?Hard Times at Oppenheimer Park.
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Oppenheimer Park
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One of the few old, venerable green spaces in our community is going through a bad time. Carnegie is \esponsible for the staff positions there, and Steve Johnson and Carlos were the first full-time workers when funding was finally approved by the City in 1990. The use of Oppenheimer Park was gradually taken back from the drug users and drinkers, not through continuous police sweeps and arrests but by the increase in community use - Tai Chi in the mom for seniors, baseball several times a weelda day, and lots of sportslfestival events. Then conflict started and started to increase. Drug users and dealing never left, but seemed to develop a mutual awareness of other residents and their rights. But beginning about 5 years ago, the incidence of drug-related violence and turf stuff has gotten worse to the point where confrontation between non-using residents and dealersfusers are daily reality. Volunteers, regular park patrons, local seniors, kids and moms, elders and artists and many others have been talking in small groups, trying to find a way through the fear and tension that grips our park. The most repeated line is "it used to be nice, but I don't want to be afiaid to go there." A recent hearing at shitty hall over the Merchant's Society just slapping up signs and banners declaring the area "Strathcona" without asking anyone - and writing off the Downtown Eastside as unworthy of any consideration - had the City tell SAMS to start i t J the community. Paul Wright spoke about over y the seeming indifference that the City, through or in spite of Carnegie, treats Oppenheimer and surround ing area. It galvanized others to speak up and feed the need to find solutions. On October 9' a Town Hall Forum was held in the Park. Many people came to speak of their concerns and see what options we have. -"drug dealers are here 24 hours a day; it's common to see people being chased across the park by sorneone waving a pipe, knife or machete. This Four Pillars approach hasn't been balanced and any enforcement on Hastings or around Camegie pushes the drug trade to Oppenheimer. It's like we've been forgotten. No kids come here. I've been threatened." -"Me and other mothers in the houses across the street have met and are getting really scared. Drug
users come on the lawns and up on the porches to do deals and fix. Cars are always pulling up with urban
cowboys in them, looking to score and yelling at us to mind our own business. Our kids aren't safe." -"We need to come together with the dealers & users & drinkers and everybody to see if or how we can co-exist. Most are decent enough, but sick. There is sometimes just one in a whole group who refuses to leave the toddlers play area or pick up needles or not threaten. Once one starts running his mouth, others seem to get into it not to lose face or something." -"It'd be decent if Jackson were closed to traffic; an idea to make a 'no stopping zone' around the park; a Community Police Ofice near or even in the park where we could volunteer or report harassment or threats; safety shouldn't mean always looking over your shoulder.. . " The emotional and spiritual commitment voiced by each person was moving. Bill Quinn, a resident for over 45 years, spoke of needing green space in the city, of smudging every morning to lift the spirits of everyone, of fasting to raise awareness of Native issues and unite the community. He also spoke sadly of elders and kids not coming to Oppenheimer now. As a residential school survivor, he's had a lot of people who 'talk fast' but wants to go slow, be true. Ingrid, fiom Watari, spoke of working with the Latin American community to integrate people into the Downtown Eastside and relieve tensions between the Aboriginal and L-A park users. Kitchens, food & festivals have helped a lot. Byron Cruz spoke well of Oppenheimer not being an isolated island in the area and driving one group or another out wouldn't solve
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much. Byron is a street nurse and encouraged others to talk to all park users to get community solutions. There were more incidents ofthreats & violence talked about that need attention. Michael Clague, from Carnegie, summarized input 7 and noted the presence of reps from the Park Board, Engineering, the Police, agency workers and park staff who had come to hear residents. Cynthia from ASIA spoke of the need for language-specific treatment and access for the Vietnamese people also using the park and being blamed for the drugs. Every concern has enough blame and creative thinking to go around The meeting ended with more optimism than expected, and it goes from here to the regular meeting of the Oppenheimer Park committee. City Hall is up-to-date (?) and without the expectation of an immediate miracle, there are possibilities. By PAULR TAYLOR
MEDIA DEMOCRACY DAY Friday, October 18,2002 * Vancouver Public Library * FREE * 1 pm to 9 pm Every era has its human rights struggle. So what's the fight of the lnformation Age? How about the right to communicate. The most powerful tools of democratic expression remain the private properties of media corporations. How do we build new, public powers of expression and debate? Join others who are asking the same thing - or who think they have an answer - at the second annual Media D-Day. Media Fair Vancouver's largest gathering of media alternatives. 1 pm - 7 pm VPL corridor area Workshops Pen vs. Sword: The News We Need in Wartime Mindshare: The Privatization of Communication Follow the Money: Funding Independent Media Next: A Community Plan for Media D-Day 2003 1 pm - 5 pm, Alma Van Dusen & Peter Kaye Rooms Keynote Panel Reform Without Censorship: Towards Media Democracy James MacKinnon * editor * Adbusters Magazine Lynne Van Luven *journalist * UVic prof Bill Tieleman * Georgia Straight columnist Moderator * Jim Sinclair * President, BC Federation of Labour 7 pm - 9 pm, Alice Mackay Room Info: www.mediademocracyday.orgor call 604 602-1 204. All events free and open to the public.
