October 1, 1993, carnegie newsletter by Carnegie Newsletter

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- d o n a t i o n s act-epted.

It still hurts to recall it H e r b r u t a l d e a t h shocked t h e Downtown E a s t s i d e , s p a r k i n g a mass o u t p o u r i n g of g r i e f and a p r o t e s t march through t h e streets. N o w t h e just-completed murder trial in B.C. Supreme Court has brought back t h e disturbing memories and shed new'light o n the last tragic hours of Cheryl Ann Joe. C h e r y l , aged 28, d i e d of a v i c i o u s b e a t i n g and s t a b b i n g i n January, 1992. Her body was found wrapped i n a b l a n k e t and dumped by t h e r a i l r o a d t r a c k s down by t h e docks a t t h e f o o t of S a l s b u r y Drive, n e a r Powell Street

A t t h e time, she was t h e l a t e s t of a t l e a s t 48 womenmost of them n a t i v e - who had d i e d v i o l e n t l y o r from drug c a u s e s on downtown s t r e e t s i n the p a s t 15 y e a r s . -

More t h a n 200 of h e r r e l a t i v e s and f r i e n d s conducted a smudge, a n a t i v e c l e a n s i n g ceremony, a t t h e s i t e of h e r d e a t h , and t h e n marched back t o Carnegie t o t a l k about ways of s t o p p i n g t h e carnage a g a i n s t women. Cheryl was a g e n t l e , t i m i d woman who worked t h e s t r e e t s on o c c a s i o n t o e a r n e x t r a money f o r her t h r e e small children. The

Meet some candidates

- October 4

: h i l d r e n w e r e l i v i n g with. Welatives i n S e c h e l t . nBeing on t h e s t r e e t : e r r i f i e d h e r , " s a i d q fri'end. What ' b u t s h e had no choice. ;he d i d n ' t g e t from w e l f a r e , ;he had t o make-up on t h e s t x e e t . [t was a11 f o r h e r c h i l d r e n . '' A 38-year-old man, Brian ,llender, who lives on East broadway, was convicted of firstlegree murder and sentenced to -ife in prison with no chance of )arole for 25 years. He was 3escribed as an unemployed laborer . dho coached children's nockey at :he Hastings Community Centre as 3 hobby. The trial was very hard to take for friends and relatives because of the brutally graphic details that came out in court. Many people gasped when they heard how Cheryl was sexually mutilated during her murder. According t o testimony a t t h e t r i a l , a CP R a i l P o l i c e O f f i c e r saw a s u s p i c i o u s b l u e Ford Van stopped n e a r t h e t r a c k s . When he approached, t h e Van sped o f f , b u t t h e O f f i c e r managed t o g e t the l i c e n s e number. L a t e r , when Cheryl's body

show t h a t women i n t h e Downtown E a s t s i d e l i v e n i n e y e a r s ' less than women i n o t h e r p a r t s o f Vancouver, and t h e y a r e s i x t i m e s more l i k e l y t o b e k i l l e d .

Read On! CARNEG I E READING ROOM

Events, News, C e l e b r a t i o n s f o r F a l l '93 ............................ H i everyone! I t ' s g r e a t t o be back i n t h e DES a g a i n and s e e i n g a l l of you i n t h e Centre and around t h e neighbourhood, e s p e c i a l l y i n t h e Empress and Vic ' s ! ! ! ! Not o n l y am I back, b u t Lianne w i l l b e s t a y i n g on and we have Linda on t r a n s f e r from t h e C e n t r a l Library. Also, now t h a t we have our e x t r a s t a f f i n g money from t h e C i t y , you w i l l be s e e i n g Gail, Peggy, Bruce E E l e k t r a . Our B I G NEWS i s t h a t we w i l l b e launching o u r Vancouver P u b l i c Librar y Online c a t a l o g u e on Tuesday, Oct.5 a t 3pm with c o f f e e and cake i n t h e Reading Room and I w i l l b e making an attempt t o t e a c h Donald how t o t y p e , on a computer t e r m i n a l . (Do you t h i n k he can make i t ? Come and s e e . ) Besides t h e new catalogue, we w i l l be g i v i n g o u t Vancouver P u b l i c Librar y c a r d s beginning Oct. 5. This card w i l l allow you t o r e s e r v e and b r i n g i n books from any Branch i n Vanocuve~ You w i l l need 2 p i e c e s of I D t o g e t t h i s card; e.g. r e n t agreement, l e t t e r r e c e n t l y mailed t o you, o r BCID. Charges f o r l a t e and l o s t items w i l l be made on t h i s card. Please come i n and pick up information regarding t h e s e changes on October 5th. I am working on a u t h o r r e a d i n g s f o r F a l l and c u r r e n t l y have J a n c i s Andrews booked f o r sometime l a t e Nov. o r e a r l y Dec. J a n c i s has many t i e s t o Carnegie and i s looking forward t o seeing o l d f r i e n d s here. I w i l l l e t you know exact d a t e s a s soon a s I can. We a r e a l s o t r y i n g t o g e t Evelyn

Lau, a u t h o r of Fresh Girls and Other S t o r i e s t o r e a d f o r u s t h i s F a l l . So f a r , no i d e a of a d a t e . There w i l l be o t h e r e v e n t s coming up s o come i n and ask. . o r y o u ' l l s e e it i n t h e Newsletter. Our Library Committee i s a c t i v e aga i n : I r e n e Schmidt, Barb Grey, Gale Harwood and Larry Loyie (when a v a i l a b l e ) . P l e a s e give them any i d e a s you have, o r come t o one of our meetings. Anyway, i t ' s g r e a t t o be back and 1'11 s e e you a l l on Oct. 5 t h f o r COFFEE, CAKE AND COMPUTER CATALOGUES. (P.S. The f l y e r p r o j e c t l i v e s ! I w i l l be t r y i n g t o g e t time t o d i s t r i b u t e p u b l i c i t y t o h o t e l s , b a r s and agenci e s i n t h e DES sometime Winter/Spring Meanwhile, i f you s e e books i n rooms, b a r s , e t c . we'd be d e l i g h t e d t o s e e them back on t h e l i b r a r y s h e l v e s . Online Eleanor

SADNESS IS A

DEAL)

PUPPY

Michael Harcourt i s on t h e move! H i s b r i l l i a n t lawyer1s mind i s t w i s t i n g every which way. Watch out - h e ' s dumptin a l l h i s o l d f r i e n d s 6 supporters..ecologists, human r i g h t s advocates, s o c i a l i s t p h i l o sophers, r a d i c a l s t u d e n t s of humanism.. t h e old left-wing packaged idealism must ' b e discarded so t h e g r e a t Michael Harco u r t can r i s e t o new heights of yuppy euphoria ! i f t h e g r e a t white hope of t h e l e f t wing a c t s l i k e a jerk, who can you t r u s t ? Cah we t r u s t a l l those anti-poverty a c t i v i s t s who urged u s t o vote f o r him now t h a t h e ' s shown u s what h e ' s r e a l l y made what about a l l those studys of of? poverty & left-wing agendas so o f t e n p r i n t e d i n our own Carnegie Newsletter? . i f these people gained p o l i t i c a l pawer would they t u r n around & t r a s h us a l l t o .we used t o c a l l him "Mike Garhell? port1' i n honour of h i s bottomline a l l e g i ance t o money & power - now w e ' l l have t o make ub new names f o r him how about llturncoatll o r "ratâ&#x20AC;˘â&#x20AC;&#x2122;ink1'? S e c r e t l y Mike always wanted t o s p i t on u s G t r a s h t h e poor, he j u s t never r e a l l y had an opportunity t o do it. In h i s h e a r t of h e a r t s he a c t u a l l y despised s o c i a l i s t humanism & a l l those bleeding h e a r t wimps who t a l k about "kinder, g e n t l e r t 1societys. But s i n c e he s t a r t e d h i s p o l i t i c a l care e r with t h e handicap of opposing highways i n a car-crazy world, Mike got stuck they a l with ugly left-wing supporters ways bugged him - but now h i s new posit i o n a s premier has f i n a l l y given him t h e courage t o come out of t h e c l o s e t 4 d i s -

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play h i s t r u e nature; t o d i v e s t himself of "left-wingismll f o r e v e r & ascend i n t o higher l e v e l s of self-esteem, personal g r a t i f i c a t i o n 6 holier-than-thou image manipulation. I f anybody knows how t o k i l l t h e poor, i t ' s someone who's always pretended t o b e on t h e i r s i d e . I f anyone can d e s t r o y left-wing idealism i t ' s a lawyer with the mind of a snake. A s Mike's a t t i t u d e d i s appears i n t o t h e economic s t r a t o s p h e r e , u s mere mortals can only shake our impote n t l i t t l e f i s t s i n f u t i l e rage & shout "Get out of here & don1t come back, you two-faced l i t t l e twerpll1 I ' v e got an idea. Why not b a r t h e bastard from Carnegie.. .we g e t barred f o r t r e a t i n g people d i s r e s p e x f u l l y - why not him? Also - how many job o f f e r s has Michael Harcourt himself refused during h i s illu s t r i o u s $ o p p o r t u n i s t i c c a r e e r ? Jf refus i n g a job makes you a "deadbeatt1 Mike G ' h i s c a r e e r c o n s p i r a t o r s must be t h e u l t i mate deadbeats by now. If r e f u s i n g a job o f f e r is a crime a g a i n s t t h e s t a t e , Harcourt 6 h i s cronies must be t h e A1 Cap, ones of economic anarchy. Fascism has many faces. I t i s characte r i z e d by coercion f o r c i n g people t o do what they don't want t o . That formerly 'caring-sharingt human being, Mikey, t h e champion of t h e underdog, has now become a c u t e l i t t l e t y r a n t who announces t h a t anyone who r e f u s e s job t r a i n i n g w i l l be starve i n the streets, cut o f f welfare you d i r t y deadbeats ! Mike says, scrounge in garbage cans, you miserable good-fornothing scum of t h e earth!

...

Jim Green, another former left-wing hero, showed Mikey t h e way r e c e n t l y with h i s t h r e a t t o eliminate people who r e f u s e job t r a i n i n g programs from s o c i a l housing , now Mikey's running with t h e b a l l h e ' s going t h e wrong way of course, knoci king down h i s own teammates, but, what - he's determined t o beat Gordon Campbell a t h i s own game.

