a lifestyle set in the mind and needs healing with time, therapy, education or something other than money. Money handed to you does not heal the mind. As a matter of fact it can take you down if you don't have a healthy mind.
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True example: 2 brothers and 2 sisters inherited $30 ,000 and a 2-bedroom condo. I brother and I sister are both married; I brother and I sister are both single. The single brother and sister take over the apartment because real estate values are increasing. They take out a mortgage and pay off the married brother and sister. After a few months the single sister meets a boyfriend who is into crack . Eventually she quits working, spends her inheritance money and mortgages her part of the condo to pay for the habit. After about a year the single brother has to sell his interest in the condo and spend his share of the inheritance to bail her out. Before all this she was healthy and happy (her words ). Now she deals every day with addiction and Hep C and lives on welfare. ' By the way, what you drew- "Campbelland" - is closer to California. Take a look at a map! Your map is about as accurate as your welfare attack. Unfortunately, 80% of Human Resources money goes to administration. Did you know that? It's deplorable. [Not sure where you get yo ur inf ormation. but it 's f actually wrong on almost all p oints. Recipients are not allowed to earn anything without it being deductedfrom their cheques dollar-for-dollar. And the "true example" only f eeds the insane idea that virtually everyone ge tting welfare was once well-off. or all addicts have no one but thems elves to blame. A Financial Aid Worker once railed to me about a disabled p erson winning $5 million in the lottery who took the gov ernment to court when they cut her off assistance. She said the money would go but her disability was permanent. She won. but the Worker was implying that every one ofher clients had wealth stash ed away somewh ere and was just bleeding the system for more while not needing a dime Give your head a shake and open your eye s Ed.]
ATTENTION! all writers & wanna be's..... There is a fledgling writers group starting . It begins on July 2, Friday, 7:30-9pm, Classroom II on Carnegie 's 3m floor. Please come, share, inspire, and get feedback if it's wanted. All welcome!
Dear Inspector MacKay I understand that some officers were upset over a cartoon that was in the last Carnegie Newsletter . As member of this Community, I am deeply sorry about this incident and my hope is that this will NOT happen again. Over the years we have been working together to better improve relationships here in the Downtown Eastside. It is our responsibility to keep this relationship open and honest - for a better environment for our many hours of work. I would dislike it if this broke down. I hope you can accept my apology for this incident and we can carry on as wor ing members in this community. Yours Sincerely, Margaret Prevost Community Member Cc: D. Dickson; S. Thompson, Inspector J Mckay, J. Ferguson
THE EDITOR RESPONDS Hi Sis. Bob does not make final decisions on what does and does not go in the paper .. I do. We spoke on the phone a week or so after the June 1st issue and it wasn't until then that I actually took a close look at the cartoon. I'm not irresponsible but there were a few errors. Diane got photocopies of graphics from the Woodsquat book (which is not Sandy's. He authored the review that first appeared in a paper called The Rain that reviews local work. The Heart of the Community has been reviewed twice. Also, Sandy had no input whatsoever on which illustrations/graphics/cartoons Diane chose. Ifasked he'd likely find the cartoon offensive, too). Bob was not quoting CCCA Policy, but giving his interpretation of it in a way that backed up his opinion. I've done the same when I get shit for writing something that others take offense to - like the thing with Carlos and his bigotry and nasty depiction of all low-income people. I felt fine about what I'd printed but everyone else - sorry, "ot~ers" - o~ the Board and/or the Publications Committee felt intimidated by his threats of a lawsuit. I guess that's the nature of argument, and yours is just as right and
valid as what Bob was saying;. What's offensive and should not have gone in was a blanket condemnation of police 'everywhere' - "off the pigs" is too lopsided to be anything more than a rant of an armchair revolutionary. The article and the squat itself cannot be used to justify such a depiction , even with any number of examples from Vancouver or anywhere else in the world where police are identified as the bad guys . Finding that a lot of police in Mexican border towns are corrupt doesn't go automatically to "all cops are corrupt". But it's usually someone who's had a bad experience with the police that starts or perpetuates slogans like "off the pigs" or calls them "Gestapo" or something. The letter from the Inspector will go in (ifhe gives permission), as well as an explanation from either Diane or me that the cartoons were reproduced from the Woodsquat book. A 2nd small error was not putting the two pagers that contained Sandy and Jean's review facing each other along with a line saying "cartoon from _". It still doesn't excuse using it. A lesson I've learned over the years is not to say or imply that every rich or well-to-do person is a louse with the same attitude towards those less well-off economically as most governments seem to have. I also can't say "all politicians are greedy, corrupt thieves because of people like Libby and Bruce. Just like it's not right to say all white people are racists or all blacks are inferior and so on. Please send me your letter - the one you had Michael read and help with if you would. Bob can respond if he wants to next issue. , Take care , and I'm glad you aren t resrgrung: PaulR
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carnegie Newsletter I am writing to you not only for myself but also for silent victims and survivors of rape, by the known and unknown and of our system as well. I myself am a victim of rape by a former boyfriend. I was not only raped but sodomized in my own bed, and even though he had hit me on other occasions the police were reluctant to even take notes because they argued, I'd let him in and that even ifl did re- ' port it, the chances of him being investigated were slim and, of him being arrested, even slimmer. And ifby chance it went to trial I'd lose because, at the time it happened, we were dating. Their attitude made me sick. I felt violated all over again. It is not surprising that a lot of women keep quiet, given how police react. Maybe ifpolice made the rapist and not the victim feel guilty, those cowards would think twice before doing it again. If they were automatically put in jail for at least a night, maybe rapes would go down. I've heard of many cases where the rapist goes free even with strong evidence because defense lawyers confuse and shred to pieces the victim, or the charges are dropped because the victim is scared to death of testifying, I believe our justice system is to blame for being so !ough on the victims and not really going after raprsts and rape suspects; they cut the victimizer too much slack. Lawmakers, along with the courts, are way too lenient with rapists and rough on the victims. Lady Justice really is blind.
