Contents
- SUPPORT DAVE DICKSON
- Different Town, same ol’ runaround
- Women stay inside!
- "He Got Eyes"*
- Poverty facts
- WOMEN REMEMBERED
- Sarah DeVries Poem
- Remembered: As of 08/02/05
- Trystyn and Telma
- my cat
- PTERODACTYLS
- Junk Love
- Enemy of the State: The New Nigger
- New Kid on the Block
- I Saw Jesus Again Today
- Everyone should have a place to live.
- Civilization of Death
SUPPORT DAVE DICKSON
It is time for us to get together (again!) to ensure that we do not lose Constable Dave Dickson, our valuable officer and an essential part of our community.
Currently Dave has not been re-contracted to work for the Vancouver Police Department, meaning we could be without him by April 2005. Dave has been an excellent example of what a community police officer should be: his dedication to people in the community, his outstanding work with women on the street, his essential presence in aiding high risk youth and families, and the fact that he can always be relied upon to “be there.” Dave is not ready to go, and we are not ready to lose him!
We urge you to help keep Dave Dickson in the
community by doing the following:
Write a letter to:
Chief Constable Jamie Graham
Vancouver Police Department
312 Main Street, Vancouver, BC V6A 2T2
Sign our petition. Urge friends, clients, and community members to sign the petition to keep Dave in the community.
Please return signed petitions to the Downtown Eastside Neighbourhood Safety Office (501 East Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC V6A 1P9 ph 604-687-1772, fax: 604-687-1776) for presentation to the Vancouver Police Department.
Community members can also come to the NSO’s open house (Tues Feb 15, 3:00pm to 7:00pm) t
sign the petition.
Kate Hodgson, Coordinator
Downtown Eastside Neighbourhood Safety Office
Different Town, same ol’ runaroundSo I go to
try in vain to catch a train but $40 later I ain’t happy
hurtin’ ‘n hungry in a familiar yet strange town
lookin’ for some down, lady sez oh I’m old school
so like a fool I trust her, much to my dismay
takes the money and runs away.
So I get mad, grab a buddy, grab a bottle
½ a dandelion straight in half an hour..buddy asleep I’m up on my feet staggerin’ down the street
next thing it’s 5 stitches in my head, no painkill,
off to city cells ‘til 3, kicked out in the rain
So Glad to be back again… ok, so I lie
honky dentist rips out 3 teeth, no painkill,
10 days later they lost my denture after tellin’ me
’24 hrs job be done’ –at least the incompetent twits
finally found my denture; no fixup, no painkill.
Me ‘n buddy on the nod, freakin’ crackhead chick
hears her old man cryin’ over a hundrd, I get kicked
just sittin’ onna ground, up and whoofs me one
right on my stitches ! breaks my glasses !!
you figure I’d stick around after robbing a guy?!??
he had $60 but still cried; threatened to shoot me
if I didn’t come up with a hundred before nine
all in 8 days and not even a T3
Al
Women stay inside! Women stay inside! The city and the police have no intention of helping you. It is too expensive to do so. Just put up with being beat to death and having your purse stolen. $hitty Hall wants to spend money on 2010 rather than the need of the people now. Instead of spending needless time forcing places like the
carlm04@hotmail.com
"He Got Eyes"*"He Got Eyes"*
He got eyes
eyes that drove
"off to look for
and saw its sacred soul
shining through transparent flags
wilted and waving opaquely
at funerals and on
"Sunday mornings comin' down."
He got eyes
eyes that pried
right into a trolley car
in
and locked into eyes
at the back of the bus
where a black man
holds and ties into knots
the gaze
that stole His face
cos' HE got eyes;
eyes that cry out
in dignity.
He got eyes
eyes that look back
over the seas
that divide
but on the day of atonement
there's always
a new beginning,
penance and absolution
on the road,
the road that flows
from fragility
and innocence
leaving violence
and its brutal sister;
sentimentality
on the road
from
right through
down to
He got eyes;
eyes that catch the
flashy, fluorescent beauty
of a jukebox
playing a Johnny Cash lullaby
to a baby
rockin' and rollin'
on the floor
and he got eyes
THAT baby boy
eyes that cry
"Tell MY story
but......