...

i Ye"

I'm g e t t i n g hassled by t h e cops, s t a n d i ing i n t h e soup l i n e , making cockroach sandwiches...so what e l s e is new? Tor a, You slashed a t t h e Newsletter i n your r a n t t o a response. ,,.studies of poverty G left-wing agendas, sturdies of environmental degradation & ways t o s t o p it, surveys o n e l o t s 6s t h i n g s , with r e s u l t s t h a t spark change.. . a l l t h i s & more have helped f o s t e r t h e "technological progress & t h e s o c i a l progress t h a t makes up our welfare, medicare, s o c i a l programs s o c i a l housing, U I , pensions, e t c . Maybe we should have l e f t Vanderzalm alone.. a f t e r a l l , a l l he ever betrayed was our sense of decency. Harcourt i s a bad actox

Premier Harcourt : I was extremely offended & disturbed by your recent comments on income a s s i s t a n c e . A s an advocate a t the Downtown E a s t s i d e Women's Centre, I work with many women on a s s i s t a n c e . We s e e a s many & I a s 150 women & c h i l d r e n every day don't t h i n k I ' v e ever met people who work harder a t day t o day s u r v i v a l . I remember when you v i s i t e d t h e Centre about a year ago so I know you have some idea of what I ' m t a l k i n g about. You used t h e words "cheats &deadbeat$' I don't t h i n k y o u ' l l f i n d many people who d i s a g r e e with t h e f a c t t h a t people should not be a b l e t o c o l l e c t m c h e a u e s but t h i s i s ,under 20 d i f f e r e n t names not what. you s a i d i n t h e paper. You c l e a r l y s a i d t h a t t h e "cheats & dead-..,-. beats" were people who "refuse job t r a i n i n g " , "are not t r y i n g hard enough t o f i n d a job", "refuse t o g e t back int o t h e workforce" and "are taking advant a g e of t h e goodwill of B r i t i s h Columbians." You a l s o were quoted very c l e a r l y a s saying t h a t t h e s e "cheats &daadbeatsl w i l l b e cut off welfare. I work everyday with women who have been refused job t r a i n i n g by t h e Minist r y of S o c i a l Services. I had t o go t o a t r i b u n a l with a s i n g l e parent who was refused funding by t h e Ministrv for a

In t h e h i s t o r y of humanist philosophy, coercion has always been a no-no. Allowing c i t i z e n s t o pursue t h e i r own i n t e r e s t s , even a t t h e expense of t h e S t a t e , was always a proud cornerstone of democ r a t i c freedom1 ...p e r s o n a l l y I ' v e already refused job t r a i n i n g o f f e r s from my government, s o I ' m a Itdeadbeat" f o r sure. My happy, r i c l "powerful premier considers me a criminal vho engages i n t h a t g r e a t promise of technological progress known a s ''1hksure time," & being a criminal I r e f u s e t o s l e e p i n r a t h o l e s . My only crime was r e fusing a job i n t h e g r e a t democracy - now

I 1

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counselling course designed t o l e a d dir e c t l y & s p e c i f i c a l l y t o work., My very f i r s t c a l l when I came i n t h e door t h i s morning was t h e usual: "the rehab o f f i c e r s a i d t h e r e ' s nothing they can do f o r me" c a l l . An important f a c t r e l a t e d t o "cheat+ e r s " which I ' m s u r e you know i s t h a t people on a s s i s t a n c e a r e l i v i n g a t approximately 50% of t h e poverty l i n e . Sometimes beople do casual work, i f they can f i n d i t , and most do r e p o r t it Some don't r e p o r t i t & t h c f a c t that they then l i v e i n mortal f e a r of MSS f i n d i n g out supports t h e notion t h a t they need t o do t h i s t o ' s u r v i v e . There's been l o t s of media-induced' h y s t e r i a about welfare fraud. l t l s r e a l l y u p s e t t i n g t h a t you have chosen t o f u e l t h i s f i r e of h a t r e d a g a i n s t poor people I welcome response from you t o t h e following quest ions : 1. Do you b e l i e v e t h a t persans who "do not t r y hard t a f i n d work" a r e "deadb e a t s & cheaters"? What i f they were on "employable"? "Unemployable"? Handicap? 2 . W i l l you be directillg' Joy- MacPhail t o cut people o f f who have n o t found jobs? 3 . What s t e p s w i l l you be taking t o make funding f o r educational & employment t r a i n i n g a v a i l a b l e & a c c e s s i b l e f o r recipients? 4 , What s t e p s a r e you going t o t a k e t o compensate f o r t h i s media coverage of welfare r e c i p i e n t s a s "cheaters & deadbeats"? 5. Joan Smallwood's d i r e c t i v e t o h e r shaff was t o t r e a t c l i e n t s with dign i t y & r e s p e c t . Do your comments indica t e a change i n policy? I look forward t o hearing from you. Thank you. Karen Spears, Advocate, DEWC

OVERSTEPPING DESTINY

The "Titanst1, on whom ancient w r i t ings blame t h e d e s t r u c t i o n of t h e f i r s t world age (aeon), were not named f o r t h e i r s i z e . l1Titant1was o r i g i n a l l y a term of reproach, meaning " s t r a i n e r s " i e . 'those who s t r u g g l e & s t r a i n against t h e i r destiny. ,. One who oversteps h i s ordained f a t e : 6 attempts t o place himself a r t i f i c i a l l y above o t h e r s , without undergoing ! death & r e b i r t h , was, i n ancient terms, ; t h e committer of o r i g i n a l s i n . Today we might r e f e r t o such people a s v o p p o r t u n i s t s ~ ol r " c ~ m p e t i t o r s ' o~ r "ext~emists~~. 9n Greek drama, Registhus i s accused of having done deeds "hyper moronf1 - i e beyond degree. The word llmoirall o r llmorost1 i s t r a n s l a t e d l1destinyl1 o r l1fate1I & is synonymous with a n a t u r a l l y p e r f e c t : world o r d e r o r harmony. A "mairal! i s o n e degree-of t h e 360 degrees of a c i r c l e . Pride & arrogance a r e t h e negative qua1it i e s t h a t a r i s e from misrepresenting one I s p o s i t i o n i n t h e n a t u r a l o r d e r of t h i n g s - i e . t r y i n g t o appear g r e a t e r than one i s i n r e a l i t y . This was t h e llsinllt h a t the. ~ r h s t i c (Egyptian) C h r i s t i a n s accused Yaweh o r Jehovah of. They c a l l e d him t h e flblindll o r "arrogant godt1"because he s a i d he was t h e only god & a l l o t h e r s were f a l s e gods. He i s considered t o be t h e source of a l l t h e worldly powers (archons) which X came a f t e r him & t h e source of h i s o r i g i n a l mistake i s h i s d e n i a l of t h e fema l e ( ' p i s t i s sophiall), o r "faith-wisd:I om1', who was h i s mother & t h e source of h i s powers & god-likeness. E He i s described i n Gnostic t e x t s a s "The f i r s t archon, who denied h i s moth- ., e r E moved away from t h e town i n which i !he was born.ll :--. i w TORA

;Ipeople who a r e cheat'ing t h e welfare s y s L tem. If Mike knows something he should [:-.

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n o t necessary f o r him t o do happened, and a r e e i t h e r s e n t t o t h e .L e t w hIatt was he did. Tn my eyes he has got t o 1 Lookout of o t h e r temporary housing. ( ...' ' ""c l e a n house over t h e r e i n V i c t o r i a beL . . ~ So j u s t where does a l l t h i s money go 3rk fore coming to our commity. To a l l 1. i.-t h a t "1 t h e s e h o t e l s a r e g e t t i n g from p o l i t i c a l people: Stay out of our area. ~a L . persons? Most the people ? Wetve been working together to get what (?have 2 t o l d someone t h e r e a r e llcockroachs'UOI have. I t s n o t t h a t we don1t need .j -,\ 6& micev1 i n t h e i r rooms. Someone s a y s i * . -- we youi help from time to time, but when ? : ; ...-. t h a t t h e boom has beenllsprayed, 6 u t ,.you come i n t o clean what you've messed,,..'i t h e whole bhilding needs it. 41 up, f e e l f r e e t o ask us:to:.-,help you. b-. Mike H., look i n t o t h i s ! Take your There a r e many women and c h i l d r e n who : 1#. .. entourage i n t o h o t e l s , not j u s t i n t o l i v e i n t h e Downtown Eastside, a s well (in! 4.:; .. . t h e lobbies E n o t j u s t i n t o t h e rooms as many s e n i ~ r sand persons with disab-;iqr ::.:. t h e c l e r k suggests! i l i t i e s . I t ' s hard enough t o l i v e on -2i Another i d e a from MP EVERYTIME I ' v e what i s given today. c r u i s e d t h e neighbourhood on Cheque day 3 Since l i v i n g h e r e i n t h e Cowntown ;. . .. . I ' v e seen t h e s e people dressed i n s u i t s O Eastside, I ' v e seen many changes such '4 . . (some even have a funny t i e on) & s i l l y - Q . a s cleaning up t h e community, f i g h t i n g :d l i t t l e words come out of t h e i r mouths, ; 3 [ f o r our r i g h t s as c i t i z e n s ; t h e biggest 4 such as, "Ah, come and buy t h i s , i s n ' t achievement was t o g e t a g r i p on those IL.it c u t e l f ( dealing drugs. Neighboyrhood cops a r e La Well t h e s e f l i g h t y people p i s s me off walking t h e b e i t , o r biking it o r c r u i s - u t o come here, c a l l i n g themselves e n t r e ing..and g e t t o know who i s doing what. g i v e me a break! The only preneurs I t l s t r u e t h e r e a r e s t i l l people d e a l i n g time I s e e them i s on Cheque day. Do high q u a l i t y cocaine o r heroin, but ~ 0 m e 0 t h e y have a l i c e n s e t o s e l l t h e i r junk? wasn't b u i l t i n a day so work goes on. U 2 Nah, I don't t h i n k so. Why don l t they Our Downtown Eastside i s not reeog=, do t h e honest t h i n g and pay r e n t & hyd- "-'nized by C i t y Hall it ls p a r t of China- iif .r o E a phone j u s t a s we do, then maybe town o r Strathcona o r Gastown Qr... ," " '7 -..-.Ih-/ -: I ' d buy a teddy bear.. The day w i l l come when a v i s i t o r can ask--.-.i 5' I want them t o s t o p r i p p i n g o f f our j, "Where i s t h e community they c a l l t h e &j community. . t o s t o p taking advantage of Downtown Eastside?"! .. ' people. U n t i l next time f o l k s , HAVE A --j By MARGARET PREVOST NICE DAY! A member;:of '-the.f.~owntom :Eastside 'Byl