Rape is rape no matter if you know the guy or nOL,"> whether it was friend or foe, it ~ still rape and your life turns upside down, relationships become difficult ifnot impossible, friends are lost, relatives feel they are walking on eggs and others criticize you for 'letting' it happen. The stigma against rape victims still exists in the 51 21 century, and the victim gets blamed for the crime committed on her person. Rapists come in all shapes and sizes, from all work fields, and social and study levels . They can be employed or not, students, businessmen, wealthy or poor. Rapists come in all races, too. There is no rule for who is a rapist because some have no record of sexual assault at all. If you're the 'first' victim the police just file their name until someone else gets hurt or, worse, ends up dead. I ask myself every day "why does the legal system protect the victimizer and not the victim?" Is that supposed to be justice? In a broader sense the legal system protects men mor4e than women.. so much for equality. I would sign my name but I fear that the man who raped me will find a way to hurt me again. This letter is also to let other victims know they are not alone. Sincerely, A Rape Survivor.
ETIQUETTE FOR THE DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE Miss Manners answers a question overlooked by most books and advice columns on etiquette -
Dear Ms. Manners, Is there any chance of me meeting a man who's politically correct, gentle, and knows what feminism means? Growing Older Everyday
Dear Gooey, Yes there is. He'll be in a committed relationship with your best friend. The single ones you meet will say things like; "Feminism - does that mean I have to wear a dress?"
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Before We worshipped in beautiful Cathedrals where all were welcome. We lit candles and prayed amid scents of burnt wax and incense.
What a concept . ... A lobbyist, on his way home from work in Washington DC. traffic came to a dead halt and thought to himself, "Wow, this seems worse than usual" . He noticed a police officer walking between the lines of stopped cars, so he rolled down his window and asked, "Officer, what's the hold-up?" The cop replied, "President Bush is depressed, so he stopped his motorcade and is threatening to douse himself with gasoline and set himself on fire. He says no one believes his stories about why we went to war in Iraq, or the connection between Sad dam and al-Qaeda, or that his tax cuts will help anyone except his wealthy friends . So we're takino up a collection for him ." The lobbyist asks , "How much have you got so r: tar ?" : The officer replies, "About 5 gallons, but a lot of people are still siphoning."
T YCOO N You create such lovely labels for your pernicious poisons. You purvey a paradox by your mere presence.
but Your temples are more exclusive only a select few are chosen and given security cards and 1.0 . passes; certi lied to rise above the masses. Outside your gated city of glass and steel we gaze on your monuments and agree to make a deal to buy and sell your product; complicit in enabling Your transcendence. I'm still waiting for a miracle; a Medjugorie: a Visionary; but You just give me a supersized fries a cold cola and a Heartburn . Mary Duffy
a 9 Entry Rules The play must be: * an original one-act play , unpublished and unproduced * no longer than 10-12 double spaced typed pages equal to 10 minutes * with no more than 4 characters * presented in proper stage-play format * maximum two scripts per writer * written by a writer who has lived , worked or had relatives in the Downtown Eastside * include your name , phone number and address so we can contact you Ifyou want your script back please include a self addressed stamp ed envelope.
Silver Bullets Depleted Uranium Depleted You Depleted Your Country Destroyed Your Children Devastated Your Life Depleted Uranium Depleted You Destroyed Your Kidneys Depressed Your Mind Silver Bullets Designed to Kill All Werewolves and Monster Osama; Saddam "Any Dude will do". Silver Bullets Ricochet Backwards Explode in the Air Poison Your universe Killing You.
The three selected playwrights will each receive • a $100 fee Notes •
c. mary (barry) duffy
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Writers & •
Vancouver Moving Theatre, in association with Theatre in the Raw and the Carnegie Community Centre, is looking for three comedy/satirical plays on life in the Downtown Eastside District (from Victory Square and Gastown to Main and Hastings, from Chinatown to Hogan 's Alley and Strathcona, and from Oppenheimer to Luk 'luk'i). Vancouver Moving Theatre and Theatre in the Raw reserve the right for possible production of I , 2 or 3 of the plays selected during the DTES Heart of the City Community Arts Festival Oct. 2004.
Pleas e adhere to the 10-12 double spaced typed pages, otherwise we get play overload No hand written submissions will be ac cep ted Prop er scrip t formats are available at public libraries including Carnegie Library Vanco uver Moving Theatre and Theatre in the Raw reserve the right to workshop and to play edit, in consultation with the playwrights, before production or presentation. The plays will be selected by Savannah Walling (Vancouver Moving Theatre) and Jay Hamburger (Theatre in the Raw)
Important Dates Contest Deadline: Monday Aug. 16,2004
9:30 pm
The three selected plays will be announced: Monday Aug. 30, 2004 Please forward submissions to Carnegie Centre Front Desk for Vancouver Moving Theatre, attention Rika Uto; or mail it to P.O.Box 88270, Chinatown , 418 Main Street, Vancouver, V6A 4A4
When I was old enough to be curious, I asked her about the small round hole in my tummy, She said , That's your belly button; It used to be your mouth ."
News from the Library Drop by the Library to meet our new part-time librarian, Karen Lai. Karen has worked as a librarian in England, Austria and right here in Vancouver. She speaks mandarin, cantonese and the toi san language - so come and welcome her in whatever language you speak! Karen , your new librarian recommends Truth and Beauty by Ann Patchett, the author of Bel Canto . She says she could not put down this book which is about a twenty year long friendship between two women writers. Our head librarian , Mary Ann , is away until mid July visiting her son in Norway and brother in Ireland. I'm honoured to be filling in for her. When I came to Vancouver 6 years ago I got the warmest welcome in the world from folks at Carnegie so I'm happy to be back for a bit. Claudia Douglas from the central library will also be here to help you find your books in July. We are all really looking forward to a free poetry readin g here on Tuesday, June 29 at 2 in the 31ll floor gallery by Philip Kevin Paul author of Takin the Names Down From the Hill. He is the winner of the 2004 Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize. He has been described as "a rare young poet with the voice of an elder." He is WSA,NEC Indian from B.C.'s Saanich Peninsula, the son of the late Chief Philip Paul. He is also a top ranking lightweight boxer. Our amazing Carnegie chefs will be cooking up a storm of smoked salmon and bannock to welcome him and you to this event. From his " Bellybutton" poem about his Mother : "She has spelled out the odds I was up against: her joke about my arrival, the pill in my tiny fist.