HAC SHIT LIST Volunteer Survey for the Vandu Housing Action Committee. Got chased by mgt at some hotels. Conditions are deplorable. Mice 'n cockroaches.. one floor shares one washroom.. the fire escape welded shut - we called the Fire Department Ltimes before they would do anything about it. It's for Wards. Would wards for more quarters our quarters - for more squatters. How about Woodwards. They got the asbestos out. Now get the lead out and let the people in. We Will Win. Taum
know the media * change the media * be the media Organized by: Campaign for Press and Broadcast Freedom and the Vancouver Public Library. Sponsored by: Adbusters Media Foundation, BCGEU, BC Federation of Labour, BC Teachers' Federation, BC Nurses' Union, Communication Energy and Paperwork -erst Union, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Canadian Association of Media Educators, lnformation Policy Committee of the BC Library Association, SFU School of Communication & Faculty of Applied Science
hanced medical and dental benefits, a monthly earnings exemption of $300, and low-cost transit passes. Disability advocates are shocked at the changes and the strategy being used to implement them, as outlined in the document."The disability community doesn't have a clue what's going to hit them," said Margaret Birrell, executive director of the B.C. Coalition of People with Disabilities. "We'll be tumbling back about 25 years in B.C." Birrell, who is quoted extensively in the MHR communications plan in connection with "misinformation" about disability changes, said the government wants to eliminate ] 1 benefits for certain categories of the disabled. I "There's a target group they're going after -- softtissue damage, depression, chronic fatigue, back pain, fibromyalgia, learning disabilities, some forms , of arthritis, as these are 'subjective' diagnoses and they're moving to 'objective' diagnoses'," Birrell said "This will also target the mentally ill." In addition to forcing 9,130 on disability level tuco onto welfare, Birrell said that about 12,000 people on disability level one will be moved into a new category called a Person with Persistent and Multiple Barriers to Employment, with reduced benefits. The communications plan makes clear the government's negative view of many who receive disability benefits. Under "Objectives", it reads: "To position the ministry as continuing to provide essential services, while embarking on a significant strategic shift to a culture of personal responsibility and employment versus entitlement". Birrell said the use of "entitlement" to belittle those receiving benefits underlines the B.C.Liberals1approach. "This has been the consistent language of the government, through the whole welfare reform, that 'you're not entitled to benefits' even though you have paid your taxes. It's part of a philosophy that feels people are scamming the system," she said. "Basically they have said people are getting support they don't deserve; we have never found that. That's not the way people look at it. Nobody chooses to have a permanent disability or be born with a permanent disability. And the benefits are pretty minimal." In another section, the plan says: "Those who are found to be ineligible will be given three months' notice before their files are transferred from PWD [disability benefits] to income assistance. This will 1
R.C. Liberals plan major cuts to disability benefits
By Bill Tieleman, Georgia Straight, October 3,2002 "We are often told that the poor are grateful for charity. Some of them are, no doubt, but the best amongst the poor are never grateful. They are ungrateful, discontented, disobedient, and rebellious. They are quite right to be so." -- Oscar Wilde, 1892 Confidential documents obtained by the Georgia Straight show that the Ministry of Human Resources intends to cut off the disability benefits of more than 9,000 people while spinning the media that disabledcommunity opposition to the changes is nothing more than "misinformation". The disturbing information contained in a June 10, 1 I -page draft MHR communications plan includes attacks on advocates for people with disabilities as it admits that the changes have "vulnerabilities" that include "in-equities among clients with disabilities" and that will leave many clients "alarmed andlor conhsed". The ministry plan says that "about" 9,130 people will lose their level-two disabilities benefits, about 20 percent of the people receiving them. According to the plan, the changes would come into effect October I, and the 55,000 people with leveltwo disabilities would receive letters telling them they must be re-assessed by a doctor in order to continue receiving benefits. Those denied disability benefits will be left with social assistance as their only option for support. A single person previously receiving a maximum $786 a month will be reduced to welfare payments of $5 10, as well as losing en-
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give time for people to find cheaper accommodation if necessary because of reduced assistance." With a current maximum housing allowance of $325 for a single person with disabilities, Birrell said the idea of finding a still-cheaper place to live is offensive. "Most people with disabilities are already paying above their accommodation limit and cutting back on their food. Where will they go? On to the street." The Straight has also obtained the confidential new draft application form for people with disabilities, a 26-page document dated July I 1 that includes a section to be completed by a physician and another section that may be completed by either a doctor or another health professional [Assessor]. Birrell said completing the new application forms will be challenging and time-consuming for both those with disabilities and their doctors and will result in many people being disqualified fiom benefits. "It's just a vehicle for cutting the numbers," she said. And for those cut off, the appeal process has also been changed significantly effective October 1, with MHR eliminating the opportunity for those denied benefits to go in front of a tribunal with a representative and make their case, Birrell said. In an April 17 letter sent to media outlets, Human Resources Minister Murray Coell complained that advocates for the disabled were "fear mongering" and that their claims were "a disservice to the disability community". There's a disservice being done to the disabled community, all right, but it comes at the hands of a mean spirited minister who intends to unfairly cut off benefits to thousands of people with disabilities, ignore the enormous problems he knows this will create for them, then attack defenders of the disabled simply for doing their job. West Star Communications president Bill Tieleman has clients in labour, business, and nonprofits. He is a political commentator Thursdays on CBC TV's Canada Now and regularly on CBC Radio's Early Edition. E-mail him at weststar@telus.net.
Carnegie Community Centre Association presents
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Kits Classics A program of classical chamber music for guitar, flute and clarinet performed by special guests Kits Classics. Sunday, October 20, at 3 pm Carnegie Theatre, Main & Hastings
This is afiee community event. All welcome! "Open government, good transit and transportation, quality public education and solving our city's drug crisis - those issues all speak to our vision for Vancouver."
COPE -Coalition of Progressive Electors 250 1 Main Street, Vancouver BC V5T 3E5 Tel: (604) 255-0400 Fax: (604) 875- 1403 E-mail: cope@,cope.bc.ca
Yesterday, I got handed the application form to reapply for Welfare. Right off the bat, I perceived some problems with this. Legally, perhaps, we have already applied for welfare and were accepted, certainly under the aegis of the BC government, which, given, is subject to change, but in a larger sense, we were accepted as welfare recipients the first time under the auspices of the government of Canada. And unless I am unaware of any regime change, there still is a government of Canada. And the welfare application forms that we signed before are contractual agreements. We are being paid by the government. There are government paid workers, and government paid non-workers. Paid government workers do not have to fill out a new application form arbitrarily at some point, years after they have been hired for a job. Why do government non-workers now have to reapply? Some of these questions are quite invasive, to the point where I thought the only question they might have just missed is "What is the diameter ofyour... earlobe?" I realize that 1 have just been handed my hat. Those welfare application forms that you got? Well, they are your hat. Like the old brusque, rude saying goes, "Here's you hat and check your hurry." Premier Gordon Campbell might have cut off welfare fully realizing that it's one of the great things that distinguishes North America [First World] from
Yes, they do not have welfare in Thailand, a point that the Right Wing Fascists here like to pounce upon, but in Thailand the economy is better. The take home pay there actually brings them home Some people in Thailand earn maybe $10 - $20 cdn a day, but the busfare there is 15 cents cdn, here it is $2. A room in a hotel there is $41 night, while rent in Bangkok ranges from $40 - $100 c d d month. And people there do not have to pay $400 a year or whatever it is for a business license like they do here. There hawkers can set up their noodle stands all over town. In Thailand, they do have a Ministry of Welfare, which reminded me of the Ministry of Welfare here in BC, except that in the Welfare Office parking lot people had noodle stands and rice stands, with benches to sit at, benches set under large, sprawling, shading umbrellas. What will happen with a lot of people here is that, out of sheer outrage, they'll wait until January 15th until they're cut off, and then look for a lawyer to sue the BC government for severe emotional duress from being cut o f Those forms that the government sent out require a person to have a modicum of 'togetherness' to fill them out. But there is another, more insidious, dangerous, chronic level of a certain, involuntary physiological need or condition that some in the Welfare-collecting population are afflic- . . ted with, and if these pe~pleare galvanized Watch out! Wing KO
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Canada's Secret Constitution: NAFTA, the WTO, and the End of Sovereignty? Canada's sovereignty has been undermined by the international agreements the federal government has entered into with the World Trade Organization (WTO), and with the United States and Mexico in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)--so much so that these agreements in effect now constitute "Canada's Secret Constitution."