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*..-.-

Women's Health The i d e a l was "sharing t h e v i s i o n , shaping t h e f u t u r e t 1 . There were many p e r s p e c t i v e s ; information most r e l e v a n t t o me was t h a t prepared by Aboriginal women, which I ' l l s h a r e h e r e . Perspectives - f e e l i n g out numbered but recognize importance of a t t e n d i n g t h i s meeting - llfeministl' p e r s p e c t i v e i s d i f f e r e n t from F i r s t Nation world view - Aboriginal women t r a d i t i o n a l l y always had r i g h t s . but were removed by law. * Aboriginal women want a s t r o n g e r p o l i t i c a l v o i c e , r e s t o r a t i o n of l o s t right, r e s t o r a t i o n of t r a d i t i o n a l p o s i t i o n , r s s p e c t f o r autonomous r i g h t s of F i r s t Nat i o n s , r e s p e c t f o r r i g h t s of Metis. P o l i t i c a l Process v s Ab.Woments Health - Treaty n e g o t i a t i o n s : male dominated, no p r i n c i p l e s f o r involvement of women - J u r i s d i c t i o n a l Problems: i n t e r g o v e r n mental i s s u e s ; d o n ' t d i s c r i m i n a t e ; d o n l t deny b a s i c s e r v i c e s (home c a r e n u r s i n g ) - Municipal Governments: s e r v i c e s EFundi n g a r e minimal y e t Aboriginal people pay t a x e s ~ r ~ a n i s a t i o n ao lr Administrative Level - 1995 F i r s t Nations Women and wellness conference i n V i c t o r i a - c r e a t e an Aboriginal Women's h o l i s t i c healing Secretariat (accountability) minimum of 6 Aboriginal Women on any new p r o v i n c i a l woments h e a l t h c t t e e . enhance a u t h o r i t y , mandate E funding o f Aboriginal Health P o l i c y Branch want Aboriginal h o l i s t i c management of programs d e l i v e r e d i n government.. "Sexual Abuse - Health *Victim A s s i s t a n c e - Attorney General " R e s i d e n t i a l H i s t o r i c a l Abuse - H e a l t h *Sex Offenders - H e a l t h E Attorney Gen. "Criminal I n j u r y - Worker's Comp. *Alcohol E Drug- Counsellors - Health Priorities - Health promotion, p r e v e n t i o n , educat i o n and t r a i n i n g * I n c r e a s e funding t o e x i s t i n g programd of t h e s i x Regional Aboriginal Health

Councils f o r a d d i c t i o n s , mental h e a l t h , family v i o l e n c e , family s u p p o r t . *Put new.funding i n t o t h e s e i n # t h e 6 Councils: AIDS, STDs, T.B., Diabetes/ A r t h r i t i s , sexual a s s a u l t / r a p e , s a f e houses f o r p r o s t i t u t e s , detoxes/hostels, s u i c i d e , r e g i o n a l s c h o l a r s h i p fund, c o u n s e l l o r t r a i n i n g programs. *Immediate p r i o r i t y f o r education outreach program f o r pap t e s t i n g , b r e a s t examination & p r e - n a t a l c a r e . * T r a d i t i o n a l Healing E Medicine : develop e t h i c a l standards; access t o tradi t i o n a l healers/medicine; pay t r a d i t i o n a l h e a l e r s same a s western p r o ' s . * F i r s t Nations h e a l t h c e n t r e s : - Scope - --- - be a r e s o u r c e f o r a l l a r e a s of Eamily t r e a t m e n t E p r e v e n t i o n - Premise - -- -- -- - based on medicine wheel - S- -e r v--i c--e - h e a l i n g c i r c l e s , p a r e n t ing, pre-natal care, terminally ill "Education E T r a i n i n g : more i n p u t , more funding., Aboriginal Health I n s t .

That ' s what I went i n w i t h . .words on paper t h a t showed hope. Now t h e con. f e r e n c e i s over, a f t e r p u t t i n g q u e s t i o n s t o t h e (new) m i n i s t e r of h e a l t h . With t h e new c a b i n e t s h u f f l e a r e we r e a l l y going t o s e e any new changes? Are t h e people going t o s u f f e r ? I b e l i e v e t h e answer i s y e s , 'Newf f a c e s i n 'new' p o s i t i o n s with 'new1 i d e a s Again, on t h e l a s t day we put a l o t of q u e s t i o n s t o t h e m i n i s t e r , Paul Ramsey, who answered many with " I ' v e been i n t h i s p o s i t i o n f o r 2 weeksu g i v i n g us litt l e c l a r i t y E a l o t of nothingness. He has a l o t t o o f f e r but should have been t h i s conference was prepared b e t t e r t h e r e s u l t of months of planning & prep. When Native s i s t e r s went t o t h e mike he was doing more t a l k i n g t o t h e person bes i d e him than l i s t e n i n g - & we were n o t heard; when t h e p r e s e n t a t i o n was over it was n o t even acknowledged by him. He was asked a g a i n & only smiled & it was over. I l e f t t h e conference f e e l i n g disappo i n t e d E wondering i f a l l t h i s i n p u t was I

...

., YW -A I "Y I:I going t o f a l l on dead eyes G e

I wasn't alone. Our communities seem t o g e t crumbs E we f i g h t f o r what a r e r i g h

Cascading crimson f i r e , Down on concrete, s t e e l and g l a s s . While i n s i d e a hidden doorway, Where darkness g a t h e r s f o r t h e n i g h t ;

Mists unfold t h e i r f i l m y shrouds, A s s i l e n c e s t i l l s t h e c i t y ' s air; S o f t shades of p u l s i n g neon, R e f l e c t shadowd everywhere. P e r s i s t e n t i s a creeping c h i l l , That p e n e t r a t e s t h e n i g h t ; A young g i r l knows no h e a t o r cold, I n h e r world o f China White. Somewhere a worried mother waits, And l i v e s with g r i e v i n g pain; Behind h e r eyes, s o many t e a r s , They flow l i k e misted r a i n . Somewhere a f a t h e r walks t h e s t r e e t s , e r world o f China White.

t h a t h a s been used t o t r y & s i l e n c e troublesome q u e s t i o n e r s i n s e v e r a l rece n t B.C. c a s e s . * Sept.'93 UBC used t h e t h r e a t of an

i n g sued by neighbouring i n d u s t r y .

END SLAPP SUITS NOW

15 Ways to survive the welfare bureacracy

1. Phone f o r an appointment with a f i n a n c i a l a i d warker (F.A. W.).

2. Knowledge 'of welfare r i g h t s : Before you go i n t o t h e welfare o f f i c e t r y t o g e t any of t h e s e pamphlets - Welfare Rights & GAIN, GAIN f o r Handicapped, Welfare f o r hemployable People, Welfare f o r Em~loyabl e People o r Welfare Appeals. One of t h e s e pamphlets may h e l p with your case. I t i s p o s s i b l e t o g e t t h i s ' i n f o r m a t i o n a t Legal Aid, Rm.150-900 Howe S t (Smythe Entrance). To g e t t h e same information you can a l s o s e e advocates a t Carnegie Centre 665-2220, F i r s t United Church 681-8365, Downtown Eastside Women's Centre 681-8480, DERA 682-0931, o r Crabtree Corner 689-2808. I f you need a f r e e telephone you can go t o Carnegie Centre o r F i r s t United Church. 3. I d e n t i f i c a t i o n : When you go t o t h e welf a r e o f f i c e t a k e your s o c i a l insurance number, b i r t h c e r t i f i c a t e , S t a t u s card, passport & d r i v e r s l i c e n c e . ( i f you have been born i n Canada). I f you came t o Canada a s an immigrant, t a k e your immigration papers, m i n i s t e r ' s permit i f you a r e a refugee o r a refugee claimant (someone who came t o Canada p o s s i b l y i l l e g a l l y & wants t o s t a y here l e g a l l y ) . I f you have c h i l d r e n o r o t h e r dependents, take along t h e i r b i r t h c e r t i f i c a t e s , custody papers o r o t h e r proof t h a t t h e person i s your dependent & s/he l i v e s with you. 4. Other t h i n g s you need t o t a k e along: Rent r e c e i p t s , phone b i l l , hydro b i l l s . I f you o r a member of your family i s on a s p e c i a l d i e t , t a k e a note from t h e doctbr. I f yo0 cannot speak English o r a r e deaf o r have o t h e r speech d i f f i c u l t i e s , you have t h e r i g h t t o t a k e an i n t e r p r e t e r with you. If you need h e l p t o g e t f u r t h e r educa t i o n , p l e a s e b r i n g t h e following: Educat i o n information - graduation c e r t i f i c a t e s , GED, t r a n s c r i p t s from any courses you've done, eg. Night school. Pr-of of 2nd lang. I f you need help t o look f o r worklbbring: r e n t r e c e i p t , bank statement showing t h a t you d o n ' t have enough money t o buy c l o t h e s s u i t a b l e f o r looking f o r a job, o r t r a n s -

o r t a t i o n c o s t s , eg. running a c a r o r e t t i n g a bus pass. I pgIt's a good i d e a t o w r i t e down a l l t h e questions you want t o ask your worker. 5. I f you have d i f f i c u l t y i n f i l l i n g out forms, you can h e l p by going t o an advocate a t Carnegie Centre (401 Main), 1st United Church (320 E.Hastings), DE Women': Centre (44 E Cordova), DERA - (9 E .Hast ings) o r Crabtree Corner (101 E.Cordova).

6. Only give photocopies of r e c e i p t s : Welf a r e o f f i c e s have been'known t o l o s e your papers, so always g i v e them photocopi e s o f a l l your documents.