New books we 've received: The Corporation by Joel Bakan. Read the same book that everyone in Vancouver will be reading this summer. Talk about it in book clubs, on the bus, in the cafeteria line up - everywhere! The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power is this year's "One Book, One Vancouver" choice; voted for and chosen by you, Vancouver's public. U.B.C law professor, Joel Bakan successfully argues that modern corporations have the charming but selfish personalities of psychopaths. The corporation's unchecked self-interest can destroy individuals and ultimately society. The book is highly entertaining as Bakan outlines a hopeful plan for treatment. The Lesser Evil by Michael Ignatieff A brilliantly argued but fatally flawed book. lgnatieff contends that " We may need to kill to fight the greater evil of terrorism, but we must never pretend that doing so is anything better than a lesser evil." Ignatieff argues for balance and sensitivity in the use of violence . It is too bad that Rumsfeld , Rice and Bush did not read this before invading Iraq . Ignatieff, of the Canadian Intelligentsia, is a professor at Harvard. His theory, while very thoughtfully considered, does not adequately factor in the continuum of brutal ity that, in war , takes on a momentum of its own. Regarding holding suspected terrorists as prisoners he writes: "detainees must retai~ the right to counsel and judicial review of their detention". OK . Tell that to Lyndee Johnson .. The Curious Incident of the DOE in the NiffhtTime by Mark Haddon. I laughed and I cried . Really. This book takes you inside the world ofa brilliant 15 year-old math whiz with asperger 's syndrome. Christopher tries to solve the mystery of Wellington's death. (Wellington is the dog next door) . He also manages to solve the mystery of his family's break up. I grew to love this spunky kid while the book held me spellbound until finished. Selected Poems by Giuseppe Ungaretti.This beautiful bilingual edition shares the words of Ungaretti from his early poems , written in the trenches ofNorthern Italy during World War One to the erotic and religious poems of his later years.
Opcn I-I ousc Events
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. Free Kid s'Act ivi tie s and Workshops . l.co-scn siti ve Carden Hou se
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STRATHCONA PARK 800 Prior Street (Prior & Hawks)
July
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10:00am to 3:00pm
Beat the Heat baseball game
Strathcona & Cottonwood Gardens Open House & Plant Sale
fAMILY FUN rain or shine
CHARCOAL S.C.!
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Welcome to beautiful 'charcoal RCo' Having toured the forest fire burns of last year, this is quite true for large tracts in this province. But why? Do the c1earcuts on Vancouver Island have something to do with it? We all know they are n't any better than the burns . I recall a project as few yea rs ago where millions of small (tiny) trees were planted on the northern coast of Africa in an effort to change the climate. It was supposed to help create rain whic h, at one time, was there before the prefvious trees were cut down - probably for dirt poor people's home fires. Last year's and the previous year's summe rs were the driest here in sixty years. This summer is shaping up to be a scorcher, too. Where is this going? Why haven 't we heard (or more likely listened to) the so-called experts? Could th is be a longer term tre nd or cycle? God knows; people don' t seem to. Michael Bohnert J
Sexua l Politics Are Like a Fruit Salad... Women are like apples on trees. The best ones are at the top of the tree . Most men don't want to reach for the good ones because they are afraid of falling and getti ng hu rt. Instead, they j ust get the rotten apples from the ground that aren't as good, but easy ..... Sha re this with other women who are good apples, even those who have already been picked! And men are like a fine wine. They start out as gra pes, and it's up to wome n to stomp the crap out of them until they tum into something acceptable to have dinne r with. Submitted by Gena T.
QUILTI NG BEE Come and join Marlene and Diane every Thu rsday morning in the Carnegie Theatre from 10- 11 :30 am .
At the Interurban Galler y:
Collision 2004 3 July - 17 July 2004 Open ing:
Friday 2 July 2004 , 7 - 10 pm
Collision is a process-based collaborative project involvi ng 23 artists from the Downtown Eastside and wider Vancouver comm unity . Each artist was given a 2' x 2' panel to produce new work . When the individual works are installed at the Interu rban , each piece will be separated from the next by a blank panel. The artists will then work collaboratively on the blank panels, producing a continuous row ofimages with each artist's work flowing into the next. The co llabo rat ive process requires artists to think beyon d the parameters of their own wo rk. Artists include first time contributors Matt Aiken, Judith Atkinson, Nicole Belanger, Lisa Cinar, The Dark, Charles Forsberg, Jude Matisse Griebel, Rachel Hall, Colleen Hesli n, Anthony Peck, Nyla Raney, Take 5, Wendy Thirteen, Jesse Toso, Jerry Whitehead, Jodie Zinner, as well as returning artists Fiona Ackerman, Molly Gaeta, Ingrid Gerberick, Ken Gerberick, Aurel Schmidt, Dan Siney and Bill Thomson.
Inter urban , 9 East Hasti ngs Street, Vancouver, BC, V6K I M9, Canada. Hours: Wednesday to Saturday 1-5pm.
We'll be making fabulous quilts, banners and fabric art. This group is a "hen pa rty" for women only who are interested in learning the age-old art of quilting, applique, and embroidery to display in October in a DTES Art Festival: "The Heart Of The City". This series of drop-in lessons and workshops wi ll run unti l Octo ber 14,2004. Each piece of activ ist art w ill be origi nal and one of a kind. Whatever your theme may be: powerful woman, memory of our lost sisters, First Nations art, anti -violence, woman movers and shakers in the DTES, community events, places. buildings, people and themes. o r whateve r yo ur imagi nation unl eashes. Materials will be supplied, j ust bring yourself and your ideas. Chinese translation generously provided by Yin Mei Chan.