This is the main thrust of Stephen Clarkson's monograph "Canada's Secret Constitution: NAFTA, WTO and the End of Sovereignty?" published today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, which is an adapted version of the core chapter of his newly released book "Uncle Sam and Us." Together, the WTO and NAFTA "create a new mode of economic regulation with such broad scope and such unusual judicial authority," says Clarkson, "that it entrenches certain inviolate principles or norms that are above the reach of any politician to alter." Clarkson, a professor of political economy at the University of Toronto, says that these mandatory principles, such as guaranteeing "national treatment" to foreign corporations, override Canada's constitution by controlling and limiting government actions. Their effect is therefore supraconstitutional. The author wonders how much longer Canadians will continue to accept their country's new external constitution. "How long citizens will tolerate politicians' claiming impotence in the face of the WTO's or NAFTA's constitutionalized principles and rights remains to be seen." Clarkson's book-and the CCPA monograph excerpted fiom it-will help Canadians better understand the threats posed by this external constitution. He hopes that the better they understand it, the less it will be liked, and so it will start to lose its legitimacy and come under pressure for amendment. "Canada's Secret Constitution: NAFTA, the WTO, and the End of Sovereignty" is accessible on the CCPA's website. http:Nwww.policyalternatives.ca
Do We Matter?
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DERA's general meeting this past October 4th had the Mayoral candidates as the guest speakers. Val McLean from vcaTEAM was there, as was Larry Campbell of COPE and Mark Emery of the Marijuana Party. Jennifer Clarke (NPA) could not attend, although she was invited over a month and a half earlier. It seems that, as a Mayoral Candidate, Greater Vancouver Regional District is more important than Vancouver or the Downtown Eastside. Val and Larry seem to have grasped the issues that matter to us and they have also accepted the fact that this is a neighbourhood. Our neighbourhood. But this Emery character is another matter. He had two things, basically, to say relating to addiction and Woodward's. 1 .He wants to legalize Cocaine and Heroin and have them delivered to addicts in their homes. 1 don't have a problem with legalizing those drugs, but only if they come under the direct and strict control of a qualified physician and they are prescribed as part of
a rehabilitation program. Emery's system is one of denial, the old "out of sight, out of mind". By having their fix delivered to their door, addicts won't need to go out in public. Emery's proposal does nothing to solve the underlying issues that lead to addiction, but at least they won't be out there.. where 'normal' people could be offended by the sight of them. One good thing about this idea is that it will create some jobs. I wonder how many people will be needed to successfblly run Emery's Dial-A-Fix? 2. Regarding Woodward's, he wants to develop it into market value condominium's. He flat out stated
that by having people who already have jobs and money move in, that would be all it would take to revitalize this community. He believes that those future homeowner's will spend their money here, which would attract business and would then solve the economic woes of the Downtown Eastside! Give me a break! How many of our current business owners live here? How much of the money spent in their shops stays here? How many of those businesses hire us? The Downtown Eastside has something like a 70% unemployment rate. We do not need to have tons of money flow through the neighbourhood like a loonie pipeline. We need jobs so we can earn our own money and take care of ourselves. That's whatDowntown Eastsiders do. We look after ourselves and each other. We are survivors and we fight back. I am a Downtown Eastsider and I'm damned proud of it. Emery personifies those developers, poor bashers and profiteersthat we have been fighting,againstfor so long. Sarge
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MORE ABOUT ALCOHOLISM MOST OF US have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics. No person likes to think he is bodily and mentally different tTom his fellows. It is not surprising that our drinking careers have been characterized by countless vain attempts to prove we could drink like other people. The idea that someday somehow he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker. The persistence of this illusion is astonishing. Many pursue it into the gates of insanity or death. We learned that we had to klly concede to our innermost selves that we were alcoholics. This is the first step in recovery. The delusion that we are like other people, or presently may be, has to be smashed. We alcoholics are men and women who have lost the ability to control our drinking. We know that no real alcoholic ever recovers control. All of us felt at times that we were regaining control, but such intervals -- usually brief -- were inevitably followed by still less control, which led in time to pitifid and incomprehensible demoralization. We are convinced to a man that alcoholics of our type are in the grip of a progressive illness. Over any considerable period we get worse, never better. Submitted by Princess Margaret
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Fix: The Story of an Addicted City Nettie Wild directed this documentap about the fight to improve lives of drug addicts in Vancouver through the adoption of a harm reduction strategy. Nettie will answer questions after the screening.
To be shown on Thursday, October 17,7 pm Carnegie Theatre, 401 Main Street. Yes, the BC government has introduced lifetime bans. Section 15 of the Employment and Assistance Act reads as follows: 15 (I) A family unit that includes a person who is convicted of an offence under the Criminal Code in relation to obtaining money, under this Act or the Employment and Assistance for Persons with Disabilities Act, by fraud or false or misleading representation is subject to the consequence described in subsection (5) for a family unit that matches the person's family unit for the lifetime of the person, beginning with the first calendar month following the date of the conviction. (2) A family unit that includes a person who is convicted of an offence under this Act or the Employment and Assistance for Persons with Disabilities Act is subject to the consequence described in subsection (5) for a family unit that matches the person's family unit beginning with the first calendar month following the date of conviction, (a) after a first conviction, for a period of 12 consecutive months, (b) after a second conviction, for a period of 24 consecutive months, and (c) after a third conviction, for the lifetime of the person.
(3) If (a) a person acknowledges in writing that he or she obtained income assistance, hardship assistance or a supplement under this Act, or disability assistance, hardship assistance or a supplement under the Employment and Assistance for Persons with Disabilities Act, for which he or she was not eligible, or (b) a court has given judgment in favour of the government in an action for debt against a person for obtaining income assistance, hardship assistance or a supplement under this Act, or disability assistance, hardship assistance or a supplement under the Employment and Assistance for Persons with Disabilities Act, for which he or she was not eligible, unless the income assistance, hardship assistance, disability assistance or supplement was provided to or for the person in error, the minister may declare that the person's family unit is subject to the conesquence described in subsection (5) for a family unit that matches the person's family unit for the prescribed period, beginning with the first calendar month following the date of the acknowledgment or judgment. (4) The periods prescribed for the purpose of subsection (3) may vary with the number of applicable acknowledgments or judgments. (5) If a family unit includes (a) only persons described in subsection (I) or (2). or subsection (3) if the minister has made a declaration under that subsection, the family unit is not eligible for income assistance for the applicable period, and (b) one or more persons described in subsection (I) or (2), or subsection (3) if the minister has made a declaration under that subsection, and at least one other person, the amount of income assistance, hardship assistance or a supplement provided to or for the family unit must be reduced by the prescribed amount for the applicable period.