7. People t o c o n t a c t f o r group support: Vancouver Aboriginal Centre 251-4844 National I n s t i t u t e f o r t h e Blind (CNIB) your church --Coast Foundation 879-9612 - Strathcona Mental Health Team - 253-4401 - La Boussole - 255-5158 - C o a l i t i o n of People with D i s a b i l i t i e s (BCCPD) - 875-0188 - Community Care Teams - 734-5625 (For o t h e r groups s e e Help i n t h e Downtown Eastside, which you can g e t a t Carnegie) 8. If you need t o go on d i s a b i l i t y : F i r s t , g e t an a p p l i c a t i o n form f r o handicapped b e n e f i t s from your F.A.W. Next g e t a d o c t o r ' s l e t t e r o f information which d e s c r i b e s your medical condition gnd t h e reasons why you cannot work. You should a l s o have proof o f e x t r a money needed because of your medical condition; eg. medication ( h e a r t p i l l s , e p i l e p s y p i l l s , a l l e r g y p i l l s , e t c . ) ; over-the-countermedi c a l s u p p l i e s (bandages, soap, shoes, cane e t c . ) . This i s how you prove t h a t you need more money t o be a b l e t o l i v e with your d i s a b i l i t y . You may a l s o want t o include a d o c t o r ' s l e t ' t e r s t a t i n g t h a t you r e q u i r e a s s i s t a n c e l i k e alhomem&er/visiting nurse.

9. Your r i g h t s a t t h e w e l f a r e o f f i c e : You have t h e r i g h t t o be t r e a t e d with r e s p e c t & d i g n i t y by a l l . p e r s o n s working f o r t h e Ministry of S o c i a l Services. You have t h e r i g h t t o t a l k with t h e o f f i c e su-

pervisor i f you a r e n ' t happy with your FAW You have the r i g h t t o change your worker. You have the r i g h t t o take notes a t t h e in-: terview. You have the r i g h t t o take some* one with you (advocate). You have the r i g h t t o g e t help from a lega l a i d lawyer. 10. Take along a welfare advocate. Since you have t h e r i g h t t o take someone with you t o t h e welfare o f f i c e , an advocate,!is a person who has experience with dealing with the welfare system. Many advocates a r e on welfare & know t h e d i f f i c u l t i e s t h a t people can face. The advocate i s j t h e r e t o ensure t h a t your r i g h t s a r e protected. He o r she i s t h e r e f o r moral suppo r t a s well. The advocate can see the i s s ue calmly & objectively so you don't blow it i n f r o n t of your worker.

11. Never show your emotions. When you do t h e worker o r others can use t h i s t o f r u s t r a t e you & deny what you a r e e n t i t l e d to. I f you g e t emotional, the worker might say you a r e mentally ill & the information could be put on your f i l e i n t h e computer. This i s why i t ' s a good idea t o bring an advocate along.

" 12. Appeals & Tribunals: I f you don't agr e e with a decision made by your worker, I you have the r i g h t t o ask f o r an appeal k i t . A l l o f f i c e s must have appeal k i t s & your worker must give you one i f you ask f o r it. This i s t h e LAW. The worker should write down why your request i s denied. A l l these documents you bring t o an advocate. (Remember you have 30 days i n which t o reply with kn appeal k i t t o FAW decisions.) A t t h i s point you d e f i n i t e l y need an advocate. Ask t o speak t o t h e o f f i c e superv i s o r o r an a r e a manager. Take an advocate with you. The supervisor w i l l usually t e l l you i f your appeal i s supported by the department. The appeal i s sent t o t h e a r e a manager, who w i l l decide. I f i t ' s turned down, don't give up! You now havetihebrighf: , t o go t o a tribunal. A t t h e t r i b u n a l take * a l l documents having t o do with t h e case. , This includes a w r i t t e n budget. Take an a& I vocate. The c h a i r of the t r i b u n a l must be a person who i s acceptable t o both you and the ministry. I

13. Government Legislation:

With others you can lobby your provincial MLAs t o change p a r t s of the GAIN Act o r GAIN reeu" l a t i o n s . You can phone, write l e t t e r s and go t o demos t o report abuses. f7so 14. Don' t reveal anything you're not k l Z d The worker i s Not your buddy. I f you begin t o t e l l your worker your personal hist o r y (which has nothing t o do with your case), then t h i s information, which you thought was s e c r e t , could be used against you. The worker has no r i g h t t o t e l l you where t o l i v e , whom t o sleep with, where t o t r a v e l , where t o shop. The worker has no r i g h t t o t e l l you how t o spend your money.

Gin Zing

Gin Zing, you make my h e a r t s i n g ! You make e v e r y t h i n g groovy ! Gin Zing you make my head s p i n . You make e v e r y t h i n g woozy. Gin Zing you make me s i c k . You want t o make me puke. Gin Zing y o u ' r e o n l y good f o r one t h i n g ; I've discovered you're a cure f o r my b u n g a l a t i u s .

Oct. 15 : World Poetry Day

Beach Reading - Tim Lander, Rudolf Penner, Colleen Anderson, & o t h e r s r e a d from t h e i r own work. Bring one poem t o s h a r e . A candle i n a j a r & a drum a r e n e c e s s a r y a s i t ' s o u t s i d e . Spanish Banks west beach. Follow t h e c a n d l e runway. 873-3781; 8pm, f r e e .

Re: Margaret and Libby I

P o l i t i c s can o f f e r some p r e t t y hard choices. G e t t i n g r i d of t h e T o r i e s i s a p r i o r i t y , of course. But t h e way poor-bashing Premier Mike Haircut i s a c t i n g t h e s e days, h e ' s g i v i n g t h e NDP a bad name. Besides, t h e NDP i s going down, down, down i n t h e p o l l s i n many r i d i n g s , s o a v o t e f o r them can j u s t t a k e away v o t e s from t h e Libe r a l s , who a r e t h e only p a r t y w i t h a r e a l s t i c chance of b e a t i n g t h e Tories. But who wants t o v o t e f o r t h e L i b e r a l s , anyway? They're a f a t - c a t p a r t y , t o o , and t h i n g s won't be much d i f f e r e n t i f they get in. Lucky f o r u s a t Main and Hastings, t h e choice i s easy. In f a c t , we've got two easy c h o i c e s - one f e d e r a l and one c i v i c . Margaret M i t c h e l l and Libby Davies a r e two long-time f i g h t e r s f o r o u r community. Over t h e y e a r s , t h e y have proved t h e i r d e d i c a t i o n t o working people and t h e poor. This i s no b i g news i n t h e Downtown E a s t s i d e . When people hereabout: vote, they a r e l i k e l y t o vote f o r Margaret and Libby. Margaret has been t h e NDP MP f o r Vancouver East f o r many y e a r s , and Libby i s a founder of DERA, a longime a c t i v i s t and c i t y c o u n c i l member, now running f o r mayor f o r COPE. The problem i s , t h e Downtown E a s t s i d e has t h e lowest v o t e r r e g i s t r a t i o n and t u r n o u t i n t h e c i t y . There a r e some obvious r e a s o n s why people move around a l o t , t h e y have no s e c u r e a d d r e s s , t h e y hqve o t h e r problems on t h e i r minds, t h e y a r e turned o f f t h e system. The v o t e r s on t h e west s i d e of

t h e c i t y have a high v o t e r t u r n o u t . Consistently, they e l e c t t h e i r favored c a n d i d a t e s . They make t h e p o l i t i c a l system work f o r them. I t ' s time we s t a r t e d doing t h e

same. I n t h e coming weeks, t h e r e w i l l b e a b r i n g - o u t - t h e - v o t e campaign going door-to-door i n t h e h o t e l s and rooming houses t o make s u r e t h e i r v o i c e s i n t h e Downtown E a s t s i d e g e t heard. What b e t t e r p l a c e t o s t a r t than i n s u p p o r t i n g Margaret and Libby?

K i m Campbell

Mulroney Clone

According t o Murray Dobbin's book, The P o l i t i c s of K$m Campbell, Campbell w i l l ingly accepts r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r conserva t i v e p o l i c i e s carried out since the elect i o n of 1988 when she won the s e a t i n Vpncouver Centre. *Campbell aggressively supported the Free Trade Agreement t h a t has caused t h e l o s s of over 400,000 jobs, but has benefitted

t h e l a r g e s t corporations & t h e w e a l t h i e s t cqadians. *Campbell has supported t h e high i n t e r e s t r a t e 'policy of t h e Mulroney gov' t t h a t 's c r e a t e d t h e worst unemployment s i n c e t h e Great Depression. These same high i n t e r e s t r a t e s a r e responsible f o r n e a r l y h a l f of Canada's n a t i o n a l debt, and much of t h e p r o v i n c i a l debt a s well. *Campbell was p a r t of t h e Mulroney gov't t h a t c u t t h e core funding f o r 28 p o l i t i c a l and c u l t u r a l Native Indian organizations a c r o s s Canada i n 1990. ' A t t h e same time, t h e S e c r e t a r y of S t a t e i n c u b a t e d a $3.5 m i l l i o n Native communications program. *Campbell was p a r t of t h e Mulroney gov't t h a t pushed t h e Meech Lake Accord, an accord t h a t ignored Native Indian people and t h e i r r i g h t t o be a t t h e t a b l e t o negotia t e on t h e i r own behalf. E l i j a h Harper became a Canadian hero when he blew t h e w h i s t l e on t h i s one on June l l t h , 1990. *Under Campbell, t h e implementat ion of t h e North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Mexico & t h e U.S. i s a c e r t a i n t y . This means more competitive impoverishment f o r ordinary people. *Campbell has committed h e r s e l f p u b l i c l y t o t h e GST & Mulroney t a x reform which ha: made t h e taxes on Canada's wealthy t h e lowest i n t h e i n d u s t r i a l world. She has a l s o committed h e r s e l f t o c u t s i n unemplo) ment insurance & c u t s i n p r o v i n c i a l t r a n s f e r payments f o r h e a l t h , education and social assistance. 1'11 s t o p here. You can s e e K i m Campbell i s a Mulroney clone o r worse. Next time 1'11 t a l k about how Campbell w i l l use t h e Tory $ c o r p o r a t e media-createc f e a r of t h e n a t i o n a l debt t o c u t s o c i a l programs. Thanks t o Murray Dobbin's book, The P o l i t i c s of K i m Campbell.