Old Problems,
New Answers Modern medicine, in all its glory, now has a whole new menu of"feel better" pills . Serotonin inhibitors and all their chemical cousins have become the new answer to the depression of the populace. Gone is valium and all the other diasepines (serex, nuotrol , xanax, etc) and for good reason. The withdrawal from benzos can kill you, or rather you kill yourself to escape the withdrawal effects. I have been offvalium for a year and only now can I safely say it's over. The psychological after-effects can last for up to 9 months after you stop . The paranoia you experience is undesirable - days come when you're afraid of bridges, fearing you'll lose all self-control and hurl yourself from any bridge or overpass. You lock the windows so you can't jump in your sleep. For months everyone is a conspirator out to get you. Different people have different degrees of this madness but everyone else I've talked to about benzo withdraw~~ concurs with my own experience. It is pure unmitigated hell and quite a few people have not had the strength to persevere thru the terror and simply opt out oflife entirely. I admit the prospect of de~th was a daily deliberation for me. I prayed and like a mantra told myself to just hang on, that it would eventually get better if only I can keep from killing myself first. . A year later I feel like the ordeal ofbenzo addiction IS over. ~nfortunately, this is a common story, and the medical establishment now has a whole new gener~tion.ofpills to foist on an unsuspecting public. And, Just like benzos, they don't know what the long term effects will be. So proud of themselves for coming up with new answers to old problems, doctors are busy prescribing what has already had some
negative feedback - such drugs as Prozac and the new age of anti-depressants. By the time we find out the true long term side- and after-effects of these new chemicals, it will be too late for some people . I'm not saying 'don't take your medicine'. Just be very careful about what you do take. even ifit is legal and prescribed by a doctor. Every year thousands of people die from taking their meds properly. Even if you follow all the rules, some of you will die from complications no matter what you do. Depression and melancholy have been human afflictions for as long as people have existed. Somehow people managed without all the chemical substances used today. Maybe look for new ways to solve or just live with your problems; from my experience, most medicines hurt more than help, and I see people dying when the cure is worse than the initial problem. This is, after all, my opinion. Form your own but don 't be mislead by what the pill pushers and care industry professionals tell you. Pharmaceuticals are every bit as dangerous as the dope you buy on the street. R. Loewen
Flash! Citing police misconduct, a Vancouver judge has stayed the sentencing of local photographer Murray Bush on two charges stemming from an angry 2002 demonstration at Britannia against the Campbell government cutbacks. Provincial court judge David Smyth ruled Thursday that Vancouver police had violated Murray's rights when they strip-searched him in jail and then held him for 26 hours without letting him see a lawyer. The stay means that Murray won't have to face sentencing on the two charges for which he was convicted - assaulting a police officer, and taking part in an unlawful assembly. The judge also acquitted him of a charge of causing a disturbance. Two other accused were acquitted of charges, and two others were convicted. They await sentencing. More details in the next issue of the Newsletter. Chili Bob
A forgotten question of values Three elect ions have come and gone since Canada's political parties unanimously reso lved to wipe out child poverty . The Liberals have balanced the federal budget and handed out $100 billion in tax cuts. The Conservative party has broken up and come back together to fight for more and deeper tax cuts. The New Democrat who put forward the 1989 resolution, former party leade r Ed Broadbent, has spent 14 years in political retirement and returned to the fray to find the child poverty rate highe r than when he left. Today, one out of every six Canadian children is growing up in poverty . In Toronto, the rate is a staggering one in three. Immigrant children are falling off the economic ladder. Aboriginal child ren are stuck on the bottom rung. Yet no one is talking about this issue wit h any sense of urgency on the campaign trail. No one is as king why a decade of economic growth has left so many families behind. No one is pointing out Ca nad ian values didn't used to include overlooking those in need. In fairness, all of the parties have policies to reduce child poverty . But the leaders haven't highlighted them, the media haven't focused on them and the electorate, looking at Ottawa's record, assumes they'll fall off any government's priority list. That is a reasonable bet if the Conservatives or Liberals win a comfortable majority on June 28. But if Canadians elect a minority government, the nation's poorest youngsters might finally get a break. The party with the clearest commitment to eradicating child poverty is the NDP. Its members could end up holding the balance of power in Canada's next Parliament. Party leade r Jack Layto n - prompted, he freely admits, by his wife Olivia Chow- would make support for low-income families one condition for propping up a minority gove rnment. How far either of the smaller parties might be able to push the Conse rvatives or Libera ls is a matter of conjecture. But a look at three parties' policies provides a useful starti ng point. Na tiona l C hild Benefit: The federal government pays a tax-free month ly benefit to low and middle-i ncome parents. The current maximum is $2,632 a year per chi ld. The Liberals have promised to raise it to $3,240 over 3 yea rs.
The New Democrats would boost it to $4,900 over the same period. The Conservatives have said nothing about the child benefit, but have offered all parents, rich and poor, a tax deduction of$2,000 per child . In a minority government, the New Democrats might be able to get the Libe rals to increase the benefit faster or stop the Conservatives from dismantling it.
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Are you 19 or older and looking for work? Opportunity awaits at The Job Shop. If yo u' re out of wo rk a nd need help finding ajob , then here' s you r o ppo rtunity . The Job Shop is a free progra m that w ill suppo rt yo u in a quick return to work. With one-on-o ne coaching yo u' ll get co nnected, gai n co nfide nce and learn from others - a ll w ith a view to finding meani ngful employment. Call 604-253-9355 now to attend the next Job Shop info session. T he Job Shop is brought to yo u by Tradeworks Train ing Society.