Amendments will disqualifi a person tiom receiving benefits if they quit a job voluntarily, were fired for just cause, or declined a job offer in the 60 days prior to applying for benefits.
-Ever wonder about those people who spend $2.00 apiece on those little bottles of Evian water? Try spelling Evian backwards: NAIVE -Isn't making a smoking section in a restaurant like making a peeing section in a swimming pool? -OK... so if the Jacksonville Jaguars are known as the "Jags" and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are known as the "Bucs", what does that make the Tennessee Titans ? -If 4 out of 5 people SUFFER fiom diarrhea...does that mean that one enjoys it? -There are three religious truths: 1 . Jews do not recogwize Jesus as the Messiah. 2. Protestants do not recognize the Pope as the leader of the Christian faith. 3. Baptists do not recognize each other in the liquor store or at Hooters. -If you take an Oriental person and spin him around several times, does he become disoriented? -IS pcople from Poland are called Poles, why aren't pcople fiom Holland called Holes? -Why do we say something is out of whack? What's a whack'? -Do infants enjoy infancy as much as adults enjoy adultery? -If a pig loses its voice, is it disgruntled? -If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular? -When someone asks you, "A penny for your thoughts" and you put your two cents in . . . what happens to the other penny?
-Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker? -Why do croutons come in airtight packages? Aren't they just stale bread to begin with? -When cheese gets its picture taken, what does it say? -Why is a person who plays the piano called a pianist but a person who drives a race car is not called a racist? -Why are a wise man and a wise guy opposites? -Why do overlook and oversee mean opposite things? -Why isn't the number 1 1 pronounced onety one? -"I am" is reportedly the shortest sentence in the English language. Could it be that "I do" is the longest sentence? -If lawyers are disbarred and clergymen defrocked, doesn't it follow that electricians can be delighted, musicians denoted, cowboys deranged, models deposed, tree surgeons debarked, and dry cleaners depressed? -If Fed Ex and UPS were to merge, would they call it Fed UP? -Do Lipton Tea employees take coffee breaks? -What hair color do they put on the driver's licenses of bald men? -I was thinking about how people seem to read the Bible a whole lot more as they get older; then it dawned on me ... they're cramming for their final exam. -I thought about how mothers feed their babies with tiny little spoons and forks, so I wondered what do Chinese mothers use? Toothpicks? -Why do they put pictures of criminals up in the Post Office? What are we supposed to do, write to them? Why don't they just put their pictures on the postage stamps so the mailmen can look for them while they deliver the mail? -If it's true that we are here to help others, then what exactly are the others here for? -You never really learn to swear until you learn to drive. -NOone ever says, "It's only a game" when their team is winning. -Ever wonder what the speed of lightning would be if it didn't zigzag? -Last night I played a blank tape at full blast. The mime next door went nuts.
Downtown Eastside
East's boundaries be changed. Everything WEST OF MAIN STREET, which is currently under [he federal riding of East (represented by MP Libby Davies, NDP), is proposed to go to Vancouver Centre (MPHedv Frv. Liberal..)
Community Directions Meeting Schedule
POWERTALK Women coming out from the community and talking abwt what's going on and how to carry out action plans to make our community a better place. October 17. loam. Lunch orovided Hosted bv Breaking the Silence. RSVP to Galencia Bird, 604-2%-5811
~ k o h o& l Drug Working Group Meetings Help distribute our DTFS Community Alcohol & Drui Plan at FIX screenings, all-candidate meetings, and in the DTES. Wednesdays, October 16,23,30 10-12. Hausins Workine Grouo Meetine Help our ~ c d w a r d ' sforum i n housing and CED. Friday, October 18,25, Nov. 1, I lam-lpm
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Communications Strategy for the DTES Help produnt our newspaper and receive training with community radio, plus more! Tuesdays, October 15,22,29, 1 lam-lpm
side will be in the federal riding of Vancauver Centre, and the other half still in Vancouver East. We'd like to hear from you about this proposed change before the Commission's public hearing on November 7.
Find out more at a SPECIAL FORUM. Friday, October 25,2:30-4:30pm Carnegie Centre Theatre
impact of the Olympics on the DTES Join the planning committee for our October 26 forum Thursdays, October 17,24, 2-4pm First Nations Caucus Help build a DTES Urban Aboriginal Strategy! Every Thursdrty. 10-2pm ,in, working Group Latinos en Accion! Meet every Monday, 3-5pm. Chinese Seniors' Group Join is for tea and baking every Friday, 12:30-2pm.
Organized by: Libby Davies, Carnegie Centre, and For All nteelrngs takepluce rtr 384 Muin Streel. For.more contact: Janet: 604.775.5800, Muggs: scl~ed~rledmeetrrrgs c n n ~ a the c ~ office ut665-2121 604.665.2220. or Irwin: 604.665.2125 Cage 2
Recovering from.
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the war = on drugs.
October 19,2002, 3-5pm
Sanho Tree
Organizing solutions fb. community health & safety.
Fellow and Dorector of the Drug Pohcy Prolecl a1 the lnst~lulelor Pohcy Studres In Washmgton. DC Sanho Tree will present a compelling analysis of: i How the War on Drugs to stop the local and international drug supply is increasing the sociallhealth problems on Vancouver streets. i- Why the 4 Pillar approach: treatment, harm reducmn, prevention and enforcement is the best solution. i The international drug war in Colombia and Afghanistan and haw it connects to our communities. i "'Solving' [addiction] really means solving poverty and broken homes, racial discrimination and inadequate education, slums and unemployment ... .' R F Kenrledy Presented by:
Alcohol & Drug Working Group
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About Sanho Trea
Sanho Trce is a Fcliow and Director of the Drug P d i ~ Projcel y at lhc lns~i~ulc for Policy Studics iu Washingou. DC.
