Contents
- She's one for the books
- Here's To Mary Ann
- DIRECTOR'S REPORT: SIGNING OFF..
- TO MICHAEL CLAGUE: In Recognition
- Michael Clague, Director: 12/99-4/05
- DISCOVERlNG CARNEGIE
- A proud 92-year-old lady
- Mah
- What will the Liberals do to welfare...?
- MUSIC FROGRAM NOTES
- Gerald...your candle has lit many
- Walking Eagle - Gordon Campbell
- Good show, Gram!
- Victory for the World Peace Forum!
- Time For Council to Hit the Road?
- To the Assembly of First Nations,
- How the Truth Remains Buried
- Meta Mystic
- Maybe : Peutétre
- I know of someone
- War on people, not on drugs
- You Be the Judge
- Ruminations on the Dragon
- THE GUYS’ RULES
She's one for the books
Librarians from all over B.C. have discovered what Carnegie folks’ve known all along - there's nobody like Mary Ann Cantillon.
Mary Ann has been Carnegie's librarian for the past four years. She's retiring on April 29, which is going to be a big loss for us. So it's especially appropriate that the province's librarians should recognize her
contributions by giving her their lifetime achievement award.
She was nominated for the award by a whole range of people whose lives she has enriched - co-workers, library users, fellow community activists, friends and just plain readers. Over the years, Carnegie has been blessed with the solid service and dedication of numerous librarians. That's what makes our library the centre of so much hope and activity in the community. But it's fair to say that none has been so inspiring and resourceful as Mary Ann.
Since her arrival at Carnegie, Mary Ann has helped transform our traditional notion of libraries and librarians - that the Carnegie library is more than just a collection of books in one corner of the building, and that the Carnegie librarian is more than just the keeper of the collection. When she hears of anyone's interest in a topic, she invariably finds a way to connect it to books, even if the person is not an avid reader. She goes the extra mile in researching questions for patrons, and she is extremely patient in one-to-one service, making every patron feel like their issue is significant. Whatever the program; the Learning Centre to the theatre and poetry workshop and the community play; she finds a tie-in to a book
and the library, and provide materials to enhance the experiences of the patrons.
Mary Ann has taken books literally out into the community with reading clubs and literacy programs at places like Oppenheimer Park, the WISH street-workers' drop-in and the Downtown Eastside Women's Centre. Forinstance, the reading club at the Women's Centre for Maggie De Vries' book Missing Sarah, helped so many women deal with their painful experiences and feelings. She is also one of the organizers, along with women throughout the community, in the annual Missing Women's march through the Downtown Eastside.
And her book giveaways on the corner of Main and Hastings - ground zero of the street scene - are special moments for the street people thronging the
tables in search of that special novel or history book.
Day and night, Mary Ann keeps going. When most of us flop down exhausted after a day in the trenches at Carnegie, Mary Ann is still at it attending evening meetings, staffing the book table at community events, running off to help a friend in need, spreading Irish cheer and humour wherever she goes. That's not going to stop when she retires. We'll still be seeing a lot of her around the community. What a marvel of energy and commitment.
She came to library work in mid-life, after raising her family. As a homemaker, she kept a poster on her front door: "I want to go out and save the world, but I can't find a babysitter." In her professional groups, she has been especially active in efforts to assist First Nations people in getting library training.
Mary Ann will say that she is just continuing in the tradition of Carnegie librarians, that she is building on the initiatives that they created. That's true. But she has shown us possibilities that we didn't know existed in the world of books and the world of libra
ies. She is a special librarian and a special person.
Bob Sarti
Here's To Mary AnnHere's To Mary Ann, Our Librarian, Who Is Retiring
Mary Ann Cantillon has brought enormous energy, wide experience, and community vision to the Carnegie Library. She respects the people who live in the Downtown Eastside, and understands the hardships of poverty. She knows what it means to be a human being, and what a human being is up against. She sees feelingly, and recognizes the strengths of the people who live here. She knows that the library has resources that can support us, and she knows how to bring those resources to our attention.
Mary Ann has attended many of the various committee meetings at Carnegie, and has brought relevant information and her expertise in organizing with her. She tells people about books that would be of use to them, and she gets those books. At the same time, she is always open to suggestions for books from Carnegie members. She brought books on homelessness to the Carnegie forum on that subject. She brought books on quilting to the quilting group. She has a reading group. She encourages Carnegie members in their writing. She writes articles on books for the Carnegie Newsletter. She attends day and night meetings in the community, always ready to help, always ready to show people how the library can help them. She gets tickets so Carnegie members can hear other writers read their work. She brings writers to the Carnegie Centre.She helped make it possible for Carnegie writers to read at the International Writers' Festival in
Mary Ann seems to be everywhere. Her energy and dedication are an inspiration to the rest of us. She cares about people, and about books, and her caring is turned into action that brings hope. She has a strong sense of justice, and her straightforward, honest way of relating to others is appreciated in this community. She has been building, with the help of a dedicated staff, a community library that’s a model for other libraries in
By Sandy Cameron
PS: Mary Ann has been honoured by the British Columbia Library Association’s Lifetime Achievement in Library Service Award. It also includes an honourary lifetime membership in the Association. Mary Ann exclaimed “Why me?” upon learning of this recognition; members of Carnegie and staff in our Reading Room were aghast at this modesty, with equally avuncular exclamations of “Oh come on! Give me/us an hour/day/week to list just what I/we know here!” Congratulations again and again.