Affordable Housing: The high cost of shelter is the single biggest cause of poverty in many urban centres. The Liberals have promised to invest $1.5 billion over five years in initiatives to boost the stock of affordable housing (after canceling all supportive housing programs in 1993). The New Democrats would spend $2 billion annually (6.6 times as much as the Liberals). The Conservatives have no housing plank in their election platform. The NDP might be able to wring more money out of the Liberals but they probably couldn't budge the Conservatives on this issue. Early child hood ed ucation: Affordable preschool care has the double benefit of allowing low-income mothers to work and ensuring that their children are ready to learn when they start school. The Liberals have promised to invest $5 billion over five years in a universally accessible early learning and child care program (after reneging on a similar proise of a national daycare system ('93+).. The New Democrats are proposing a similar program. The Bloc Quebecois, whose provincial confreres launched Quebec's $5a-day child care program (the fee is now $7) thinks Ottawa should cost-share provincial initiatives. The Conservatives do not support subsidized child care. The New Democrats would not let a minority Liberal government walk away from its child-care commitments (as the Libs did in '93))... In the event of a Conservative minority, the best the NDP could do is persuade Stephen Harper to let the provinces use their federal transfer payments for preschool care. To sum up, the NDP would act as a spur to the Liberals and a restraining influence on the Conservatives.. The 1.1 million children who live in poverty don't have much bargaining power in this election. But those who are willing to stand up for them do . In a close election, a vote of conscience can shift a nation's priorities. By CAROL GOAR
The Good Doctor She is the exception to the rule With a smile as wide as the Grand Canyon she welcomes the afflicted ones come to her for fixin' up their twisted limbs out of whack back and headaches hurt she eases their body and the smile helps warm the heart, she heals the hurts inside and out our wracked bodies deep black eyes deep black hair beautiful full without make-up her beauty comes from within She is the vessel God's wonderful tool even angry she is beautiful, not very scary I find myself wanting to be a better person prompted to become more I have learned not to be so jealous when the others come even at 50 I find myselfreacting like a teen the bookworm at the prom watching the queen can't blame them for falling for her after all a kind woman ofextraordinary worth the angel who takes the pain away but where do angels go to cry? who listens? being strong for others drains her, the healer takes on the pain knowing they can recover better than the afflicted that's soul healing shaman's medicine women curanderos somehow I wish I could convey to her my gratitude, appreciation and love for helping this cripple walk a little lighter helping this blind man see a little clearer live a little longer hopefully enjoy each day more thankfully AI
WORDS TO LIVE B Y If you're too open-minded, your brains will fall out. Don't worry about what people will think; they don't do it vel)' often. Going to a church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car. It isn't the jeans that make your butt look fat,
Artificial intelligence: No match for natural stupidity. For every action, there is an equal and opposite government programme.
Eat well, stay fit,die anyway. Just remember how lucky you were to get a free trip around the sun. Men are from earth. Women are from earth. Deal with it. No man has ever been shot while doing the dishes. Experience is a wonderful thing. It enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again. Bythe time you can make the ends meet, they move the ends. Someone who thinks logically provides a nice contrast to the real world. Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that lifeis serious.
Interventions with Community Art A community art program at Gallery Gachet (88 East Cordova) is inviting DT ES artists to participate in a series of free workshops and art exh ibition . Led by Gue st Curator Irwin Oostindie, the workshops will explore the power of community art to intervene in public spaces. In 1995, Artist Suzanne Lacy coined a new term for this kind of art project: new genre public art . Public art should not be sculptures of "famous people on horses" but should relate to the everyday lives of people in the community. Public or community art projects have the ability to intervene in regulated public spaces with pro-people messages. The new billboard: " Is Being Homeless A Crime" on East Hastings is a perfect example of this kind of new genre public art practice.
A free workshop with slide show kicks off the July Sunday series on July 4, 2-4pm, with refreshments. This is followed by a second talk with a public art walk in the neighbourhood on July II , 2-4pm. The final Sunday (J uly 18, 2-4pm) will be a chance for the workshop participants to research and present a brief2-5 minute presentation on a public art! community art project that inspires them in the DTES. The Guest Curator will ass ist people in this research and presentation. These presentations will provide constructive feedback, and a positive mentoring environment to help artists in the process of creating new work. This is a chance for artists to get used to talking about their ideas in a supported group environment. It is hoped that artists will have an understanding (or willingness to learn) about their own creative process and subject matter, and can communicate some of what they learned from the two previous workshops about community art or new genre public art. If they are selected, after the workshop series is complete, they will go on to produce new art work, in any medium (video, painting, new media, photo, performance, etc), about a community art project. This new work will go into the " Interventions" show runnin g September 3-24, 2004 at Gallery Gachet. The exhibit is in conjunction with SWARM, the visual arts festival of PAARC, the Pacific Associationof ArtistRun Centres. Honorariums will be paid. In the lead-up to the exhibition, (pending funding) an off-site satellite installation will bring work-inprogress into a public setting for initial exposition and feedback. This may be in conjunction with the Under the Volcano Festiva l (Aug. 8). Through facilitated group discussion, participants will ga in skills and inspiration about how to start their own projects or how new genre public art can expand their current medium/practice. Community arts projects can also connect artists with marginalized communities who do not usually participate in the contemporary art world. Participating artists will work individually or by small group to identify and initiate community partnerships, learn strategies to make real connections, and start a short-term research effort . For more info: contact Irwin Oostindie at 604 -6872468 or email gallery@gachet.org
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2004 DONATIONS Libby 0 .-$40 Joanne H.-$20 Barry for Dave McC.-$SO Rolf A.-$45 U' mista - $20 Ma rga ret 0 .-$25 Christopher R.-$25 Paddy -$30 Mary C-$30 Bruce l-$30 Rockingguys -$20 Heather S.-$25 RayCa m-$30 Gram -$ 100 G len B.-$50 John S.-$80 Peter T.- $20 Wm B-$20 Penny G .-$21 Jenny K.-$20 Dara C.-$20 Sa ndy C.$20 Audrey-$20 Wes K.-$50 T he Edge Community Liai son Ctt -$200 PG for PB -$25 Mike B.-$ 15 Anonymous-$23
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Articles represent the views or Individual contributors and not or the Association.
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We acknowledge thatCamegie Centre, and hence this Newsletter, happen on the Squamish Nation's territory.
Who Shot the Sheriff? Thursday July 8, 89pm Co-op Radio's Legal Education Show focuses on cuts to legal aid. Prison Justice Day Special Programming Monday August 9, 48pm A closer look at Canadian prisons.
Contact
Jenny .~ ~ r;= ~ fI.t fJ1 Wai ChingTht Uuwniown Eastside Residents AS5~cI~.~~~~ Kwan MLA DERA helps with: Phone & Safe Mailboxes JJ .