BY SANDY CAMERON

Meet 'em and grill 'em On Sunday, October 6 , meet some o f t h e c a n d i d a t e s who a r e r u n n i n g i n t h e two r i d i n g s t h a t s t r a d d l e t h e Dowtown E a s t s i d e - Vancouver E a s t and Vancouver C e n t r e ( t h e boundary l i n e i s Cambie) NDP, L i b e r a l and Tory c a n d i d a t e s were i n v i t e d . The T o r i e s s a i d no. b u t t h e o t h e r s w i l l b e here. Candidates from o t h e r p a r t i e s a r e a l s o l i k e l y t o attend. S t a r t i n g a t 5 pm, t h e i n v i t e d c a n d i d a t e s w i l l make s h o r t s t a t e m e n t s , followed by q u e s t i o n s from t h e a u d i e n c e . An i n f o r m a l s e s s i o n w i l l f o l l o w i n which any c a n d i d a t e p r e s e n t can mingle w i t h Carnegie p e o p l e and enjoy a stew dinner.

. I

TO VOTE I N THE FEDERAL ELECTION ON OCTOBER 25 You must b e a a Canadian c i t i z e n , 18 y e a r s o r o l d e r . Many p e o p l e w i l l g e t r e g i s t r a t i o n n o t i c e s i n t h e mail. If you d o n ' t , you can r e g i s t e r a t Carnegie. J u s t b r i n g two p i e c e s o f I D - something t h a t shows your a d d r e s s , l i k e a b i l l o r r e c e i p t , and something w i t h your s i g n a t u r e on it. R e g i s t r a t i o n a t Carnegie i s from 1-7 pm, from S a t u r d a y t o Tuesday, Oct. 16-19.

TO VOTE I N THE C I V I C ELECTION ON NOVEMBER 20 You have t o b e 18 y e a r s o r o l d e r , a B.C. r e s i d e n t f o r s i x months and Vancouver r e s i d e n t f o r 30 days. If you a r e n o t a l r e a d y r e g i s t e r e d t o v o t e , you can r e g i s t e r on e l e c t i o n day when yOu show up t o v o t e . J u s t b r i n g p r o o f o f I D - something w i t h your name and a d d r e s s on it, and you w i l l b e sworn i n .

Margaret Mitchell, Member of Parliament

when I f i r s t came t o Vancouver i n 1981, p o l i t i c i a n s were not a f a m i l i a r breed of people. sometime i n t h e next few ,years t h e name of Margaret Mitchell was given i n answer t o t h e question "Who t h e h e l l i s t h e M.P. f o r t h e Downtown Eastside?" - and .people had nothing but good t h i n g s t o say about her. Margaret s t a r t e d i n Parliament i n 1979, being re-elected e v e r s i n c e , but when t r y ing t o g e t t h e h i s t o r y of some p r o j e c t o r program (even a l i t t l e c i v i l disobedience) Ms. M i t c h e l l ' s name would be i n t h e r e a s f a r back a s t h e mid-50's. She wrote a book e n t i t l e d Don't Rest i n Peace - Organize. In Ottawa Margaret has been t h e NDP C r i t i c f o r Immigration, Housing, S o c i a l P o l i cy and S t a t u s of Women, and p r e s e n t l y f o r 'Multiculturalism 6 Citizenship, S e c r e t a r y of S t a t e and Literacy. In t h e course of parliamentary work she has produced recommendations on r ~ o a t i o n a lg o a l s f o r k i d s & a t a s k f o r c e on o l d e r women i n Canada. A s Multiculturalism C y i t i c , Margaret has been a c t i v e i n t h e f i g h t a g a i n s t racism i n Canada, with p a r t of h e r e f f o r t s going t o amending p a r t s of t h e Criminal Code on Hate Propaganda & a s e p a r a t e Act t o prevent persecution o f m i n o r i t i e s , such a s d i d happen t o Japanese, I t a l i a n E UkrainianCanadians during wartime. Margaret knows t h e people around here p r e t t y well. She i s c o n s i s t e n t l y f i g h t i n g f o r our r i g h t s . I n t h e l a s t year alone, while Tory changes serve only t o c u t and s l a s h , Margaret has brought them up s h o r' t f o r t h e i r narrow-minded E near-sighted a t t a c k s on t h e i n t e r e s t s of people. She spoke out a g a i n s t t h e s h u t t i n g of t h e Court Challenges Program, saying " ( I t ) i s v i t a l if women, persons with d i s a b i l i t i e s , r a c i a l E e t h n i c m i n o r i t i e s , language minor i t i e s & o t h e r s a r e going tollhave t h e resources t o achieve t h e equal r i g h t s guaranteed them under t h e Charter of Rights." "Vancouver East is home t o t h e l a r g e s t urban Aboriginal community i n Canada; i t i s a l s o home t o some of t h e most progressi v e agencies 6 o r g a n i z a t i o n s addressing t h e problems faced by t h a t community. education, h e a l t h i s s u e s , employment "Many volunteers a r e over-extended and

.. ..."

stretched t o t h e i r l i m i t s , especially i n t h e s e times of g o v t t r e s t r a i n t . Instead of I i n c r e a s i n g resources, t h e f e d e r a l g o v t t . has c u t S e c r e t a r y of S t a t e funding f o r v o l u n t e e r c i t i z e n o r g a i i z a t i o n s t h a t provi d e e s s e n t i a l s e r v i c e s & advocacy f o r d i s - I advantaged E minority groups." I Margaret i s i n t h e r i g h t job i n Ottawa, working f o r changes t o l e g i s l a t i o n d e a l i n g with racism, immigration E m u l t i c u l t u r a l i s m . She responded immediately when K i m Campbell downgraded t h e Ministry o f Multic u l t u r a l i s m , following a l o t of media hype over t h e Reform Party. NDP p o l i c y c a l l s f o r t h e acceptance of new C a n a d i p s , not t r e a t i n g a l l l i k e t h e y were criminals. Margaret Mitchell i s known throughout Vancouver a s a hardworking M.P. who c a r e s about h e r c o n s t i t u e n t s . She a c t i v e l y suppo r t s community groups 6 works with r e s i d > e n t s , bureaucrats E Cabinet M i n i s t e r s on i s s u e s ranging from UIC, jobs, immigratioq Vancouver P o r t & s a f e neighbourhoods. She i s p a r t i c u l a r l y concerned about young peo- " p l e & t h e importance of h e a l t h y communit, i e s . Margaret i s s t i l l our M.P. 8

By PAULR

TAYLOR r

Answer :

the ozone layer, clean water, fishing, current environmental standards

The head of t h e Environmental P r o t e c t ion Agency i n t h e US c a l l s t h e North Ame r i c a n Trade Agreement (NAFTA) "the most environmentall y - s e n s i t i v e , t h e g r e e n e s t t r a d e agreement e v e r n e g o t i a t e d anywheret' A judge, p r e s e n t e d w i t h t h e evidence, stopped it. The US govf t appealed & g o t it going a g a i n . NAFTA w i l l a f f e c t t h e environment i n such an unprecedented mann e r t h a t i t ' s a v i r t u a l c o n t i n e n t a l cons t i t u t i o n f o r transnational corporations t o do a s t h e y w i l l , r e g a r d l e s s of consequence s

Loss of-, Resource Control I n t i m e s o f s h o r t a g e , Canada i s o b l i g a t e d under.NAFTA A r t i c l e s 316 6605 t o permanently s u p p l y t h e US market with ' n a t u r a l r e s o u r c e s based on export propo r t i o n s of t h e p r e v i o u s 3 y e a r s . This means t h a t d u r i n g a drought, t h e Canadian p r a i r i e s could n o t be i r r i g a t e d with Canadian w a t e r t h a t i s b e i n g d i v e r t e d south o f t h e 49th. Water i s a " t r a d e a b l e commodityff, d e f i n e d a s a "good" i n NAFTP, & Canada could b e r e q u i r e d t o maintain e x p o r t s i n t h e f u t u r e r e g a r d l e s s o f environmental o r c u l t u r a l impacts. Since 1969 t h e r e have been 174 dams s t r a t e g i c a l l y b u i l t a c r o s s Canada a s i p a r t o f a scheme t o d i v e r t our most e s s ent i a l r e s o u r c e . Huge water-sharing p l a n s a r e shaping o u r n a t i o n ' s p o l i t i c a l agenda t o s l a k e t h e t h i r s t o f American a g r i b u s i n e s s . Simon Reisman, who 'negoti a t e d ' t h e Canada-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA), h a s been d i r e c t l y involved i n w a t e r - d i v e r s i o n f o r y e a r s . I n 1985 he s a i d w a t e r would b e t h e c a r r o t t o e n t i c e t h e Americans i n t o a f r e e t r a d e agreement, t h e n , f o r p o l i t i c a l r e a s o n s , w a t e r was tfexcludedtt. . u n t i l t h e a c t u a l , l e g a l l y binding t e x t o f NAFTA was made publ i c . Lo E behold t h e r e it was !. & under NAFTA t h e o n l y excluded. form o f water t h a t i s n ' t a t r a d e a b l e commodity i s seawater.

Canada l o s t t h e a b i l i t y t o protect t h e o i l & g a s i n d u s t i r e s from f o r e i g n investment & c o n t r o l under t h e FTA. S i n c e t h e n v i r t u a l l y a l l o f t h e companies i n Canada have been t a k e n over by American t r a n s n a t i o n a l s . Under NAFTA o i l & g a s d e v e l o p ment have s p e c i a l subsidy p r o t e c t i o n , meaning t h a t Canada w i l l continue t o supply t h e US with t h e s e r e s o u r c e s below t h e c o s t o f e x t r a c t i o n c o u r t e s y o f Canadian t a x p a y e r s . Conservation Programs S a c r i f i c e d A r t i c l e 106 p u t s c o n s e r v a t i o n programs i n permanent limbo a s t h e y could be considered "disguised b a r r i e r s t o trade. If Under t h e FTA a p a n e l r u l e d t h a t t h e o n l y program p e r m i t t e d was one whose s o l e reason f o r being was c o n s e r v a t i o n . This ' s o l e r e a s o n ' c r i t e r i a i s , of c o u r s e , open t o arguement I n d i s p u t a b l e s c i e n t i f i c evidence i s c i t e d under NAFTA A r t i c l e 757, where t h e US'S Ifrisk/benef i t t 1 approach becomes t h e norm, meaning t h a t any r e g u l a t i o n o r law can b e s t r u c k down as an i n d i r e c t b a r r i e r t o t r a d e i f t h e evidence can be made t o show a greate r economic l o s s than an environmental l o s s . When s c i e n t i s t s have r e a d i l y been found who w i l l q u e s t i o n t h e harmful e f f e c t s o f n u c l e a r power o r t o x i c waste o r even smoking, how much evidence w i l l be beyond q u e s t i o n ?