DIRECTOR'S REPORT: SIGNING OFF..Carnegie Community Centre
DIRECTOR'S REPORT - APRIL 2005
SIGNING OFF..
Few people are as privileged as I have been these past 5 plus years. To find in one's work an almost perfect match of interests and passions with people who have become colleagues and friends, whether staff, board or volunteer. This has been my experience at Carnegie.
We have shared tears of sadness and of joy. We’ve railed against injustice. We have celebrated. We’ve laughed. We’ve created. We have found new allies and supporters within the community and without. We’re under no illusion about new and old challenges - the struggle for this community of predominately low income people to be free to dream your own futures, and to have the strength to act on them in solidarity and in partnership with everyone who lives and works here, and who cares.
Carnegie is special because many low income people's lives are controlled by others, by systems that too often inherently create dependence, not independence or interdependence. But not here. People come to this place because they choose to. It is a liberating place.
Thank you for this opportunity to be part of Carnegie Centre, and part of this community. Thanks particularly to Board and staff (especially Dan Tetrault) for your support, your advice, and yes, even for your candor when I strayed or screwed up.
With every good wish - to Ethel, with whom I have enjoyed working so much during this transition period - to every member of the Carnegie community.
_Michael Clague
TO MICHAEL CLAGUE: In RecognitionTO MICHAEL CLAGUE: IN RECOGNITION
(with acknowledgments to a very old friend
of Michael's, Elizabeth Barrett Browning)
MICHAEL, HOW DO WE LOVE THEE,
LET US COUNT THE WAYS -
-We love thee for the softness of your manner and the way in which you engage all of the people at Carnegie, no matter what the problem or how difficult the situation;
-We love thee because you are always available and accessible, no matter what the hour, to deal with issues and work with everyone to resolve them;
-We love you for your basic humanity, your incredible spirit and your dedication to everything that is embodied in the community of the Downtown East Side;
-We love thee for the many transformations that have taken place at Carnegie during your term as director, including the excellent and exceptional performance of staff under your direction...you have made them come to life as never before;
-We love thee for the support you have provided to the Carnegie Association Board, in all of its dimensions and committees; your skills and considered advice have made us all better for the relationship;
-We love thee for all of the service and program reviews which we undertook with your encouragement and guidance; they have all made Carnegie a better place for our patrons and volunteers and everyone else that uses it;
-We love thee for the Community Arts Initiative in all of its dimensions; this will be part of your legacy as it reaches out to engage and define the DTES with our own priorities and in our own terms;
-We love thee for your ability to take our community's issues to City Hall, to the Vancouver Agreement and other levels of government, and put our community's face on your successful interventions;
-We love thee for your fund-raising activities for our community and, through them, building bridges across impossible chasms which, before you, we did not think were crossable;
-We love thee for your spirited defence of all the things and ideas that we cherish and deem important, never mind at what personal cost and struggle to you; and
-We love thee for the personal support that you have provided to everyone engaged in this community and at Carnegie.
For me, and I am sure many others, we love thee as a colleague, a mentor, an advisor, a supporter and an energizer when our spirits flag...and as a personal friend whose companionship, support and professionalism have taken us and the community through many darks parts of our relationship together.
It is not enough to say you will be missed; it is sufficient to say how much we will continue to love thee. As you have given your soul to the spirit of this community, we give back the spirit of all of our souls in all of your future endeavors.
Michael, you have made a difference; That is a legacy that you should be very proud of.
By PETER FAIRCHILD
Michael Clague, Director: 12/99-4/05MICHAEL CLAGUE, DIRECTOR
December, 1999 - April, 2005
Appointment
The Carnegie Centre has been blessed with a long succession of directors that came to us at the right time with the right skills and the personal abilities to understand the Centre, the clients that use it, the Board of Directors that provides advice to the Director and the community (the DTES) that it serves.
Michael Clague arrived at Carnegie after an exhaustive search, with advertisements in local and national newspapers across the country...some 150 people applying for the position... and it turned out that he was only about 30 blocks away. He went through the initial screening process and was accepted as a potential candidate; then he went through the interview process with Margaret representing the Association's interests...and we all know how tough she can be.
"I think we've got a live one" was how she put it, as many people recall.
And Michael was selected and virtually 'dumped' into the position, because there had only been an 'acting' director, Dan Tetrault, who held everything together for many, many months. The arrival of Michael Clague was both a relief to Dan, the Board, the City and the convergence of opportunity and personality. And, prophetically, he turned out to be a 'real' live one.
The 'Calming'
If Michael managed one thing in the first months of his arrival, it was a 'calming' of the atmosphere with- in Carnegie… though, outside of it would take several more years. His gentle personality, perception and human approach to everyone just settled things down, no matter what the problem and no matter how difficult the situation. This gave everyone.. staff, board, patrons, and others... time to rethink their issues and concerns and redefine them in the best interests that Michael is so good at putting on the table and enabling people to see. This 'calming' was Michael's first and continuing legacy. There is probably something about that plaid shirt keeps people from going over the edge...or maybe it is the bicycle tossed casually over his shoulder when he enters the building!