Current work: Sanho is pursuing drug policy reform by ~ a c h i l l goul 10 nunCommunity Directions lradilional allies and ctnplayinn ihnovalive laclies lo promolc a saslainable. constilulianal, and humane drug control policy. The prujea's mission is lo hclp fosler a change in thinking and policies by replacing lhc punilive and coercive Date: Saturday, Oct. 19, 3 - 5 ~ ~ "social V a ~ u b l i clhealth and colnmunitv ccu~lomic control model" ofdrue D O ~ wilh What: Speakers presentation. questions 8, answers, refreshments served. 0ackg.ruund: Sanho has worked us a tnililary and diplomatic lhirlorian and coauthored with Dr. Gar Alpcrovilz "Thc Decision la Urc lhe Alonxic Dumb and the Archikctare of an American Mylh" (KnopT. 1995). From 1996.97, hc nrsisled cnlenainer llarry Belafaalc in drafting his memoirs and coulinues l o work as a cansullanr far him an various public policy issuer. Fmm 1997-98. he war Associalr Editor afCAQ, an award-winning magazine dinvcnigalive journalism In thc lalc 1980s he worked a1 lhe hlernational llutnan Righls Law Group in Warhinglom
info@cornmunitydirections.ca 604.665.2121
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'Thc websilc for the lnstitule for Policy Studics www.ipr-dc.arg
C_qm.nynityActions
- A Community Directions Newsletter
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We are the majority oithe community-those who don't own big businesses, don't have the ear of the media, and don't have a say in what happens around us. We are the people who live here. Vote here. Lets work together to improve our community! 4 Yes. I /we want to join Community Directions in findI ing solut~wsthat work for the resvdinstlolazz dents of the Downtown Eastside I Strathcona. Yes. IIwe want to join Community Directions in finding solutions that work for the residents of the Downtown Eastside I Strathcona. I Iwe agree with the priority of putting the needs of low-income residents first. In particular. IIwe support the rights of lowinwme tenants to decent housing in the community. IIwe agree with the goal of preventing the displacement of low-income residents through revitalization. IIwe agree to work together to find positions of broad based consent on the issues that face the community. I /we agree to respect the diversity of opinions and interest and to address our differences openly in an honest and w n structive manner. Name: Group: Address: Postal Code: Phone: Fax: Email
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Commri y y ~
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Resident
Yes
No
Inviting community participation for our Community Directions' Communications Strategy. Are you a low-income DTES resident? Do you work with an agency or group in the DTES? Are you interested in learning to produce community radio? Would you like to help publish a newspaper which reflects the realities and visions of poor people in the DTES? Would you like to produce or distribute posters? Are you a writer, artist, or graphic designer? If you have answered yes to any of these, get involved to help Community Directions effectively advocate for residents in the neighbourhood.
Contact: lnvin Oostindie, Senior Organizer phone: 604.665.2125 email: invin@communitydirecfbns.ca
BOOK REVIEW Devil's Run, by Gordon Mohs, Longhouse Publishing, 2000
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Gordon Mohs is a non-Indian anthropologist who has worked closely with the Sto:lo nations along the lower reaches of the Fraser River - so closely that the people have given him an Indian name. He has written what he calls an anthropological novel. The name of his book is Devil's Run. It's a detective story, and the detective is Tribal Police Inspector Eddie Julian. The story is fiction. None of the events or characters are real. It is important to remember this because the characters may seem real to you. There is, in reality, no Stalo Tribal Police (Stalo is an old spelling of Sto:lo that Mohs uses). Maybe Gordon Mohs was inspired by Tony Hillerman who has written many respectbl imaginary detective-type stories involving the Navajo Tribal Police. Mohs is a tad more academic than Hillerman, and his 358 page book could have been shorter, but his knowledge of, and respect for, the people of the Sto:lo nations is deep, and his Tribal Police Inspector, Eddie Julian, is a sympathetic character as he struggles to solve a murder and explore his own First Nations identity at the same time. The so&-political context of the story is based on Gordon Mohs' personal understanding of the social reality encountered by the Sto:lo people in the 1990s - especially around fishing rights. A Department of Fisheries officer is murdered. At first suspicion falls on First Nations fishermen, but as Tribal Police lnspector Eddie Julian works through the evidence, he finds that the case is more complicated than it first appeared. The cliff-hanger ending is guaranteed to keep you in suspense. At one point in the book (pages 176-177), Eddie Julian reads an ignorant, racist editorial letter in a local paper. "I want them (the Indians) to spell out what they mean by self-government,and how WE are going to pay for it," the letter says. "I say to all native people, get off the reserve and start working for a living like the rest of us. .let's forget all this French and Indian stuff.. One people. One law. One language. No special privileges for anyone." "Fucking asshole," lnspector Eddie Julian blurts nllt when h~ r ~ a C 1 the ~ lctter He wondera whv anv-
one would print such trash, and how they manage to get away with it. Gordon Mohs tells us that the letter is a minor re-working of an actual letter that appeared in a local newspaper in the early 1990's. His book is a testament to the history of aboriginal rights. Unfortunately, the racist attitudes expressed in this letter are still with us. Barbara Yaffe wrote an article entitled "Attitude ensures natives remain an underclass" (Vancouver Sun, July 23/02) that was as racist and ignorant as the letter in Gordon Mohs' book. Yaffe talks of a "culture of entitlement" instead of aboriginal rights guaranteed by the Constitution of Canada and court cases such as the Sparrow decisio She says, "The truth is, however impolitic it may be to say it, pandering to native Indians has become a virtual industry in this country." With this vicious, racist statement, Yaffe dismisses the entire history between First Nations and Canada. Canadian Alliance MP John Cummins does the same thing when he argues that the aboriginal-only fisheries are racist ("MP charged in B.C. fishery protest," Globe & Mail, August 5/02). The aboriginal rights of First Nations people are not race-based. Aboriginal rights, and treaty rights, are based on historical. not racial, factors. To deny the longhistory between First Nations and Canada, to deny Section 35(1) ofthe Constitution of Canada, and to deny the legal decisions of court cases upholding aboriginal rights, is profoundly dishonest or profoundly ignorant. Some people who refbse to acknowledge aboriginal rights, tend to call for "one law for all", as the letter in Gordon Mohs' book does. ButFirst Nations people have had a different history from other Canadians, and have been ruled by different laws. The discrimination that results from treating First Nations people as though they were non-Native people & racial discrimination. Only I000 copies of Gordon Mohs' book, Devil's Run, were published. It is a collector's edition. The book is in the Carnegie Library, and is dedicated "To the memory of James Adams, Sto:lo Conservation OEcer # 10, Katzie First Nation: born April 12, 1970 - lost to the Fraser River, September 28, 1993. HERO." -Bv SANDY CAMERON