Harmonisat i o n & P o l l u t i o n Havens What pro-NAFTA hype r e p e a t s i s t h e need fo; a l f l e v e l p i a y i n g f i e l d f f ; what t h i s t r a n s l a t e s a s i s " t h e lowest common denominatorw- t h e weakest r u l e s , t h e absence of enforced enviornmental laws,,the fewest r e g u l a t i o n s . I t i s t h i s s o - c a l l e d harmonisation t h a t p r e s s u r e s both Canada & t h e US t o lower s t a n d a r d s t o t h e l e v e l of t h o s e enforced i n Mexico. S i d e d e a l s won't a f f e c t t h i s p r e s s u r e i n t h e s l i g h t e s t . The maquiladora zone i n n o r t h e r n Mexico i s now one o f t h e most p o l l u t e d

a r e a s i n t h e world, with o v e r 2000 f a c t o r i e s o p e r a t i n g & d i s c h a r g i n g toxic.waste i n d i s c r i m i n a t e l y . Disease E f i l t h a r e rampant a s no h e a l t h o r s a f e t y measures a r e enforced and workers E t h e i r f a m i l i e s have t o l i v e amid t h i s poison. Babi e s have been born without b r a i n s , f o r God's sake! A r t i c l e 1114 c i t e s s t a n d a r d s as "inapp r o p r i a t e " ways t o encourage investment ! This i s t h e l o g i c used by t r a n s n a t i o n a l s t o j u s t i f y s e l l i n g (dumping) m i l l i o n s o f pounds of t o x i c waste i n 3rd World c o u n t r i e s . The North ( t h a t ' s u s ) , w i t h about 114 of t h e world's people, u s e s about 80% of t h e w o r l d ' s r e s o u r c e s , produces 85% of a l l CFC's and 2 / 3 o f carbon emissions. In c o n t r a s t , d e s p e r a t e people i n t h e South are. f o r c e d t o c u t i r r e p l a c e able tropical rain forests t o obtain land f o r s h o r t - l i v e d a g r i c u l t u r e (carnat i o n s , beef f o r McDonald' s gainseburge r s , e t c . ) i n c o u n t r i e s where 90% o f t h e a r a b l e land i s owned by l e s s t h a n 5% o f while t h e t o x i c garbage t h e people goes t o t h e most d e s t i t u t e .

...

The Threat from our M i l i t a r y The Cold War i s over, t h e r e i s no r e a l o r imagined enemy, y e t m i l i t a r y spending i s going t o i n c r e a s e . B i l l i o n s of d o l l a r s can be spent on " n a t i o n a l s e c u r i t y " with no problem under NAFTA, but t h e p o l l u t ion E d e s t r u c t i o n caused j u s t by t e s t s d e s o l a t e e n t i r e regions. Vietnam i s now 114 wasteland; more tonnage o f bombs was dropped i n I r a q E Kuwait t h a n was used i n World War 11. The environmental d e s t r u c t i o n has been c a t a s t r o p h i c .

Blinders Off Eighty environmental g r o u p s f r o m a c r o s s Canada have joined t o g e t h e r t o oppQse t h e North American Free Trade Agreement. I n a j o i n t statement, t h e y d e c l a r e d : "We a r e extremely concerned t h a t t h e NAFTA w i l l have d e v a s t a t i n g e f f e c t s on our environment. NAFTA r e p e a t s t h e m i s t akes of t h e Canada-US Free Trade Agreement by a c c e p t i n g t h e growth-led mddel which i s a c c e l e r a t i n g our p l a n e t ' s demise.

The groups argue t h a t t o achieve s u s t a i n a b i l i t y of our economy E environment, governments need t o maintain a wide range of green p r o t e c t i o n E green economic s t r a t e g i e s . I n s t e a d , t h i s t r a d e agreement t i e s government hands. They p o i n t t o t h e l o s s of c o n s e r v a t i o n b a r r i e r s t h a t have s e r i o u s l y impacted on f i s h i n g , f o r e s t r y E energy. The s t r i k i n g down of e x i s t i n g s t a n d a r d s i s o n l y t h e beginning of a s p i r a l towards t h e worst s t a n d a r d s anywhere a bottoming o u t . The i n t e l l e c t u a l p~. r o p e r t y r i g h t s enshrim ed i n NAFTA w i l l s e r i o u s l y erode small- i

...

s c a l e a g r i c u l t u r e . NAFTA p e r m i t s t h e pate n t i n g of l i f e forms - seeds F, animals t h a t w i l l only t h r i v e i n t h e presence of c]lcmical f e r t i l i z e r s E f e e d t h a t t h e owners w i l l have monopolies on. Small farmers w i l l have t o pay r o y a l t i e s t o patent-owners j u s t t o p l a n t t h e i r own seeds. The endpoint, h i g h l i g h t i n g what would s p e l l t h e endpoint f o r democracy a s we know i t , i s t h e i n a c c e s s a b i l i t y of NAFTAts d i s p u t e panels. These new supranati o n a l bodies a r e so removed from t h e p u b l i c t h a t t h e y w i l l be v i r t u a l l y impe r v i o u s t o democratic p r e s s u r e f o r envi: ronment a1 reforms. To a c t i v a t e one of t h e s e p a n e l s , t h e complainant must be a n a t i o n a l government; no c i t i z e n , group o r even provinci a l government w i l l be recognised. In Canada we have p u b l i c t r i a l s & environmental h e a r i n g s but under NAFTA t h i s kind of a c c o u n t a b i l i t y is t o t a l l y excluded. A non-elected body w i l l determine our governments' r i g h t s t o s e t any kind of environmental, s a f e t y o r even h e a l t h standards.

QUESTION: What i s GOING, Going, going.. By PAULR

TAYLOR

ACTION CANADA NETWORK BC FEDERATION OF LABOUR COUNCIL OF CANADIANS

PRESENTS

ER THAN PHANTOM!

W O THOUSAND TERRlWING PAGES!!

At the VOGUE THEATRE 918 Granville Street

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 6th, 7:00 p.m. Featuring:

YOUR FOUR FAVOURITE CRITICS!! MAUDE BARLOW

Chairperson, Council of Canadians

GEORGE WATTS

Chairperson, Nuu-Chah-Nulth Tribal Council

DAVE BARRETT

NDP MP, Esquimalt Juan de Fuca

BOB WHITE

President, Canadian Labour Congress With SPECIAL entertainment

ow many people

The average cost in 1993 dollars for one helicopter during the 13-year helicopter program would pay to house 3,500 families in affordable housing for 30 years. The affordable housing crisis in British Columbia is getting worse. The Tory government will spend nearly 6 billion dollars on helicopters, but not a dime for new social or co-operative housing. B.C. has 12,000 people on social housing waiting lists. They are those who cannot afford adequate housing: tho elderly, families with children. ocople with disabilities.

helic

er?

3,500households!

The Deficit: We spent too much! The Senate 104 Members (except f o r e i g h t e x t r a brought i n t o pass t h e GST). Senators earn $64,00O/yr + a t a x - f r e e allowance of $10,100 + t r a v e l + expenses. The Courts Non-partisan appointments a r e t h e p o l i t i c a l l y c o r r e c t words, but many f e d e r a l & p r o v i n c i a l judges have s t r o n g t i e s t o t h e p a r t y appointing them. I f you got appointed t o up t o $140,000 a year... Export Development Corp. Canadat s export c r e d i t agency, responsible f o r providing export insurance, loans & guarantees t o enhance Canadian exports. Up t o 19)people - g e t annual r e t a i n e r s of $3600-$4500 and a ' p e r diemt (dai1y:iexpenses) of $310 $375. his board, with up t;o,l7 :members, VIA ail oversees t h e passenger railways (not much) and i t s extensive r e a l e s t a t e i n t e r e s t s (a whole l o t ) . The chairman g e t s $150,300 t o $185,700 a year; members g e t a monthly r e t a i n e r of $200-$300 + p e r diems $200-$300. I n t e r n a t i o n a l ~ e v e l o ~ m e nResearch t Centre o f f e r s a i d & advice on s c i e n t i f i c matters, a g r i c u l t u r e ; education & h e a l t h , t o devel; oping countries. 19 members g e t $200-$300 a day. I n t e r n a t i o n a l J o i n t Commission A CanadaU.S. organisation dealing with d i s p u t e s on water resources along shared boundaries. Three commissioners, a l l f u l l - t i m e , earn $88,000 - $103,600 a year. National Transportation Agency I t oversees f e d e r a l t r a n s p o r t a t i o n policy, recentl y allowing American A i r l i n e s t o a c q u i r e a major p o r t i o n of Canadian). 9 f u l l t i m e E 6 parttime members g e t $88,000-$103,60O/yr. Bank of Canada The board s e t s t h e bank r a t e & oversees monetary policy, I n t e r e s t r a t e s t h a t g u t t e d "freeH t r d d e expectation were kept high by t h e s e dozen people. This board has enormous p r e s t i g e . 12 d i r e c t o r s , 3-year renewable terms, annual r e t a i n e r s of $1500-$3000 and $200-$300 a day. Maybe t h e idea i s t o make your f r i e n d s make $$$. Canadian P o r t s Corp. I t oversees a l l federally-owned p o r t s , has a 3-person exec & up t o 14 d i r e c t o r s . Chairman: $38,000 and $200-$300 p e r diem; vice-chairman -$20,000 and a p e r diem. Members g e t $2600-$3500 a s a r e t a i n e r + $200-$300 a day.