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Working for You 1070-1651 Commercial Dr, V5L 3Y3 Ph on e: 775-0790 Fax : 775-0881
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Welfare p~blem5; ~ Landlord disputes: lIousing problems Unsa fe living coudltiens 604-682 0931
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= In the past it has included Books 2 Prisoners, the Claire Culhane Memorial Fund. Lifers Groups, and Womyn 4 Justice (a prisoner support group in Kingston). Please contact august IO@vcn.bc.ca or 604682-3269 ext 3019 if you are interested or have any further questi ons. For more details go to www.prisonjustice.ca
WEST COAST NATIVE ART CLASSES At Oppenheimer Park from 1-4 every Thursday Prisoners' Justice Day happens every year on August 10. It is a day set aside when prisoners and supporters gather to honour the memory of the women and men who have died unnatural deaths inside Canadian prisons. On this day. prisoners around the world fast, refuse to work. and remain in their cells. Outside supporters organize community events to draw public attention to the conditions inside prisons and the urgent need for change within both the criminal justice and prison system. The Vancouver Prisoners' Justice Day Committee is looking for artists interested in donating art to their upcoming show and silent auct i II "Art Against Prisons". The art show will take place in advance of Prisoners' Justice Day from August 4 - 7 at the Inter-urban Gallery. at Carrall and Hastings, from noon - 5 pm each day. On the night of Saturday the 7th there will be a performance and silent auction. They are open to all mediums and themes. but in honour of PJD. they are encouraging art on the theme of prisoners' rights and resistance to incarceration. Deadline for donations is July 15.2004. All money raised will go toward prisoner support groups. usually a combination of inside and outside groups.
Learn the culture and tradition of west coast art in the form of drawing. painting and carving. Randy Tait, local artist and craftsman, will lead with traditional sharing of west coast stories. crests. shapes and animals. teaching his skills and experience. Everyone is welcome to join these classes. There are no fees and all materials will be provided. All participants must be sober. For info call Oppenheimer at (604) 665-2210
PRISONERS I would like to write a letter to my older friends locked up in prisons, mental institutions. or in the illegal trade sex whether girls. boys. dogs, etc. even children. How can I do this? I have experience at visiting prisons and insane asylums, and nursing homes where elderly folk are forced to endure forced doping severely damaging their nerves and brains. But how do I visit you children (& dogs) forced to give your bodies to sexual abuse in the sex trade system? What can 1do for you? Please help me to find a way for you my friends. Yours. Annie
MIRROR TALK Audac ious is a word I Will use to desc ribe me Flirtatious like a flowe r To a bee
CARNEGIE NEWS (Tu ne of 'COVER OF THE ROLLING STONE')
Gracious is a mask I put On and pre tend to be Loq uacious A crow bar W hy? You 'll see Vo luptuo us in the mir ror T his is wh at I see
By Crystal Robyn A sham
We 're Ca rnegie writers, singers and fighters of the east side way oflife We write about people, fight for our rights Sing about poverty and strife We might scream and yell, maybe raise some hell But we all have paid our dues And there ain't no denyin we keep on tryin To get our picture in the Carnegie News Wanna get my picture on the front page It might cause a riot or an outrage Just wanna see my face On the cover of the Carnegie News Pen and paper in hand, Paul Taylor' s our man He' s our Newsletter editor-in-chief With a computer in his office he's not stand-offish Gets the facts and knows j ust where' s the beef
Hi everyone, Some of you may be familiar already with this organization, but for those of you who are not, Potluck operates a cafe and catering business in the Downtown Easts ide and, with its profits, provides nutritious meals in the cafe to people with one or multiple conditions (homeless, HIV/AIDS , drug addiction, mental illness ) and hires from the DTES to provide these services. For the second year, Potluck is selling food at the Vancouver Folk Music Festival and is looking for volunteer servers to help out. All proceeds from this event will help support Potluck's community programs. In return you get a free pass to the festival for the days that you are not volunteering. If you are interested, phone (778-688-7226) or email Anita at nbainsn'(Isfll.cn to sign up.
He don't mess arou nd & he' s known around town, By all the you know who knows who No I'm not Iyin, I just keep on a tryin To get my picture in the Carnegie News Wanna get my picture on the front pagei It might cause a riot or an outrage Just wanna see my face On the cover of the Carnegie Ne ws
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Oh y a i can see it all now! Far Out Carl Oon the cover of the Carnegie Newsletter People bowing, saluting, see king wisdom Wanting my autograph ..Waz dat ? " ..Ya 1 carry a colour picture ofPaul Taylor in my wallet. (I need all da help 1can ge t) for sure fo r sure that 's a big 10-4 lillie buddy " .
i 'm gone Carl MacDonald carlm04 @ hotmail.com
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A few thoughts I) Addicts struggle with addictions. Sometimes they have choices, but the light at the end of the tunnel becomes dimmer. Some doors are closed and no one has the keys. In today's world some people are murdered In today's world murderers go to jail. Dealers get away with these murders Where is justice for addicts? 2) Liberals call us (downtown eastside) bums Let's kick their bums out of town becausewe do not want any more broken promises. We need honesty, respect and a solid foundation of support Broken promises kill our souls, our spirit, our independence and much more. We live in a community that is frowed upon as "skid row" People never ask, smile or say hello in their journey through the DE. 3) When one out often addicts wants help they're asked to call back in 24 hours. The other nine still struggle to find help. Most times three or four overdose and/or die. Others are brought back to their diseaseand restart their misery. This is to chase the dreams again but that still lasts for only a few minutes. Many of them search for their downers, by stealing, begging, robbery and/or selling their bodies. In the end if you don't make it to a treatment or Detox, the light becomes dimmer and the end comes soon, the ending of all dreams. No more suffering, no more drugs, no more pain Princess Margaret
WHATIS UP AT CFRO (102.7) Media Arts Committee The Media Arts Committee(MAC) of the Community Radio Education Society is looking for new members! The MAC is a committee of volunteers interested in the production and promotion of new audio art works. The MAC supports new and established artists to realize original audio art projects, and helps facilitatebasic training in audio production for the broader membership of Co-op Radio. If you are interested in contributing ideas and energy to developingthis committee please contact us at: technician@coopradio.org
Shows in Development Co-op Radio is currently developing new programs. If you would like to get involved, come to a station orientation (information below). No radio broadcasting experience required. Goulash: a show focusing on the politicsof food, from genetically modified organisms to urban gardening Who Shot the Sheriff: a legal education show striving to inform people about the legal system and their rights. NOTE: you don't need to be a lawyer to get involved. Call 604-684-8494 ext. 226 Stati on Orientations These information sessions provide an overview of the history, structure and programming goals of Co-op Radio. Weill give you a tour of our digs and help get you connected with the station. No registration required. Open to anyone interested in community radio. € Tuesday, July 20 (3pm and 6pm) € Tuesday, Aug. 17 (3pm and 6pm) € Tuesday, Sept. 21 (3pm and 6pm)
Old Cancerous Slime It wasn't that long ago that Nancy Mayer, Irene Deschenes and George (a Duplessis orphan) and I followed Canad ian Bishops from their conference in Cornwall to a church in Kingston, Ontario, where they planned to co-celebrate mass. We planned a VERY SMALL demonstration..3 women and an aging man. I carried a sign that said: "Female victims ignored" and Nancy, Irene and George carried crosses with a heart in the middle with the words "sexual abuse" written in red. A formidable group! A priest told us to get off church property or he would phone the police. A Catholic woman tried to form a physical barrie r between the "protestors" and the bishops. The priest/pastor hissed at the woman: "Don't talk to them!" The bishop's had security tightened and they entered their bus without a word to the 4 "terrorists" who were held at abeyance.