Notesj?om the Library October I I rh 2002
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Some of the New Titles received In a Barren Land: The American Indian Quest for Cultural Survival, 1607 to the Present! Paula Mitchell Marks Call # 976.3 mar Historian Marks portrays the systematic dispossession of America's original inhabitants over centuries of broken promises and bloody persecutions. Well-known events and personalities -- the Battle of Little Big Horn, the Trail of Tears, Geronimo, Navajos' Long Walk, the Snake Indian resistance, and much more are included. The body Remembers: The Psychophysiology of Trauma and Trauma treatment Babette Rothschild. Call # 615.85 rot The author integrates body and mind in the treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder. This is written for clinicians, researchers, and students, but may be of interest to advocates and support workers. Afler 91 1: Solutions for a saner world: Call # 973.931 haz A collection of articles fiom the award winning AlterNet(recent1y named "Best Alternative Press Site of 2001" by Yahoo! Internet Life magazine )Alternet is the Flagship for the Independent Media Institute. Psychic Warrior I David Morehouse Call # 921 mor Compelling, disturbing true story of America's foremost psychic spy and the cover-up ofthe CIA'S topsecret Stargate Program. Morehouse describes his psychic espionage work as a remote viewer, fiom the shattering explosion of Pan Am Flight 103 to the choking smoke of Desert Storm, and even hrther back in time to Hiroshima and the darkest days of Nazi Germany. Survivors: A series of short fictional stories written in plain language based on historical hct, and illustrated with line drawings which capture real people in stories fiom Kosovo, The Vietnam War, The great depression etc.These can be found on the shelf under Call M23.914 Also in the library
From PovNet List of anti-poverty advocates in B.C. and related Fact Sheets on the new Disability Benefits Application From National Council of Welfare: Poverty Profile. Call # 362.5097 1 REF Covering such things as general trends, poverty levels. poverty and gender, poverty and seniors. It gives an overall picture ofpoverty in Canada. M a w Ann C . I .ihrarian
Medical staff treating Vancouver's HIV and AIDS patients call the phenomenon "Welfare Wednesday." HIVtAIDS patients admitted to St. Paul's Hospital frequently check themselves out, against medical advice, before their treatment is completed. The same patients often end up back in hospital, in a worsened condition that requires a longer, more costly hospital stay. Why do they leave? Authors of a new study on this suggest provincial welfare rules are a key part of the problem. Welfare recipients who are in hospital when welfare cheques are cut don't receive their full monthly stipend. In fact, monthly disability cheques which are regularly $825 can be cut to $435 if they are in hospital, noted the study, published Tuesday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. "I don't think the welfare policy was designed to clear out the hospitals. But whatever the reason for design was, currently it is having this adverse impact," lead author Aslam Anis said. "And it clears out people -- especially a certain type of people who are desperate for the money." Anis is a health economist at the University of British Columbia and a researcher with the B.C. Centre for Excellence for HIVfAIDS at St. Paul's and the Canadian HIV trials network. He and colleagues from those organizations decided to take a look at why HIVIAIDS patients check themselves out of hospital against medical advice. Previous studies had suggested patients with a drug abuse problem are more likely to check themselves out of hospital early. Since injection drug use is a huge problem in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, and since many of the HIVtAIDS patients seen by the hospital are injection drug users, the researchers felt this problem might be behind the high rate of against-medical-advice check outs the hospital sees.
They studied records for all HIVIAIDS patients admitted to St. Paul's between April I , 1997 and March 1, 1999, following each patient for a year from the time of his or her initial hospitalization. Of 98 1 patients, 125 or 13 per cent checked themselves out against medical advice. The researchers found these patients were readmitted more frequently than patients who stayed until they were discharged by their doctors. They were also more likely to be readmitted with a relapse of their initial condition within 30 days and had significantly longer stays in their follow-up hospitalizations. "Treatingthese people the first time is better," Anis insisted. "Because the subsequent length of stays was much longer. "So if we could keep them here the first time and give them the full episode of treatment, it's better than them checking themselves out and letting the condition get worse. Because when they came back they were worse than when they left."
Welfare rules require recipients to appear in person to collect their cheques. People on welhre can have their payments delivered to them if they are hospitalized, but most choose not to do so because that tips off authorities of their whereabouts. Payments are reduced on a prerated basis if.recipients spend a portion of the month in hospital. The hospital has been looking at a program that would provide HIV patients on welfare with a financial incentive to stay in hospital for their full course of treatment, Miller said. She noted a nearby hospital which treats mainly psychiatric patients -another population in which the against-medicaladvice discharge rate is high -- offers to pay patients' shelter costs for three months if they stay in hospital, until they receive a medical discharge. Anis believes this kind of creative thinking is needed to solve a problem which is costing B.C. taxpayers far more than it is saving them. "Maybe we should just make up the difference and pay from the hospital budget?" he suggested. "This is kind of a radical idea. But pay them the difference fiom our hospital budget so that they don't come back so soon. And if they don't we're ahead of the game. There will be fewer admissions of these same wade down the road "
STD CLINIC - 2 19 Main: Monday to Friday, IOam - 6pm DOWNTOWN NEEDLE EXCHANGE - 221 Main: 8:30am - 8pm every day EASTSIDE NEEDLE EXCHANGE VAN - 3 Routes: YOUTH Citv - 5:45prn - I1 :45pm ACTIVlTIES Overnight - 12:30am - 8:30arn SOCIETY Downtown Eastside - 5:30prn - 1:30am 2002 DONATIONS Libby D.-$81
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Sam R.-$20 Eve E.-$I 8 Nancy H.$50 Margaret D.422 Sabitri G.-$21 Hulda R.425 Val A.S I8 Wm 8-627 Harold D.-$9 Mary C-$7I Paula R-$35 Rolf A.-$75 Bruce J . 4 18 Peggy -625 Kcltle $18 Sonya S.-$100 BCI'F-$ I0 Bill G.4100 Wes K.-$36 Charley B-$25 DEYASS l25 RayCam-$25 LSSS2OO John SS36 Paddy -S75 Sarah E.-SIO Tbe Edge 4200 Maggie R-SI00 Jo'g Mom -S25 Charles F.-S I 0 Menoonite CC -$85 Rosemary Z.-640 Joaona N.440 Jenny K.-S I 8 Charlotte F.-$20 Nancy C.-$50 Debbie -520 Glen 6.-$100 Penny G.-640
THE NEH'SLE'ITER IS A PIIR1.ICATION O F l I l E ('1RNECIE C'OMMIINITY C E N T R E A S S O C U T I O N Artirks mpmrnt the v i e w olindivldlvl contributon and not ofthe Asoriatlon
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Submission Deadline for next issue:
Welfare problems; Landlord disputes; Housing problems; Unsafe living conditions; me to the Dera office at 425 Carrall Street or e us at 682 0931 A has been serving the Downtown Eastside