Building the 'Team'
Another important facet of Michael's tenure was the success of his team-building efforts within the building. A very eclectic assortment of staff and volunteers - all good folks and dedicated to their professionalism and their tasks - but Michael infused them with a different kind of spirit, taking natural leadership while giving everyone room to contribute and excel, each in his or her way. Remembering back to that early time, when the community was going through some of its darkest hours, and just prior to the launch of the Vancouver Agreement, Carnegie was virtually all we had and the pressures on it were extreme to say the least! People were burning out under the stress of it all but never Michael, despite the never-ending demands.
Working With the Board
The Association's primary mandate is to 'provide advice to the Director' through the Board and its various committees. With Michael's able direction, always softly put, and the efforts of his staff team, the Board achieved many significant milestones including a constitutional by-law review, the development of a Mission Statement, an admissions policy review process, a revamping of the Volunteer Program, a program review and restructuring of financial accounting procedures, among many other initiatives. Some of these were not without controversy and most of them involved significant consultation processes, but all were achieved successfully and approved by the Board and the members of the Association. Michael's monthly 'reports' to the Board...about 65 of them in all...are a history of the many challenges facing the community as well as many of our combined achievements.
Working with the Community
It is virtually impossible to look back over the past five years and not see Michael's hand in the development of so many community-based initiatives that are now helping to support community residents in many different dimensions. The Health Contact Centre, the Street Program, increased Oppenheimer programming, the safe injection site, various dimensions of the Vancouver Agreement, the mosaic markers program (now launched as CETA, a social enterprise with a great future), the Board's successful interventions with economic revitalization strategies, housing policy, the new City SRA bylaw...tons of energy devoted by staff, volunteers, the Board and others to get this far in so short a time but always Michael behind the scenes or making the inevitable pitches to City Hall and others for the funding, the support and the commitments necessary to bring about essential changes.
One 'Tough' Challenge
While it might have been easy to 'calm' Carnegie, calming the street in front of Carnegie was probably one of the most difficult issues that staff and the Board faced together during Michael's tenure as director. This involved a major rethinking of Carnegie's relationship with the Vancouver Police Department and some really difficult decisions affecting community residents who just happened to be afflicted with drug dependencies of one form or another. Probably no other issue took so much time and energy to address than this one over the past five years and, while 'success' is still to be measured, what was achieved was safe entry into the building for our patrons, a new patio and smoking area, continuing discussions with the VPD across a broad spectrum of community issues (through the Tuesday Group hosted at Carnegie as well as the work of the Community Relations Committee) and a better appreciation on the part of government agencies, including the VPD, about Carnegie's role as the 'living room' of the DTES.
Working with the Community's Artistic Talents
Michael's continuing legacy to the Downtown Eastside is his commitment to developing community arts as the means through which residents can express themselves and their concerns, contribute to revitalizing the DTES on their own terms and build personal/community capacity. This is a commitment that Michael is prepared to continue as a volunteer co-ordinator and fundraiser following his retirement as director.
By PETER FAIRCHILD
DISCOVERlNG CARNEGIEDISCOVERlNG CARNEGIE
When my friend Verna and I were in our late fifties, ten or so years ago, we found it very difficult to pay our bills, buy the necessary household items, and eat properly. I complained about being too old for the job market, but being forced by welfare to job hunt. I had to turn in weekly reports of the places I went for interviews, and the number of resumes I dropped off daily before I could collect welfare. Part of my Canada Pension was taken from me by welfare to help cover the cost of supporting me.
Verna never worried about being unemployed. She was too handicapped with aches and pains so she received a handicap pension. I typed Vema's poems which she would take to poetry readings. She spent much of her time searching out literary venues in the Lower Mainland where she could read her poems. After a time she got into a routine of going into the Downtown Eastside to read her poetry. But first she would deliver children's items to day-care centres, as well as women's things to women's centres. And she would visit the Salvation Army, the
On a day that was to change my life I got a call from Verna. She was going into the Downtown Eastside and wanted help carrying several bags of items. A bag of poetry she was taking to Carnegie for a Literary Evening and several bags of items she wanted to drop off at a day care centre, at a place for troubled women, and a Women's Centre.. "You hungry?" she asked. "The women's centre has a good free lunch."
After we had lunch, I was taken on a walkabout where I was introduced to the places she frequented, Carnegie in particular. We stayed in Carnegie until that evening. She read several of her poems and was warn1ly applauded. Verna made a habit ofmviting me to keep her company as she went on her errands around (he Downtown Eastside. "Are you hungry?" she would ask, and we usually ate a filling meal, if not a great one. She liked variety so we would get into a line-up at a church, or a soup kitchen. or the Salvation Army.
After a time I didn't want to stand in any more line-ups. I would accompany her as far as
I enjoy volunteering at Carnegie and am glad to have something to do in my senior years. .
By DORA SANDERS
A proud 92-year-old ladyThe. petite, well-poised and proud 92-year-old lady,
who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock
with her hair fashionably coifed and makeup perfectly applied (even though she is legally blind) moved to a nursing home today. Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her room was ready. As she maneuvered her walker to the elevator, I provided a visual description of her tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on her window.