Nationa l Post, Sat urday, June 19, 2004 Duplessis or pha ns call for exhuma tions: Aim is to show children were experimented upon
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A group of orphans are fighting for the bodies of children to be exhumed from an abandoned Montreal ce~etery in a .bid to discover whether they were t~e subject of medical experiments. The group has hired a lawyer to ask a court for permission to dig up the bodies ofthe c~ildren, who were also orphans, and perform forensic examinations. " Rod Vienneau, a spokesman for the orphans, said, We want to show that these people were the victims of medical experiments such as lobotomies." There were about 20,000 orphans during the 1940s '50s and early '60s -- ge:nerally called the Duplessis era , after Quebec premier Maurice Duplessis -- who were handed over to various religious institutions. Thousands were labelled mentally deficient and sent to asylums and other church-run institutions because the ~u~s running the establishments received larger Subsidies for the mentally ill. The orphans' group claims children buried in an aband~n~d cemetery in east-end Montreal may have been vlct~ms of medical experiments performed at the ?Id Cite de: St. Jean de Dieu insane asylum, now Louis-Hyppolits Lafontaine Hospital. ~e group's lawyer, Daniel Lighter, said , "If there is evidence of this kind of activity, then it would certainly be important evidence in a suit against the government, church and doctors." Mr. Lighter said it will take several months to analyze whether there is eno~gh proof to persuade a judge to order the exhumations. Many orphans were sexually abused and for~ed to work in slave-labour conditions. Some cla im as well that many were subjected to medical experiments inside the asylums. .Albert Sylvio, 62, was a Duplessis orphan who lived at St. Jean de Dieu in the I950s. He said that during that time, he transported about 60 bodies of fellow orphans from the operating rooms to the basement morgue. "I undressed them and washed them ~nd prepared them for burial," he said. "We put them in cardboard boxes. Some of them were children." He said the bodies were then taken to the cemetery and buried in unmarked graves "There was never any ceremony. Some 'ofthese ~ople died on the operating table. Some had been sick a.nd some had committed suicide." The medical ~x~rrments are alleged to have been performed on hvmg orphans.
Paul St. Aubain, another Duplessis orphan, said he was lobotomized at age 18 at a mental hospital in Joliette called St. Michel Archange. "I wasn't ill," he said. "They did it without my consent, without my permission. They were experimenting with me. I was aprisoner." Mr. St. Aubain, 52, said he spent 25 years in various mental institutions run by nuns in Quebec and during that time saw "other orphans who were lobotomized." He said doctors also gave him electroshock therapy and numerous psychiatric drugs . Mr. St. Aubain now lives on welfare in Joliette. He cannot work. A Quebec law passed in 1942 allowed the nuns to sell unclaimed bodies to medical schools for $10. Many dead orphans, who se names and identities had been changed or erased, were dissected. What was left of their bodies was buried in cemeteries such as St. Jean de Dieu. One government registry indicates there were about 2,000 bodies buried at the St. Jean de Dieu cemetery, which locals called the "pigsty" because it was next to a hog farm owned by the nuns. At least 42 were children. How many orphans ended up as cadavers for anatomy students is not known becau se hospital registries have disappeared from government archives or were never properly filled out. The practice of selling unclaimed cadavers to medical schools continued into the I960s. In 2002, a group of I, I00 orphans settled with the government for about $25-million for wrongfully placing them in mental institutions. Other Duplessis orphans, who had been placed in religious institutions and claim they were sexually abused, are still fighting for compensation. "The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of moral outrage, retain their neutrality." (Dante, Inferno) Or, to put it more clearly: You are either part of the problem or part of the solution. The dye is cast. By William Marsden (Editor ' s note: The simple fact that a national newspaper (and again on TV news) covered this story gives much credence to the allegations made. The Federal Government bailed out the churches which ran residential 'schools ' by taking all blame on itself- but that '05 like saying "every citizen in Canada is to blame f or secret actions ofa few hundred psychos and pedophiles" who hid in broad daylight by calling themselves "People ofGod ".)
â&#x20AC;˘ West Coast Poetry Festiva I 604-782-1666 Reading and performing at this, the festival's inaugural year will be Roy Miki, Shane Koyczan, Daphne Marlatt, Ivan Coyote, Marilyn Bowering, Barbara Adler, Wayde Compton, C.R. Avery, Patrick Friesen, Wayne verload?Mercier, Peter Trower, Sheri-D Wilson, Evelyn Lau, Billeh Nickerson, Jamie Reid, Adeena Karasick, Kevin Paul, Russell Thornton, Rachel Flood , Aislinn Hunter, Al Mader, Kuldip Gill, Tanya Evanson, Rita Wong, Jen Lam, Wendy Morton, Ms. Spelt, Stephen Collis, Alexandra Oliver, Colin Browne, S.R.Duncan, Catherine Owen, Heather Hayley, Fiona Lam, Tatchi , Bud Osborn, Manic, Ryan Knighton, Adam Lewis Schroeder, Clint Burnham, Laurie Bricker, Jason de Couto, Ali Riley and special guests. All events are entirely free to the public but seating is limited. Parking is free for all events on Burnaby Mountain. SFU's Harbour Centre July 2 and SFU's Burnaby Campus July 3rd Readings and performances will begin at 6:00 PM Friday July 2nd at SFU's Harbour Centre and will continue on July 3rd at SFU's Burnaby Campus from II :OOAM until 9:30 PM . Please consult our website at www.westcoastpoetryfestival.com for more precise times of readings and performances. Bud Osborn has been a poet and social activist for nearly 40 years. His 5 published books of poetry include Lonesome Monsters nd (Anvil, 2 printing, 1999), Hundred Block Rock (Arsenal Pulp, 1999), and Keys to the Kingdom (Get to the Point, 1999) which won the City of Vancouver Book Award.