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S e c u r i t y I n t e l l i g e n c e Review Committee I t . oversees CSIS (Canadian CIA) with members automatically onltiPnivy Council. Four of them g e t $350-$450 a day. ~ d v i s o Council r~ on t h e S t a t u s of Women Undertaking research & advising gov't on , itomen's i s s u e s p o l i c y , i t s 27 members g e t :; $160-$250 a day. Canadian National Railway The 12-member board i s a g r e a t p l a c e t o bk, i f you have : q any i n t e r e s t ( s ) i n f r e i g h t - h a u l i n g , r e a l 9 Q e s t a t e ( l i k e Marathon) & "other" business. 4 Annual r e t a i n e r s a r e only $5600-$7000 plus: a p e r diem of $450-$600 National C a p i t a l Commission The l a r g e s t landlord i n Ottawa-Hull, r e s p o n s i b l e f o r f e d e r a l parks, residences & land. Its 18 -. I members g e t $200-$300 a day.

&-/

*As a b r i e f i n t e r l u d e , few of t h e s e boardP o s i t i o n s represent t h e s o l e income of the., people having them. I t seems t o be a case of p u t t i n g t h e r i g h t people i n them who w i l l make s u r e t h e r i g h t people make a s r/ much money a s p o s s i b l e . In t h e last month of Mulroney, he made 655 appointments f o r f r i e n d s & Tories, with a few high-level L i b e r a l s & New Democrats g e t t i n g plums t o , tone t h e c r i e s of patronage & nephtism. Foreign diplomatic p o s t s have gone almost t o t a l l y t o Mulroney's f r i e n d s $160,000 a year p l u s accomodations & allowances. National Energy Board Supervising energy policy, t h e 9 permanent & 6 temporary mew b e r s (with 7-year terms) g e t $98-$115,000, Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. An engineer- . ing & research organisation, r e s p o n s i b l e f o r t h e CANDU ~ y s t e m s , i t s 11 d i r e c t o r s g e t $4600-$5500 annually + $385-$475/day.

I-1

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111

?Another b r i e f i n t e r l u d e -'%%en i t comes t o controversy among g o v t t patronage boards, t h e Immigr a t i o n & Refugee Board & i t s f o u r regiona l o f f i c e s a c r o s s Canadacanbe Exhibit A. I R B jobs a r e coveted f o r t h e i r good pay ($73,400-$86,400) G job s e c u r i t y ( t h e y t r e good behaviour appointments, so members can s t a y a s long a s t h e y behave themselves) I n addition, t h e r e a r e many (indeed, no l i m i t i s put on how many) part-time &

temporary members who g e t $355-$420/day. The f u l l - t i m e r s 65 refugee-determinat i o n members and 30 immigration-appeal members make l i f e & death d e c i s i o n s f o r people wanting t o f i n d a home i n Canada. ~ h u s ,t h e job c a r r i e s with it huge respo n s i b i l i t i e s & huge p u b l i c v i s i b i l i t y . And y e t , members appear o f t e n tp be chosen p r i m a r i l y on t h e b a s i s of p o l i t i c ... a l connections, which i n t u r n c o n t r i b u t e s t o t e n s i o n s between experienced members : 1 & u n s k i l l e d newcomers. "I got t i r e d & fed up with t r a i n i n g t h e wives, widows & g i r l f r i e n d s of p o l i t i c i a n s , s a i d a former mbbr

-I

Gov't commissions Natives, Housing, Children, Poverty, and s o on - a l l have 'budgets i n t h e m i l l i o n s t o do s t u d i e s and recommend p o l i c y which a r e n ' t , of course, binding on anyone. T h a t ' s p o l i t i i c s ; another brand i s t h e handing out, by t h e m i n i s t r y of western economic d i v e r s i f i c a t i o n , $10 m i l l i o n i n i n t e r e s t - f r e e

.a-$

National A r t s Centre Showcasing performing a r t s , t h e c e n t r e has 9 board members chosen from (you guessed i t ) t h e "population-at-large", p l u s 5 more from mayors, t h e d i r e c t o r of t h e Canada Council, t h e p r e s i d e n t of CBC & t h e Gov't Film Commissioner. They each g e t $225 a day. Canada Post Nine d i r e c t o r s on t h i s board g e t $5600-$7000 annually + $450-$600 f o r a day's work. (Please keep i n mind t h a t t h e s e Crown Corporations a l s o have s t a f f ; executives & management u s u a l l y s t a r t a t $100,000 a year with s a l a r i e s & perks going i n t o t h e s t r a t o s p h e r e depending on how s e n i o r t h e job/post i s ($1m i l l i o n ? 1 ) National Parole Board Full-time members (45) a c r o s s t h e country g e t $80T$94,500; part-time members ( i t was 77 but a r e c e n t change removed t h i s l i m i t ) g e t $400-$475 a day. They decide i f you walk o r s t a y . canadian G d i o & ~elecbmmunicationsCommi s s i o n (CRTC) Deciding on r a t e hikes f o r cable & phone systems, new s t a t i o n s , etc., t h e 13 f u l l - t i m e melnbers g e t $88-$103,60Q A book could be f i l l e d with s i m i l a r examples of t h i s p a r t o f "gov't spendingt1 but i t ' s t h e q u i e t e r p a r t . The louder pew s i o n scheme g e t s many, a s t h e more excess i v e examples come t o l i g h t . Some MPs g e t e l e c t e d a t an e a r l y age, s t a y i n o f f i c e f o r 10, maybe 15 years, then l o s e o r r e t i r e t m s t a r t another c a r e e r . They s t i l l g e t a t l e a s t $24,400 a year, being adjust e d upward f o r i n f l a t i o n & years, even i f t h e y were i n o f f i c e f o r 10 y e a r s & a r e working f u l l time. Some l o s e o r q u i t , but g e t another g o v l t job paying b e t t e r & keep g e t t i n g t h e pension a s well.

WHICH ONâ&#x201A;Ź OF YOU JUGGLSTED

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loans t o 25 Vancouver Stock Ex. companies. This was between 1988 & 1991; 25% have b i n c"wrote-off", meaning t h a t t h e companieslve defaulted o r welched o r whatever. Another 23% a r e n i c e l y c a l l e d "poor1I i n terms of expecting repaymeqt. What happens? Nothing, s i n c e i t ' s not p o l i t i c a l l y wise t o l e t us know t h a t t h e f e d s gave away a p i l e dfcaah t o t h e i r f r i e n d s & got burnt. The f l i p s i d e of t h i s w i l l have people being r i g h t e o u s l y pissed o f f , saying t h e s e people have earned t h e i r way, theibifilace, t h e i r p o s i t i o n . How righteous i s it when, e s p e c i a l l y with t h e s e patronage appointments, it i s not what you know but who... n o t your o b j e c t i v e record of accomplishments but whose s i d e you've been on. Okay. I t ' s n o t t h e p o i n t of t h i s a r t i c l e t o j u s t grumble about what "theyn have. ,:*It hefips t o getiia . c l e a r e r p i c t u r e of where a l l t h e money t h a t governments spend goes. Top a d m i n i s t r a t i v e p o s i t i o n s , be they. i n u n i v e r s i t i e s o r h o s p i t a l s o r even as consu l t a n t s t o same, s t a r t a t huge s a l a r i e s & j u s t g e t f a t t e r . Millions of d o l l a r s pour i n t o individuals! pockets, some being paid i n terms t h a t an ordinary person would've had t o wmrk 30-40 y e a r s t o g e t even a minimum pension. In terms of t a x e s t h a t pay

t h e s e individuals, each man, woman & c h i l d i n B.C. pays $3500 a year t o make up t h e $11 b i l l i o n a year f o r a l l t h o s e on g o v ' t payrolls 300,000 people i n BC. S a l a r i e s exceeding $100,000 a year a r e q u i t e common f o r public-sector c h i e f executives. Perhaps i t ' s i n d i f f e r e n c e t o t h e money being "public "...Barbara McDougall spends $23,000 of p u b l i c money t o g e t p i c t u r e s of herself taken & copied about a month befo r e she jumped s h i p Benoit Bouchard g e t s $80,000 a year pension p l u s $140,000 a yr. a s t h e new Ambassador t o France ...p eople a t t h e G-7 conference i n Tokyo had t o g e t by with a meal allowance of $175 a day.. Ken Dye, f i r e d a s head of BCt s Workers Compensation Board, g o t a severance pack many managers a t Shaughnessy of $240,000 Hospital got a minimum, of $30,000 severance, then began worla t h e next day a t h o s p i t a l s throughout t h e Lower Mainland, s t a r t i n g a t $90,000 a year.

...

t h e welfare r a t e , v i r t u a l l y a l l of it goes i n t o a l a n d l o r d ' s pocket a s t h e r e n t s j u s t 'happen' t o go up by t h e exact amount o f t h e increase ! Okay again. This could go on & on, with hundreds of thousands of d o l l a r s being paid t o a very small number of executives, with gov't pensions & perks & severance d e a l s & commissions & patronage appointments on boards arld s o on and s o on and... A l l of t h e above f a c t s & f i g u r e s have been published i n d a i l y newspapers. Who do people blame f o r "runawayu gov' t spending welfare r e c i p i e n t s , poor people needing h e a l t h care, immigrants t h i s i s human nature? blame anybody b u t yourselves?? "You people have t h e i d e a t h e people on welfare a r e t h e thieves. Well guess again:

...

Hotel owner Welfare r e c i p i e n t

$325

- $210

(max. s h e l t e r ) (support p o r t i o d

$535

Who i s r e a l l y on welfare? 1) r e c i p i e n t : 40% of cheque o r $2520/yr. 2) landlord : 60% of cheque o r $3900/yr. 3) p o l i t i c i a n : $1000 minimum pension f o r l i f e ($24,000+ a f t e r 8 y r s ) YOU TELL ME WHO IS ON WELFARE. How many p o l i t i c a l appointees i n Canada i n t h e l a s t 20 y e a r s a r e now r e c e i v i n g big wages, b e n e f i t s , pensions? How many p o l i t i c i a n s a r e now c o l l e c t i n g f e d e r a l , p r o v i n c i a l & municipal pensions - i n Canada? For one year a person on welfare g e t s $2520 t o purchase food, c l o t h i n g , educat i o n a l m a t e r i a l s , ; most a r e never aware of what r i g h t s t o what b e n e f i t s t h e y have.