“I love it,” she stated, with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy. “Mrs. Jones, you haven't seen the room; just wait.” “That doesn't have anything to do with it,” she replied. “Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is arranged... it's how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it. It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I'll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I've stored away just for this time in my life. Old age is like a bank account: you withdraw from what you've put in. So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the Bank Account of Memories. Thank you for your part in filling my Memory bank. I am still depositing. Remember the five simple rules to be happy:”
1. Free your heart from hatred.
2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.
Submitted by Colleen
MahMah
It struck me today that unconditional love
is something we never had
there were always conditions..
the blackmail of approval
never satisfied we turned myself inside out and still
you keep pushin’ me to be someone I’m not.
from you I expected unconditional love,
just like me daughter does from me
but there was never just flatout unconditional
it was always metered out
for being top of the class
the best ballplayer altho you never once came
a doctor to be, a lawyer, something so successful
you could ram it down the neighbour’s throat
‘see what my little bastard amounted to’
I was gonna justify your mess – I was the mess..
the walking embarrassment
with suspect brown eyes, brown skin
the whispers on the wind wondered and wonder
who is this bastard out of
All my life I begged her: Who is my father?
She’d just sigh and say the same thing every time
‘I’ll tell you when you’re old enough to understand’
I no longer needed to ask
To this day my father doesn’t know I exist.
R.Loewen
What will the Liberals do to welfare...?What will the Liberals do to welfare if they get in power again after the next provincial election?
We could ask them but last time they lied. They said they planned no changes to welfare. Sometimes it's useful to see what the corporate think tanks want if you're trying to figure out what right wing governments are going to do next.
In 2002 the Fraser Institute, a corporate think tank whose members and funders are big corporations, put out a report on welfare called "Welfare Reform in BC: a report card." Welfare changes are important to big business because they influence how desperate people are to take the crummiest, lowest wage, short term jobs. In this report the Fraser Institute grades the BC government on 8 changes to welfare that they claim have worked in the
They love the 2 year time limit because they say it, "ends the entitlement to welfare." If the Liberals are re-elected, look for an end to some of the exemptions that save people from being cut off welfare
after they've been on for 2 years. The Fraser Institute likes another tactic of the BC Liberals. They call it diversion. Diversion means preventing people who apply for welfare from getting on. The three week wait for assistance after applying for welfare and the so-called 2 year independence test which forces applicants to prove that they have worked for 2 years and earned over $7000 a year are diversion strategies. "Right," said Chryse Howes, a volunteer in the Learning Centre when I told her about "diversion,"
"You're diverted to homelessness, despair and suicide."
The new Ministry plan to have all welfare applicants do their orientation on the web as another of these diversion tactics. If people can't find a computer, don't know how to use it, get intimidated by the hoops and hurdles in the Ministry's orientation site, feel so disrespected that they leave in disgust, or can't read, they may give up on ever getting welfare. Watch for more ways to keep people from getting on welfare if the Liberals get in.
The Fraser Institute also wants the welfare system to force people who get welfare to work for their cheque. They want workfare. Look for this if the Liberals get in. The Institute is also big on getting people into the worst, lowest paying jobs quickly. This is better, they say, than wasting time giving people the training they need to get decent jobs. They say training is only good for people who lack very basic work skills. The Fraser Institute also wants the government to privatize the delivery of the Ministry's core services. They love the Ministry's Job Wave program where employable welfare recipients are forced to accept jobs with
There's one recommendation in the Fraser Institute report that Carnegie Newsletter readers might agree with: Restore the welfare earnings exemption. We want it because it decriminalizes people on welfare who make a little money, and helps us get what we need. The Fraser Institute likes it because it allows people to survive on low wages paid by employers. Maybe this would be a winnable issue we could work on after the election, no matter who wins.
Although it isn't mentioned in the Fraser Institute report, I think it's possible, if the Gordon Campbell bunch win the next election, that the government could try to cut so-called employable people without kids totally off welfare as they do in the States. Then they could give contracts to charities to provide shelters, and people would have to rely on food banks
for food. I hope I'm wrong about this.
By Jean Swanson
MUSIC FROGRAM NOTESMUSIC FROGRAM NOTES
April, ah April; Month of fools, and all things related to spring. Maybe mother nature just needs a song or two to put her in a better mood. Which brings me to the (dreaded) acoustic nights at the Tuesday Night Cabaret. All you musicians out there who long for the days and nights of violins, tambourines, acoustic guitars, and other unplugged thingys that always seems to get impromptu sing alongs happenin' here, there and everywhere. A Carnegie loaner guitar might be found and ya can do 'yer own thing, live on stage! without the threat of being drowned out by those pesky electric guitar players,
That's right, Acoustic nights are now a regular feature; The first, or last Tuesday of each month. (Depending on what date that Tuesday works out to...) Who invented those calendars anyway? I bet it was some Roman dude who wanted to impress his boss.
I digress......
I think I'm digressing again.....
Oh yeah, the music program. Mid-month is «Feature Night", and April’s feature is Rick Lavallie. (I hope I spelled yer name correctly.) So tell everyone to show up and get an ear full of one of Carnegie’s best undiscovered musicians and entertainers. Doors open at 6:30; Rick’s set begins at 8:00 sharp.
May month’s feature is still tentative, so when we get a definite yea or nay, I'll try to get the right information into the newsletter BEFORE the night. On that subject, the summer’s calendar has a few open spaces for feature acts. If you'd like to appear on the world renowned Carnegie stage as a feature act, contact me, Mark Oakley, and book a date!