I'm not givin' you
what I don't have to give.
I'm not givin' you
no lyin' Pepsodent smile."
He got eyes.
Now
old man eyes
eyes that are tired
tired of
too many good-bys
but not too tired
to create beauty
in a cramped apartment
under a fan blowing
the scent of a lily
over a bowl full
of perfect pears
and he offers one
to a young man
who bites into it
and he hands one
to a young woman
who holds on to it
for dear life
until the juice
of its sweet and sour truth
oozes from her palms
and she tries
to carry his story on
'cos she got eyes.
Mary Duffy
(Inspired by the work of Robert Frank who turned 80 this November..for my daughter Catherine, 'cos she got eyes))
- *title taken from Jack Kerouac who wrote the introduction to Robert Frank's "The Americans". Robert Frank travelled across the
In the introduction to this book Jack Kerouac wrote:
*"Robert Frank,...sucked a sad poem right out of
** from "
*** from "Sunday Morning Coming Down" by Kris Kristofferson (as performed by Johnny Cash)
Poverty factsPoverty facts
Here are some facts about poverty that you can use to argue for better welfare rules and rates and more affordable housing. The source for each fact is at the end.
*Percent of street homeless people in
* Number of homeless people in
Number of homeless people in
*Amount it would cost to put 800 of
*Amount it costs to provide services and shelter for one homeless person: up to $40,000 a year; amount it costs to provide supportive housing and services for one homeless person: up to $28,000 a year. (1)
*Number of people in
*Percent that food bank use increased across
*Percent increase in BC children having to use food banks between 2003 and 2004: 41.7 per cent. (2)
*BC welfare cuts
Amount per month support rates were cut for single parents: $43
For employable people age 55-59: $47
For employable people age 60-64: $98
For employable couples age 55-59: $94
For employable couples age 60-64: $145 (3)
*Shelter allowance cuts for families with three or more people: $55 to $75. (3)
*Minimum amount of earned income a single parent could keep in 2001: $200; in 2002: $0. (3)
*Amount of child support payment from an ex-partner that single parents on welfare could keep in 2001: $100 per month; amount in 2002: $0 (3)
*Amount raised for Food Banks by CBC Food Bank Day in December, 2004: about $160,000; amount of similar fund raisers CBC would have to have to
make up for the money cut from welfare in a 2002-2003: about 3806. (5)
*Per cent of BC families that are worth over $1 million: 3.3 per cent. (4)
*Number of millionaire families in BC in 1999: 56,218. (4)
*Province with the highest percentage of millionaires: BC. (4)
Sources:
(1) City of
(2) Hunger Count 2004, by the Canadian Association of Food Banks, November, 2004.
(3) A Bad Time to be Poor by Seth Klein and Andrea Long, of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and SPARC BC, June, 2003.
(4) BC's
(5) Calculation by Jean Swanson.
WOMEN REMEMBEREDWOMEN REMEMBERED
On December 6th the whole country commemorates the deaths of fourteen middle class women who were killed in the Montreal Massacre. Not to take
away from the pain their families have endured but...
WHAT ABOUT OUR OWN WOMEN? Alarm bells were tolling loudly with the numbers of missing women increasing. At least 72 women from DTES have vanished. We, the women who organized the Valentines Day Women’s Memorial March, always knew that there was something more to the mystery of the missing women; if the surface was just scratched a little bit we knew that when one woman was found a mass grave site would be discovered,. Women do not simply !go missing! Women have daily routines that most followed, women kept in touch with family members; their children long ago apprehended but not forgotten, these women had families and were Moms, sisters, daughters, cousins, aunties, friends, companions and most of all loved.
It is tragic that some of the women who were missing from the downtown eastside were never really missing, as we now know. Through the lack of action and investigation on the part of various police forces trusted with public safety, the reports from people who knew of the farm where the women were last seen was not taken with the degree of seriousness that it should have been… It is too late.
Certainly some of the deaths and disappearances were preventable had investigative techniques been implemented earlier. The only conclusion one can come up with for this lack of investigation is that some of the women had transient lifestyles, were street workers, were women living in poverty, were homeless women, were women living in a violent neighbourhood, were women with addictions, were women!