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ATTENTION Media; I just saw on TV and read that the lawyer is willing to step down. Pichon did not give our women a chance to live or die. So why should we pay millions of dollars for his defense, when our women had no defense in their death. YES hours and hours of work have gone into this investigation and results (evidence) have been put forward. Our women could have possibly died slow deaths, that some loved ones7 and their families are th&l remains are allowing them some kind of closure, albeit not their choice. A community is in mourning, we do not need to hear that Pickton's lawyers are seeking dollars in order to represent him in court, I think not. We are looking for justice not excuses! Hope this makes sense, I am so angry. Princess Margaret
Mike Harris, former premier of Ontario, will join the Fraser Institute, a right-wing think tank. Harris, a former golf pro and teacher, will become a senior fellow and participate in "developing a new, nonpartisan, 'common sense policy vision' for Canada," the Vancouver-based group said in a news release. "We are ecstatic that Mr. Harris is joining the Fraser lnstitute team and look forward to having access to his great knowledge and experience in the develop ment of concrete policy proposals that will improve the well being of Canadians," Michael Walker, the institute's executive director said in the release. Harris said he has been a long-time admirer of the institute. "I am in particular looking forward to working with the impressive team of creative thinkers at the Fraser Institute, including senior fellow Preston Manning," Harris said. [*Harris's 'common sense revolution' in Ontario has resulted in massive homelessness - over 30,000 in Toronto alone - and the worsening of poverty. The cutting and gutting of social programs and government services (like water quality la Walkerton) prompted Gordon Campbell to gush about his admiration for what Harris (and Klein in Alberta) did. The Fraser Institute here is the motivating evil behind the whole slimy fiasco of the BC Liberal cut/slash/burn, with assets, tax breaks and the
obscenity of closing hospitals and quadrupling seniors health costs all done to get the richest people more.. . and that's not even touching the Olympics.]
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Most people are probably too young o remember the depression years in Canada. Those days are gone and they are not coming back. We are having a worse brand of poverty. People may think we cannot end up in a depression again; fact is we are going through it now.. more each day, suffering in silence. Many years ago people could salvage and recycle more freely. Now the big bin companies, paint depots, dumpster corporations, big supermarkets and others control, restrict or eliminate access to wood, paint, clothing, bicycles, low or no-cost food and a lot of returnables. If you are reading to learn, please meditate on these controls, for they indicate far greater control coming in our future. It is alarming but who is noticing? The poor do, and have been dying in silence while 'we' are blind to it. I'll pray for the downtown eastside - not because it's bad but because it needs change only where we ignore it or assume that nothing can ever happen to improve what we give up on. People addicted to one thing or another can recover, and many people have and are doing wonderful things here. There are many living testimonies to long-suffering and patience.. . look at addicted ones and try to see recovery; reach out, even if only for a moment. Love is king.. true charity believes all things are possible. We can have housing, especially when one barrier is political will. God commands us to open our hands and hearts to the poor - as a person and as a nation. May the homeless be noticed on the sidewalks, like a billboard our wealthy nation must see and recog-nize. Let's not strain at a fly and swallow a camel. Peace on all of us. MICHAEL BOHNERT
D.A.M.S. (drug and alcohol meeting and support for women) We are a non profit organization working in the Downtown Eastside. We provide education, outreach, support, accompaniments, short term counselling, advocacy and referrals to women around harm reduction, HIV prevention and general health strategies As a harm reduction program, we encourage women to help themselves and each other to make positive changes and reduce high risk behaviours. We follow a case management approach and support women in making their own choices, meeting them wherever they are most comfortable. We work in partnership with other community organizations to provide a continuum of care
Ongoing StUR Every Tuesday from 1 :30pm to 4pm at D.A.M.S.creative art drop in for women. Light lunch and bus tickets provided Every 2ndWednesday from 5pm to 8pm at the dtes women's centre-harm reduction alcohol and drug support group for women, (24hour notice for child care-604-68 18480) includes, dinner and bus ticket Every Friday starting Nov. 1/02 from 1 lam -2pm at D.A.M.S. "Finding Joy after Loss" series of workshops, focusing on healing from grief and loss, (Please call ahead spaces are limited,604'684-5454 ask for Gerry or Mary, light lunch and bus tickets incl. new sessions begin in the new year
D.A.M.S. is located at 167 West Pender (between Abbott and Cambie) Phone 604 687-5454 DTES Women's Centre is located at 320 Columbia Phone604-681-8480
Friends of the Woodwards Squat is pleased to announce a text-only info clearinghouse for the current housing action in Vancouver. You can find it at http://www.woodsquat.net The site includes updates, links to audio, video and photographic documentation of squat activities and the police violence & property destruction on 22 September & 03 October, as well as: - The Demands from the Coalition of Woodwards Squatters and Supporters Information on how to support the squat and legal defense find - Information on the eviction of 2 1 September and arrest of the Woodwards 58 - Contact information for affiliated groups involved in the squat - Interviews and writing from squat residents - A chronology since 14 September with links to documents - A bibliography of print media coverage - An index to the W.O.O.D.S.Q.U.A.T. newsletter with on-line reprints - A list of upcoming events *Note: Woodsquat.net is not an official site of the Woodwards Squat, nor any of the organizations or individuals involved in the housing action. It isn't a subsidiary of any media outlet, nor does it receive any form of state funding, directly or indirectly. Friends of the WoodwardsSquat publishes W.O.O.D.S.Q.U.A.T. newsletter and is a support group that helped with supplies and garbage removal during the occupation. It now assists with legal support for the Woodwards 58, the people who were subsequently attacked by police on 22 Sept, and the people who lost their possessions in the garbage trucks after the Sunday night attack. Please direct questions about demands or specific support actions to the Woodwards Coalition or another of the many groups/individuals involved in defense activity.
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Woodward's For The People Although the Woodward's squatters are now camped out around the empty building, they have succeeded in drawing attention on the dire need for social housing in the Downtown Eastside. Woodward's has been vacant for ten years and is like a black hole that sucks the life out of the neighbourhood. Up and down Hastings all you see are decrepit buildings, with hawkers, pushers, prostitutes, alcoholics, and the mentally ill, all milling about in a desperate dance.