In the past week I've had yet another person approach me about a second CD project. So, with the interest and the availability of talent I think the only obstacles are the ones we'll put in front of ourselves. If you’re interested in participating in such a project, drop into the theatre Tuesday or Wednesday of any week and let’s talk about it.The composers will have final say on the finished product. (No producers will be deciding what is the domain of the composer.)
If you have any suggestions please let me know. Constructive criticism is just that: CONSTRUCTIVE..
Till next time
M.
Gerald...your candle has lit manyIn regards to the article "Transitions" by Gerald Wells in the April 1st edition of the Newsletter... Gerald took me back a long way in my life, especially the White Lunch and initial experiences on the way to finding Carnegie. The only thing that I take exception to is the last paragraph in which Gerald describes himself as 'a grumpy old man'. In all my years at Carnegie, I have rarely met someone so cheerful as he churns out the coffee, the breakfasts and the sandwiches for people much grumpier than he pretends to be. Good on you, Gerald...your candle has lit many more than you know.
Walking Eagle - Gordon Campbell[After due consideration. the following gem says what it’d take me a page to imply… PRT]
Walking Eagle
Premier Gordon Campbell was invited to address a major gathering of the Indian Nation last weekend in Ahousaht. The Premier spoke for almost an hour on his plans for increasing every First Nation's present standard of living. He referred to his career as Mayor of Vancouver, how he had signed, - "YES" - for every Indian issue that came to his desk for approval. At the conclusion of his speech, the Tribe presented the Premier with a plaque inscribed with his new Indian name - Walking Eagle. The proud
A news reporter later inquired to the group of chiefs of how they came to select the new name given to
Good show, Gram!
She’s Carnegie’s gracious host at so many theatre extravaganzas, and now she has just been named a finalist in the Lighthouse Awards Program for seniors in the category of outstanding philanthropy (that’s generous donations).
That’s Gram, an active senior, now in her 80’s, who has two great loves: the theatre, and her community, the Downtown Eastside.
Dozens of Carnegie people who wouldn’t ordinarily be able to afford to go the theatre have benefited by Gram’s philanthropy. She organizes those trips at her own expense for us to see shows at venues like the
Gram’s interest in theatre started early. As a child she lived in
And as for the Downtown Eastside, Gram used to come to the old Carnegie Library as a child, so she has lots of fond memories of the place.
A real Carnegie original – that’s our Gram!
Chili Bob
Victory for the World Peace Forum!Victory for the World Peace Forum!
On Thursday, March 31st, Vancouver City Council unanimously proclaimed support for the World Peace Forum 2006
A. That Council approve a one time grant of funding of $150,000 to the World Peace Forum, source of funding to be the 2005 Contingency Reserve. The grant funding to be released once other funding identified in their budget is in place, and in a phased manner as set out in B, C and D below.
B. That Council approve $50,000 to be available April 1st, 2005 to cover specific contract costs of the World Peace Forum 2006, in particular venue rental costs. It is understood that this will release $350,000 worth of funding from the Simons Foundation.
C. That the next $50,000 be released on Council approval of a detailed budget, fundraising plan and program plan, and on the condition that an additional $200,000 worth of funding is secured.
D. That the final $50,000 be released on Council approval on the condition that an additional $500,000 worth of funding is secured.
E. That Council host a general assembly of the International Association of Peace Messenger Cities, and host a joint meeting of representatives from the International Peace Messenger Cities, Mayors for Peace and Cities for Peace in association with the World Urban Forum and the World Peace Forum at a cost not to exceed $50,000 subject to further Council approval as part of the 2006 budget considerations.
F. That Council instruct staff to work with the Mayor's office and report back on a comprehensive plan and budget needs in hosting the general assembly and joint meeting of the
G. That Council request the City's Banner Committee consider themes related to the World Urban Forum and Peace and Justice and report back to Council with recommendations on appropriate themes for City banners in 2006.
City Council this week also passed a resolution that would address racial discrimination within the city. As the mover of this motion, I am very pleased to see it passed.
”Therefore be it resolved that City Council instruct all departments of the City to make plans to do at least one initiative each to fight discrimination and racism and celebrate diversity, which they can report back on March 21st, 2006, to show their commitment to fighting racism in the city.”
From Councillor Ellen Woodsworth
Time For Council to Hit the Road?TIME FOR COUNCIL TO HIT THE ROAD?
Ask any Vancouverite to define the Downtown Eastside in one word, and somewhere in the top 5 will likely be homelessness.
At a special meeting in early May, City Council will consider the Homelessness Action Plan which was drafted last November. Once again, Downtown Eastside residents (or even the homeless without a residence) will have to find a way up to City Hall, get up at a microphone in a totally foreign environment and try to speak coherently in the short time allotted them about an issue that is vital to the health of our community and to the lives of community members.
Why hasn't Council made the effort to convene this hearing down here to attract more local interest and participation? Is it because the fewer the speakers that sign up the sooner the meeting ends?
Last year, the Parks Board held one of its regular meetings at Strathcona Community Centre and at other locations throughout the city as well. It's well past time City Council chose to do something similar as a gesture to citizens to indicate they are interested in local community issues and that they do want to hear from people where they live about issues that have a special meaning to them.