Another t a c k t o t a k e with scamming t h e t h e i s s u e of fraud. What public t r e a s u r y immediately comes t o mind, a s hyped by t h e media & deplored by t h e wealthy (many of whom a r e c i t e d above) i s "welfareN fraud. L e t t s look a t landlord fraud f i r s t ; i n a meeting with Joan Smallwood, then-minister of s o c i a l s e r v i c e s , she s a i d h e r m i n i s t r y paid ouh $22 m i l l i o n f o r s e c u r i t y d e p o s i t s p e r year, with $14 m i l l i o n going f o r rooms & apartments i n t h e a r e a bounded by Broadway on t h e south & west oftBsundary i n Vancouver. V i r t u a l l y none of t h i s i s recov ered. Landlords use t h e s t e r e o t y p e of 'bum f o r r e c i p i e n t s G t h e law which r e q u i r e s t h e tenant t o prove t h a t a d e p o s i t has be= u n j u s t i f i a b l y withheld..and, again, t h e public f o o t s t h e b i l l f o r f a t t e n i n g a few greedy guts. When t h e r e i s an i n c r e a s e i n

PER YEAR: $2520 f o r minimum n e c e s s i t i e s $3900 f o r landlord $

64,000 10,100 86,400 140,000 160,000 39,715 60,000 100,000 45,000 $13,000,000 2,300,000

Senator's salary expenses Immigration & Refugee Board Judgest s a l a r i e s Diplomatst s a l a r i e s 37-year-old MPts pension Ontario MLAts pension Former MPts g o v t t s a l a r y Same former-MP1s pension 9 months' , o f r o y a l comm. ' Severance payouts f o r b t c r a t s

250,000 105,500 80,000 267,061 240,000 80,000 98,000 78,330 66,721 64,888 157,800 241,925 150,000 79,000 23,000 LOANS $ 2,300,000 1,030,000 475,000 302,825 262,220 500,000 740,529 10,000,000 .Millions i n

Deputy M i n i s t e r ' s payout II salary " Top 80 b l c r a t s i n Vah s t a r t sL UBC p r e s i d e n t s a l a r y WCB boss f i r e d ; t h i s i s payout each f o r 45 members ( s a l a r y ) each f o r 9 members ( s a l a r y ) Joe C l a r k ' s pension Don Mazankowski's pension Otto J e l i n e k l s pension Van. F i r e Chief ( s a l a r y ) BC Rail boss (salary) 23 s t a f f e r s a t UBC 900 u n i v e r s i t y s t a f f e r s McDougallls photos No payback - Merfin Products Hagensborg Farms Default Write-off Altero Inc. No payback - P a c i f i c Ltd. No payback - Microstat Corp. Western Canada Water Default Default General Sea Harvest Use-unsecured s t u d e n t loans unpaidldefaulted

.'$2520 p e r year on welfare & "1 have t o pay back i f I make t o o much!ll Government Welfare Rules I

The Gov't always makes t h e r u l e s . The r u l e s a r e s u b j e c t t o change withanytime. out n o t i f i c a t i o n 3. No welfare r e c i p i e n t must know a l l o r any of t h e r u l e s . 4. I f t h e gov't s u s p e c t s t h e welfare r e c i p i e n t knows any r u l e s , it must immedi a t e l y change some o r a l l of them.

1. 2.

5. 6. 7.

The Government i s never wrong. I f t h e gov't i s wrong it i s because of something t h e r e c i p i e n t did o r s a i d . I f t h e g o v ' t i s wrong t h e welfare reci p i e n t must apologize immediately f o r

causing t h e misunderstanding. 8. P o l i t i c i a n s can change t h e i r minds a t any given time. 9. Welfare r e c i p i e n t s must never speak t h e i r minds o r defend themselves without express w r i t t e n consent from t h e g o v l t 10. P o l i t i c i a n s have every r i g h t t o be ang r y o r upset at any time. 11. The welfare r e c i p i e n t must remain calm a t a l l times, unless t h e gov't allows them t o be angry o r upset. 12. The welfare r e c i p i e n t i s not allowed an education, upgrading o r r e t r a i n i n g of any type. They a r e allowed t o g e t off welfare f o r t h e 6 months of a t r a i n i n g program, then back on welfare due t o lack of decent jobs anywhere, which i s why they werelare on welfare i n t h e f i r s t place. 13. The welfare r e c i p i e n t must pay back any e x t r a money earned o r go t o j a i l f o r fraud. 14. The welfare r e c i p i e n t must not have enough money o r food t o make it t o h i s next welfare cheque. 15. Any attempts t o document o r even resist t h e s e r u l e s could r e s u l t i n bodil y harm'or jail f o r t h e welfare r e c i p i e n t . 16. The p o l i t i c i a n i s not t o be bothered before 9am o r a f t e r 4pm, o r on weekends o r ,holidays. 17. The welfare r e c i p i e n t is t o r e f r a i n from r e q u i r i n g a s s i s t a n c e before 9am, a f t e r 4pm, o r on weekends o r holidays. (With thanks t o t h e anonymous w r i t e r , compiler & enraged r e c i p i e n t 1 ) PAULR TAYLOR

Have we got a deal for& A l l t h e smart developers

t h e y do.

a r e doing it. They know p e o p l e a r e g e t t i n g f e d up w i t h t h e m e megaprojects b e i n g rammed i n t o t h e i r neighborhoods, s o now t h t h e y make a b i g show o f p u b l i c "consultation."

One o f t h e group of young from Ray-Cam who w e n t t o one of t h e meetings s a i d they f e l t s h u t o u t and I n t i m i d a t e d from speaking against t h e project.

The method i s simple: bombard t h e community w i t h a n e n d l e s s s e r i e s of p u b l i c meetings u n t i l the public is e x h a u s t e d and burned o u t , p i c k o u t t h e o p i n i o n s you l i k e , t h e n do what you i n t e n d e d t o do anyway.

The government's t a c t i c s a r e d i v i s i v e i n t h e community, p i t t i n g one group a g a i n s t another, No wonder people a r e c y n i c a l and s t a r t i n g t o s a y , Why b o t h e r e x p r e s s i n g my o p i n i o n ? They had i t a l l planned b e f o r e t h e y came t o u s , and t h e y a r e going t o do what t h e y want anyway.

T h a t ' s t h e way Concorde P a c i f i c and Marathon R e a l t y a r e building t h e i r Executive C i t i e s on ~ a l s eCreek and Coal Harbour. T h a t ' s how t h e P o r t of Vancouver i s doing i t s new t o u r i s t dock r i g h t n e x t t o Crab Park. And now w e have t h e s p e c t a c l e of a n o t h e r b i g d e v e l o p e r , t h e Provi'ncial Government, p u l l i n g t h e same t a c t i c s i n L t s p r o j e c t t o redevelop t h e corner a c r o s s from Carnegie. The main r e s i d e n t s ' groups of t h e community and t h e groups t h a t work w i t h - s t r e e t k i d s have made i't c l e a r t h a t IJIai'n and H a s t h g s i s n o t a good c o r n e r t o house y o u t h who a r e a t r i s k from t h e s t r e e t . There a r e j u s t t o o many t e m p t a t i o n s . But employees o f t h e P r o y i n c i a l Government have been c i r c u l a t i n g through t h e neighbourhood, promot2ng t h e p r o j e c t , h o l d i n g dozens o f meetings w i t h i n d b i d u a l s and groups. When t h e y d o n ' t g e t the o p i n i o n s t h e y want, t h e y h o l d more m e e t i n g s u n t i l

A t t h e l a s t meeting o f t h e Downtown E A s t s i d e / S t r a t h c o n a C o a l i t i o n , t h e government employees a d m i t t e d t h e y had done a poor job i n c o n s u l t a t i o n , and promised t o do b e t t e r n e x t time. But t h e y d i d n ' t a g r e e t o change any p a r t o f t h e p r o j e c t . In f a c t , a f t e r a l l t h e s e meetings n o t h i n g h a s changed.

As one observer said, "It's always easier t o ask for forgiveness than for permission."

Many p a r t s o f t h e p r o j e c t a r e worthwhile - t h e housing f o r a d u l t s , t h e jobs f o r young p e o p l e , t h e community bank- t h a t w i l l o f f e r l o a n s and h e l p b.u2ld t h e economy of t h e neighbourliood. But i f t h e government i n s i s t s i t knows b.est and c o n t i n u e s rammbg t h i s throughw i t h o u t c l e a r support from the. community, t h e n i't w i l l j u s t 1 l e a v e a bad f e e l i n g , p l u s t h e s o c i a l problems c r e q t e d when q group of vulnerable young p e o p l e s t a r t l i v i n g and hanging o u t a t t h e c o r n e r of Main qnd Hasti'ngs.

N ~ t l e y1hro11gl1I:rLd;ry, 9am 5p1n. CI.INI(: ).loll, Wcd, I:ridny, 5 :30-7 :301~11 Y 0~l'l.Il NliliDI.I! liXCllAN(;li - 22 1 Uo i # ; cueryday, 9am-5pm. AC'FIVI'l'lliS Nhedle I:.xckot~gcVnll orb the s t r e e t e v e s h g s , htor~-Sot Y N.A. meets every blo~ltlily11ight a t 223 Waiu S t .

IIOWN'I'OWN A S SI

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Out-Lo-Lunch Butich rnccls tli~ilya t 59 I'owell, 10am 1993 DONATIONS ' S t u a r t M.-$SO K e t t l e F.S,-$16 Bert T.-$10 Etienne S.-$50 L i s a E .-$lo Matt -$20 Keith C.-$20 Abby K.-$10 . 1 .

. -

. .

2:W.

Joy T . -$20 C o l l e e n E. -$20

Eleanor K*-$25 Adbusters -950 Wayne H.-$2.50 Legal Aid -$50 Mary C.-$25 Paula 8.-$20 Steve T.-$15 E r i c E.-$10 Anonymous -$70

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The Downtown Eastalde Residents' Assoclat lon can h e l p you witlr: . h any weltare problem

* 4 * * fi *

Informatlon on l e g a l rlglrts diepqtea witlr landlords uneafe l l v l n g c o ~ r d l t l o n s lncome t a x U I C problems f lnd lng Irous lng openltrg a bank account

Come i n t o the DEW o f f l c e a t 9 East llastlngs S t o r phone u s a t 662-0931.

DERA HAS BEEN SERVING THE DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE FOR 20 YEARS.