At the moment, developer Geoff Hughes is dickering to buy the Woodward's site from the governmen He wants to put in "affordable" rental housing, with some of the proposed 4 17 apartments going for $400 a month. However, unless the government provides low interest mortgages or subsidies, a single person on welfare won't be able to afford the rent. The city, provincial, and federal governments who signed the Vancmrwr Agreement want to revitalize the Downtown I . ie. They intend to do this by using ideas from the community, and by encouraging residents to Start small businesses, take training, and gain emplovment.
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like window dressing. The decisions regarding Woodward's are being made behind closed doors by those with political clout and money. If the three levels of government really want to do something for the Downtown Eastside, perhaps they should be askingethe people what they would like to see at the Woodward's site instead of making the decisions for them. Groups like DERA, First Church the Carnegie Centre and Community Directions have that knowledge because they work with the people here every day. Maybe the community doesn't have much in a tangible way, but it does have people who are dedicated and committed to creating a better life for everyone in the area. Doesn't this qualifj, for being at the table? When people were asked: 'What would you like to see happen with Woodward's?' most said social housing. But when asked if there was anything else they would like located there, many were at a loss. Why? According to Jerome Schafer, a youth worker in the DTES, people here are desperate and just trying to survive, and ". . . that means trying to get some food in your belly, a place to bed at night, and to be out of harms way." Schafer also said that many young people in the DTES ". . .don't see a future and have given up hope, so they really can't respond to a question like the one you're asking." However, when encouraged to talk about Woodward's, some did come up with ideas. While standing on the steps ofthe Carnegie Centre, long-time member James Arkinstall said: "I hadn't really thought about it." But after thinking it over, he said: "Mainly, what I'd like to see is some economic stimulus around here. Some jobs. Some shops. Why can't people start a business? Get into a nightclub or something? Even sell liquor. Generate some economy instead of this drug economy?" Laurie Bick fiom Merrit was canying a pack and leaning against a wall on Hastings. As he looked over at the squatters lined up on the sidewalk, he suggested that they build a movie studio there. Gary, a street hawker on Hastings said: "They should put in a treatment centre. Maybe put a mall in there and cover it with a bubble." "Wiat thev'rc goins to put here beats me." said
local resident, Brian Carnegie. He agreed that housing would be a good thing, however, he also had a question: "But what are people going to do down herc'? If they give them housing, then they'll have to get a job so that they can pay for it." Camegie also said that a food floor, something like in the old Woodward's might be agood idea. Finally, Cameron Gray, a city housing planner, said that Woodward's lends itself to a variety of housing types: condos, market rentals, co-ops, and low-cost rentals. Housing for families, seniors, people with Aids, those with disabilities, etc. He said a housing mix is desirable because one type doesn't suit all. The city would like to see stores along Abbott and Hastings: hardware stores, food stores, and shops. Another possibility is for a community centre with a basketball court. He also said some of the traditional Woodward's Christmas window displays might be brought back, windows which, according to Gray, "almost approached street theatre." Local artists could also show their work there. This would add some color and excitement to the street, as well as give enjoyment to the people who live there. By PATRICK FOLEY
Comments? Concerns?
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Contact jenny .
Kwon, MLA
*DE<A's monthly meeting had 3 of 4 candidates for the Mayor's job. Sarge talks about them in his article, but the arrogance of the NPA's wannabee Jennifer Clark is pretty sad. The opinions found in other media are consistently bad, painting her as a hold-your-nose snot too stuck on herself to permit anything but remote contact with mere mortals. Valerie McLean (vcaTEAM) started with a self-intro and proceeded to read out her platform. After 15-20 minutes, there was a challenge from the crowd tellIng her to cut it short (to stop reading from her novel) - she turned over an additional 3-4 pages concluding with being "a doer, not a talker " Points on "neighbourhoods, zero-tolerance for drugs & dealing on the streets, backing of Four Pillars and
lo7o-l64i Cornmerclal Dr., VSL 3Y3 Phone: 775-0790 fax: 775-0881 OMce hours: Tuesday-Frlday pam-qpm
emphasis on enforcement.' Marc Emery (Marijuana Party) couldn't seem to get enough of himself. 'I'm wonderful, and ifyou don't believe me check out all the media I've gotten for being the capitalist wonderboy wanting to legalise drugs (so I can make a fortune selling weed without fear of getting busted).' Crowd reaction went fiom sad to hurt to angry to eye-rolling contempt in under
a minute. Larry Campbell (COPE) got the best welcome with quick identification of community issues and their connections to each other. 'Drugs are tied to housing and poverty and treatment options and safety and jobs.. . and the order is irrelevant / interchangeable.' The Question&Answer segment of the meeting was most telling. Sarge touches on Emery's crap, but it got nauseating when he quickly degenerated into "blame the NDP.. call Lawy Campbell a Marxist.. . anything that doesn't put the wealthy and business first is a threat' bullshit; Valerie McLean kept herself above water with lack of political experience not a mark against her (aside from rhetoric), and, aside from Lou Demarais being a great candidate for City Council, Campbell and COPE get kudos for understanding our neighbourhood and community. The NPA is a cluster of less than 4% of the electorate but gets re-elected due to our 'at-large' system. With a Progressive majority, a ward system would be one of their first priorities. Then neighbourhoods would get the attention needed, rather than the 'who has whose ear' patronage crap entrenched under the NPA. *Woodwards has drifted from the front pages, but the ongoing action there is getting responses from both city and provincial governments. There're over a hundred people camped outlstaying on th sidewalk at the east end ofthe block, with community support growing after the police actions some weeks ago. Check out WOODSQUAT newsletter and a website address (given in the other article) for updates. The ongoing uncertainty (with Woodwards) worsens with every new scheme to 'unload' the whole shebang. Somebody named Jeff Hughes is pitching affordable housing with wishfbl thinking involving 3 levels of government giving him millions to do something, but it seems to be a reworkinghe-hashing of the original deal worked out under the NDP. Private buyers freeze when they learn of this community's determination, and the BC Liberals won't (are incapable of) doing anything decent. A word on coverage of any event or issue by a David Cawigg, who seems to get paid through the Courier - he wrote a sleaze series on Dera, with Jaimie Lee Hamilton as his unimpeachable source, and most recently gets slimy calling Jim Laydon
"one of the Ringleaders of the protest squat at Woodwards" in his opening paragraph. That's a trick to colour a reader's thinking from the get go. The word is for any and all members of this community to just refuse to talk to this worm. PRT
Fright Night Halloween Dance with
Cody, Colleen, Egor
Thursday, October 31, 7-10pm Carnegie Theatre Best Costume Prize!!!