While the Carnegie Centre might well be too small for a public event of this kind, the Chinese Cultural Centre, the Japanese Hall or the hall in the SUCCESS building would make a good fit.
Municipal governments generally have a lesser role to play in terms of implementing comprehensive housing policies but could be extremely effective in raising the public profile over housing and homelessness issues, especially now with a provincial election barely a month away and another federal election perhaps not far behind it. (Neither government has so far advanced any kind of consistent and permanent housing policy).
As November draws closer, when councillors start beating the bushes all over again to secure votes, wouldn't it be refreshing to see them humble themselves somewhat by showing up down here and, in doing so, demonstrate that they think we matter for more than an X on a ballot. .
City Council held its first meeting after the great fire in the 1880's in a tent in Gastown. Is homelessness enough of a city crisis to warrant a return engagement?
By Ian MacRae
To the Assembly of First Nations,To the Assembly of First Nations,
I am registering a strong complaint with your executive re: Rev.Kevin Annett being turned back in
This man has put his life on the line for first nations and has been responsible for getting attention to the plight of your people. I know him and have found him to be as straight as an arrow. Apparently he was denied permission to walk by your committee. If genocide is not connected to current levels of suicide amongst your children then what is?
I know that Kevin is strong; he has had to endure
much. I also know that some native people want to shut him up. I can only assume that the same forces are at work here.
My husband and I went on the walk the first year.
Being from
Sheila Simpson, Pipe Carrier
6th Year Sundancer
How the Truth Remains BuriedIt Happens This Quickly - How the Truth Remains Buried
Several months ago, Vincent Watts invited me to join his Youth Suicide Prevention Walk from Vancouver Island to
Vincent was always very vocal about his desire to have me walk with his group and speak about the evidence of crimes and genocide in residential schools, and how those crimes created the trauma that is still killing native people. In front of group members on March 28, as we were all leaving on the walk from
"Don't be bashful in front of the media, Kevin ... Say all that you can about the residential schools."
After we had all walked 100 kilometers together and arrived in
"I also want to thank Kevin Annett for walking with us to
Vincent said that to the AFN delegates at about 4 pm yesterday. By 7 pm that evening, he had been "spoken to" by members of the AFN executive and asked to appear before them the next morning, where both AFN "Grand Chief" Phil Fontaine and Wendy Grant would be in attendance; officials whom I have publicly criticized for their open complicity with the government of Canada over the cover-up of residential school crimes.
After this phone call, Vincent told me that he expected the upcoming AFN meeting was because of the support he had voiced for me at the Convention that day. For Vincent, like many people, knows that I have been publicly critical of Fontaine, Grant and their associates at the AFN for doing nothing to name the truth of crimes against humanity in residential schools. But, as Vincent reassured me last night at the Aboriginal Friendship Centre,
"Don't worry. I'm not going to let them do a number on you."
And to prove his commitment to having me continue on the walk to
Everything suddenly changed this morning. Vincent
obeyed the summons of the AFN executive and met with them in secret at 8:30 am today. At 9:20 am I received a message from Vincent on my answering machine informing me that I could no longer participate in the Suicide Prevention Walk to Ottawa, and that I could not even comment on the Walk or call in to radio or television interviews with the walkers. It happened that quickly.
Later today, Vincent said that, at the 8:30 am meeting, the AFN executive had threatened to "boycott" the Walk and deny it all financial support if I, Kevin Annett, participated in it at all.
It happens that quickly - as quickly as it took for a
priest to murder an aboriginal child, or silence a witness, or burn a document. And, today as yesterday,such an act can only happen with the willing compliance of the very people who should be exposing the crimes: people like Vincent Watts.
The terrible irony and injustice out of all this is
that Vincent Watts and his group will now be walking to
I suspect that poor Vincent, and the kids who will
sacrifice so much to trudge thousands of miles, will
simply end up being the means for photo ops for native and white politicians who are causing the very suicide the walkers are "protesting".
But that's the way things go in
ice and snow, where truth is frozen and locked away
quicker than you can say "pay off".
And you wonder why things don't change? And
why the dying continues?
By Kevin D. Annett
[Kevin hosts a weekly radio program called “Hidden from History”, on Mondays @ 1:00pm, 102.7FM]
"what has happened to him is outrageous"
Dr. Noam Chomsky, speaking of Kevin Annett, August 7, 2002
Meta Mystic
The Wondrous Beauty of an unspoken word
with a constant subliminal understanding
through spirit and mind traveling forth
into the next vessel
there are patterns of hope
swirling toward enlightenment
these ideas
have captured my soul’s essence
the subtle loveliness of life
erodes the obscene
and carries me towards the angels
singing heavenly choruses
to the Almighty Who saves all.
Healing
The Beauty of the surrounding
Glory of love and hope
grasping through the cobwebs
towards the growing soul
rending pieces of sadness,
torment and chaos, replacing
the idiosyncracies with
complacency and inner peace
Maybe : Peutétre
April is the cruel month – maybe;
for it is NOW
-Newly wet & cold
windy & bright
blooming in the chill
brilliance of
hope & despair
But, patience pilgrims
The darling buds of mai come next
Abide, sleep & DREAM awhile
Dream the dream
You were meant to have
Maybe there will be change
Maybe there will be ‘progress’
Maybe
Wilhelmina M
I know of someoneI know of someone
You tread upon worn winding streets, some narrow and pitted, yet the ones you walk appear mysterious and so very discrete. To be on these paths of both gain and wrath, take care you tired maiden until again we speak, and be safe ‘til again we hopefully meet. These gloomy taut roads can become tense, and when in frenzied disarray they make little sense they can still make you pay… and forget having a plan because it will never work out however frustrating it may be, like pounding sand, what’s it all about?