The title narrative from Keys was made into a film-poem by Nathaniel Geary. The film won Best Emerging Director at the Vancouver Film Festival, and Best of the Fest, Best Drama, Best Direction, Golden Sheaf Award at the Yorkton Film and Video Festival. It has been screened internationally at more than 30 film festivals, and it is being used in university literature courses in Havana, Cuba. As a former director of the Vancouver/Richmond Health Board, Osborn was instrumental in founding such harmreduction programs as VANDU (Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users), GTA (Grief to Action), PRG (Political Response Group), and has been called by Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell "the one who started it all," in the battle for Safe Injection Sites. Bud Osborn's poetic credo is "fidelity to lived experience." He has recorded his poetry and performed with musicians locally at the Vancouver Folk and Jazz Festivals, and as far abroad as Taegu, South Korea. Osborn lives in Vancouver where he is compiling a new collection of poetry and has recently completed a prose manuscript entitled "Crazed Dust". HEROIN Heroin spits out another overdose And I'm so lucky this time was pretty close, I'm so messed up and all's not clear Anyone who loves me I won 't let near, The war wounds are all they'll see, Ifat all they recognize me. I kow the answer is blatantly clear, But even thinking of it brings too much fear What a wimp, a sissy, a total loser God, why can't I be just a social user Cuz the war wounds are all they'll see, If at all they recognize me Kati (Kd)
heard poets speak in many of the languages of the world including Gaelic, the language my mother spoke but was convinced was a dying language. Not so! Gaelic poetry is alive and welll, FREE library events are listed at : www.VPl.ca
Vancouver sets poetry Free! I used to think poetry had to come out of a book, take hours to understand or possiblyeven be written in iambic pentameter. Five years ago on the steps of the Vancouver Public Library during the Word on the street festival I changed my mind. That was when I saw the svelte Ms Spelt slink on to the stage in his stunning floral dress and proceed to recite poetry like I had never heard it spoken before. He was followed by Shane Koyczan who killed me softlywith his passionate song; a political rant. Later in the day - I did not move away from those library steps for hours - Sheri-D Wilson and her back up band (YES! A poet with a back up band) performed "Spinsters hanging in trees". Then I met Downtown Eastside poet Sandy Cameron, whose poems chronicle the history of the community he loves at the Carnegie library. Sandy has a new bookout entitled Being T rue to O urselves: Downtown Eastside Poems of Resista nce and he has acted as a mentor to many Bud Osborn is another poet who has also mentored many "down here" in writing groups at the Gathering Place; as has Our Lady of Poetry, Diane Wood She got that old poetrygroup reading again and is the effervescent hostess of "poetry night at Carnegie" ; usuallythe first Saturday of every month. In July it is on the I Q'h at 7. Hereyou' ll hear countless regulars like Robyn, Steve,Gena, Irene, Leith, Rudy, Stephen and many others speak poetry straight from their heart to your soul. Since that first time I have discovered many other poets lurking in the library. At the monthly "World Poetry" readings hosted by "the People's Poet", Alejandro Mujica-Oleaand Ariadne Sawyer I have
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Poetry does not have an image problem in Vancouver. Here, it has come back full circle to its roots in the oral tradition. Here, poetry with its multiple personalities is the special guest at an all inclusiveFREE community festival and at The Carnegie on Saturday, July IQ'h at 7. So, get out and then go home and take out your journal OR your microphone and create some of your own poems!
Good Book in a book I read some line about how you treat the lowest of the low is how you yourself will be judged when it all comes down to smoke and ashes the meek will inherit the earth funny book full of strange ideas too many too outrageous to mention truth is we never know the whole truth you couldn't handle the whole truth that's why we do our best to tell the truth but since we only know part of it we can never be half as truthful as we think we are being we carry around our bit of the truth looking for more but the absolute truth is something you can never totally grasp maybe God knows the absolute truth mere mortals have only tiny personal truths and we struggle with them every day in a book I read it said what you sow so shall ye reap walk around wonder why we all have to march thru hell before we even have a hope of heaven AI
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The Downtown Eastside Poetry and Folk Festival
Saturday July 10 7 p.nl. in
the Carnegie Theatre Free A dmission
Ra in or Sh ine ! (il it rai ns w e'll dance in black p lastic garbage bags)
Starring Ricky Lavallee Leona Shapeshifter Mary-jane Sky Coyote Rockin' Robyn Hey Jude Hashish the Hippie Diana Nirvana and as always Open Mike
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By now I'm sure yo u all know about the Jazz Festi val - two week ends of free op en air co nce rts, as well as music all through its run at different location s. Bookl ets can be picked up at libraries, co mmunity centres a nd book stores. So rather than co mpe te for yo ur attent ion on the first Saturday of Jul y with the Jazz Festi val at the Roundhou se and David Lam Park . we moved the Downtown Easts ide Poets ' night to the next Saturday, Jul y 10, a nd decid ed to have a Poetry slash Folk Fest ival. Our regul ar readers have tak en on stage persona e to reli ve the folk and hippie days (or is that daze?) of the past - flow er pow er. free love, peace s igns. bead s and sa nda ls. We will be featuring the words and music of Ricky Lavallee singing "Okie from Mu skokie", Leona Shapeshifter as Janis, Maryjane's political and passionate poetry, Sky Coyote's beat-rap-folk-blues, Rockin' Robyn doing "Sunshine Superman" and " Working Cla ss Hero" , Jude singing "Mercedes Benz", gospel and blue s, our very Own Littl e Big Man Stephen as Hashish the Hippie (any body got a wi g to lend him ?) and your hoste ss with the hemp sa nda ls, Dian a Ni rvana. Be there, or be square!