If you are lying down, asleep, and in my way, do not worry madam – I will step around you quietly with only a kind word to say to a lost little waif on my way. You realize this will happen to you, now and then, if you are really down on your luck, and cannot seem to find or even seek a friend, and no one seems to care that you have a given name, and yet you treat passersby so nice, yes you do, and blame no one and have no shame. If some people ignore you I suppose it’s all in the life game, and I’m sure it doesn’t get you down, too much, and still you treat everyone so nice all the same. When I stroll by you I will not be shy, I will acknowledge you and look straight into your sleepy and droopy and yet still fierce eyes. I wish some people had a heart when you are down and when you’re out, and that they would not glare at you and they would keep from sneering and never shout. ‘Where are you from?’ you can ask of me, and I would love to tell you. Often I envy you (I can tell) you seem and appear to be so free; you ask someone if they have ever wondered about want and need as they toss you a dime.. you absolutely refuse to grovel or plead. Once again you say to someone, ‘Do not ever wake me up nor shake me down. You’ve got more than enough, I know, why do you not spread it around? And that if you drop a coin to not assume that it is to be ‘lost & found’ – don’t pick it up please; don’t cast then take to bring all further down And what do you know of to be kicked, to be rocked, and trying to count and keep time on an antiquated yet broken clock.’ You strongly say ‘there’s no shame in that’ Hear this my friend, as you speak on your constantly tested pride will never wain, no matter what, no matter the cost as you grit your teeth to withstand your aches and pains. A piece of advice to all: remember to help hurting and lonesome people out, preferably before, do not wait till after they fall. If you follow these simple and proven life tools, that do not ever promote the harsh, the mean and the cruel, we will then get along quite fine, if everyone would just be kind and be cool. And, oh yes, I almost forgot before I have to sign off, have you ever heard of The Golden Rule?
Robyn Livingstone
War on people, not on drugsRE: War on people, not on drugs and a few other things
There is a line in the article I wrote for the last newsletter that keeps sticking with me. "The collection of people in the DTES who are just as guilty as our governments for not responding to the crisis that has been happening down here." I would like to alter this statement. I'm not a fan of blaming. I think I had to put it out into the world to know that it was inaccurate. More accurately would be to say that we all in some way have responded to the crisis, but then we maintained the crisis, which is often what happens.
To move out of crisis is a challenge for a lot of us. So often we are traumatized and so shut down to even knowing that things could be different, that this isn't normal. That the cycles of poverty and addiction have become normal, but are they? And is that really what we want?
I don't presume to believe that there is some easy answer to the problems our local community and the global community face. I think though, that regardless of whether substantial change can happen in our lifetimes, we need to imagine and work with the idea that it doesn't have to be like this.
I met Leonard George, the former Chief of Tsleil- Waututh Nation, last fall and he said to me that we need to imagine, we need to dream of what a world would look like without addiction. These words brought me to tears, because I always imagined myself a hopeful person, but I had never dreamed of this idea, and now I do.
So I'm challenging you to create a new dream, and move out of the nightmare and imagine a world of respect for human beings and the environment, a world where there is no addiction, no poverty, no violence, and a world where people feel like they are enough. How would we be working and behaving differently if we imagine that working towards the idea (even if it isn't possible) of this "world" is possible?
I say this all with respect and compassion for all of
the time and energy people in this community put in to making the Downtown Eastside a better place, and to showing that it is already an amazing place, filled with hope and possibility.
By Sharon Kravitz
You Be the Judge
The other day I was approached by Lorne Mayencourt asking that I support him in the coming election. I was sitting having a coffee at the time. I told him to go away and take a bath, but it got me thinking about one of his little legacies. He seemed very aggressive. I wonder if this Act applies...
SAFE STREETS ACT
Definitions
1 In this Act:
"aggressive manner" means a manner that is likely to cause a reasonable person to be concerned for his or her safety or security;
"outdoor public place" means a place outdoors to which the public is ordinarily invited or permitted access and, for greater certainty, includes but is not limited to a sidewalk, street, parking lot, swimming pool, beach, conservation area, park and playground, and school grounds;
"public transit vehicle" has the same meaning as in the Motor Vehicle Act;
"roadway" has the same meaning as in the Motor Vehicle Act;
"solicit" means to request, in person, the provision of money or another thing of value, regardless of whether consideration is offered or provided in return, using the spoken, written or printed word, a
gesture or other means;
2 A person who solicits in an aggressive manner commits an offense.
Solicitation of captive audience prohibited
3 A person commits an offense, who solicits,
(a) a person who is using, waiting to use, or departing from an automated teller machine,
(b) a person who is using or waiting to use a pay telephone or a public toilet facility.
(c) a person who is waiting at a taxi stand or a public transit stop,
(d) a person who is in or on a public transit vehicle,
(e) a person who is in the process of getting in, out of, on or off a vehicle or who is in a parking lot, or
(f) while on a roadway, a person who is in or on a stopped, standing or parked vehicle.
Disposal of certain dangerous things prohibited
4 A person commits an offense, who disposes of any of the following items in an outdoor public place:
(a) a used condom;
(b) a new or used hypodermic needle or syringe;
(c) broken glass
unless the person who disposed of the item establishes that he or she took reasonable precautions to dispose of it in a manner that would not endanger the health or safety of any person.
Amendment of Motor Vehicle Act
(4) No person, while on the roadway, shall stop, attempt to stop or approach a motor vehicle for the purpose of offering, selling or providing any commodity or service to the driver or any other person in
the motor vehicle.
(5) Subsection (4) does not apply to the offer, sale or provision of towing or repair services or any other commodity or service, in an emergency.
Copyright © 2004: Queen's Printer,
Ruminations on the Dragon
Despite what some friends say about my literary rants, there are times when I look back in wonder. In more gentle terms, in the seemingly endless days of my youth I had no concept, no idea of what opium was. To me it was a romantic drug, laced with oriental magic and mystery. Now I know as much as anyone about opium and its byproducts – codeine, oxycocet, dilaudid, morphine, heroin, brown tar, on and on. Now I know.
Back in ’83 I was smoking Pakistani opium in Nelson, going to Art school. For months I’d languish on the couch after school, my baby boy sleeping on my slowly breathing chest. Soon I was whacking a half-gram at a time once-a-day… like a sudden fall down an elevator shaft, 60 floors in a heartbeat. For a milisecond you wonder if you’re dead and then you chill for 8 hours. Back then it was recreational; my virgin youth.
In the ‘80s I had dental work that began to crumble in my mouth by the ‘90s. Shoddy welfare dentistry led to more shoddy welfare dentistry which in turn led to 3 years of pain and extractions (1 at-a-time) which led to my first ‘jones’. After 3 years I had no teeth on top, a mere 3 on bottom, and a codeine habit that required no less than 200 mg a day each and every day.. Thamx to a generous doctor I’d acquired a fondness for opiates. I left town with a new denture and a habit
Boom: 1999: Main & Hastings:
By the fall of the same year I was on methadone, being too dumb to steal and too proud to beg. The meth ran out when I discovered my doctor living my life. I kicked at 55 mg to reclaim my life, run my own show. The horrors of methadone withdrawal would take a trilogy but who’s got time? Less than a year later I was back on meth; just couldn’t keep clean.. in the spoon by noon.
It was a day of painful loss when I let them put the cuffs back on. Over the last few years – on my 2nd bit – I went thru benzo withdrawal, a description of which would need a tetrology. Finally in Oct.’04 I ended up kicking ‘done for the 2nd time. The first 30 days of pain, you are too preoccupied with it to notice that all your wiring’s been fused into one unworkable blob. As the 2nd and 3rd months go by you go to places in your mind only the insane go. Like Dylan says, “You can come back but you can’t come back all the way.”
Since then I’ve been wrestling with my demons. I ain’t a methadone monkey no more, but I’m this close to being wired again. I dance on the edge somedays and somedays I rest and pray and count my blessings.
I look back and see a decade I’ve pissed away on opium. I fight every day for balance, unable to stay clean, too scared to dive in. I walk a tightrope.
In the end we’ll see who wins – the devil or my own true self. Till then I handle what comes down the pike, but every now and then – like now – I must say what a long strange trip it’s been.
Al
THE GUYS’ RULESTHE GUYS’ RULES
1. Learn to work the toilet seat. You’re a big girl. If it’s up, put it down.
1. Sunday sports. It’s like the changing of the tides or the full moon. Let it be.
1. Shopping in NOT a sport. And no, we are never going to think of it that way.
1. Crying is blackmail.
1. Ask for what you want. Let us be clear on this one: Subtle hints do not work! Strong hints do not work! Obvious hints do not work! Just say it!
1. Yes and No are perfectly acceptable answers to almost every question.
1. Come to us with a problem only if you want help solving it. That’s what we do. Sympathy is what your girlfriends are for.
1. Anything we said 6 months ago is inadmissible in an argument. In fact, all comments become null and void after 7 days.
1. If you think you’re fat, you probably are. Don’t ask us.
1. If something we said can be interpreted two ways and one of the ways makes you sad or angry, we meant the other one.
1. You can either ask us to do something or tell us how you want it done. Not both. If you already know best how to do it, just do it yourself.
1. Whenever possible, please say whatever you have to say during commercials.
1. Christopher Columbus did not need directions and neither do we.
1. All heterosexual men see in only 16 colours. Peach, for example, is a fruit, not a colour. Pumpkin is also a fruit. We have no idea what mauve is.
1. If it itches, it will be scratched. We do that.
1. If we ask what is wrong and you say “nothing,” we will act like nothing’s wrong. We know you are lying, but it is just not worth the hassle.
1. If you ask a question you don’t want an answer to, expect an answer you don’t want to hear.
1. When we have to go somewhere, absolutely anything you wear is fine, really.
1. Don’t ask us what we are thinking about unless you are prepared to discuss sports, guns or monster trucks.
1. You have enough clothes.
1. You have too many shoes.
1. I AM in shape. Round is a shape.
1. Thank you for reading this. Yes, I know, I have to sleep on the couch tonight; but did you know men really don’t mind that? It’s like camping.