People pass through the neighbourhood of the downtown eastside pointing fingers, laughing, staring and gaze at the violence that has become the norm for many in the area. We, as a society - politicians, community members, decision makers, and citizens - are all responsible for what has happened to the Missing Women, not just the police or RCMP.
Physical assault is not the only form of violence inflicted on women everyday in the downtown eastside; issues of sex trade work, homelessness, addictions, healthcare and poverty are real forms of violence to women. Lack of care, empathy, support systems, medical intervention, treatment centres etc are contributing to this violence and keeping women in unsafe situations. Society’s neglect of these issues perpetuates violence against women.
Sarah DeVries PoemSarah DeVries wrote a poem long before she herself would be listed as Missing. It is printed here (We are grateful to Sarah’s family for allowing us to print this poem)
Woman’s body found beaten beyond recognition
You sip your coffee
Taking a drag of your smoke
Turning the page
Taking a bite of your toast
Just another day
Just another death
Just one more thing you so easily forget
You and your soft, sheltered life
Just go on and on
For nobody special from your world is gone
Just another day
Just another death
Just another
Sentenced to death
The judge’s gavel already fallen
Sentence already passed
But you
You just sip your coffee
Washing down your toast.
She was a broken down angel
A child lost with no place
A human being in disguise
She touched my life
She was somebody
She was no whore
She was somebody special
Who just lost her way
She was somebody fighting for life
Trying to survive
A lonely lost child who died
In the night, all alone, scared
Gasping for air.
Sarah deVries
How haunting are Sarah’s words. She knew that no one would listen to the truth of women’s lives and how they are dismissed as whores. This is the hardest lesson society should have to learn. As a society we should all be ashamed of ourselves for not paying attention to the signs, for not hearing the alarm bells, for not listening to women who were visiting the farm, and had in fact disregarded these women’s lives as valueless.
For the Feb 14th Women’s Memorial March,
Diane Wood
Remembered: As of 08/02/05Remembered: As of 08/02/05
Alberta Williams, Aleisha Germaine, Alice Hall, Amanda P. Flett (Mandy), Amy McCauley, Ann Wolsey, Angie Williams, Annie Cedar Jr., April Reoch, Barb Mills, Barbara Charles, Barbara Gus, Barbara Larocque, Barbara Paul, Basma Rafay, Bernadette Campo, Bernadette Grace Pierce, Bernadine Standing-Ready, Betty Case, Betty Lou Williams, Beverley Ann Desjarlais, Beverley Whitney, Beverly Wilson, Brenda George, Bonnie Catagas, Bonnie Lincoln, Bonnie Peters, Bonnie Pruden, Carol Cardinal, Carol Ann Wadden, Carol Davis, Carrie Ann Starr, Chantal Venne, Chantal Gillade, Charity Cassell, Charlene Kerr, Cheryle Joyce Vicklund, Christina Lorraine Christison, Christine (Chrissie) Billy, Christine Elizabeth McCrae, Cindy Williams, Clorissa Mary Adolph, Connie Chartrand, Connie Rider, Carol Ann Wadden, Corrine Dagnault, Corrine Sherry Upton La Fleur, Dana Draycott, Darlene M. Johnston, Darlene Small-Legs, Darlene Weismiller, Darlinda (Dawn) Ritchie, Dawn Lynn Cooper, Debbie Ann McMath, Debbie Kennedy, Debbie Neaslose, Deborah Chisholm, Debra Foley, Debra Lucas, Delilah Martin, Delores Rivet, Denise Stillwell, Diane Lancaster, Donna Rose Kiss, Dora Joseph Patrick, Edna Shande, Elizabeth Chalmers, Elsie Sabastian, Elsie Tomma, Enola Evans, Florence Isaac, Fong Min Wong and her 3 week old daughter, Gail Worm, Gerri Ferguson, Geraldine Williams, Gertrude Copegop, Gloria Duneult (Sam), Gloria Baptiste, Harjinder Knijjar, Helena George, Helen Lessardo (Bowers), Holly Cochran, Jacqueline Michelle, Janet Basil, Janet Pelletier, Janice Saul, Jane Hill, Jean McMillan, Jeannie Wiebe, Jennie Lea Water, Jennifer Moerike, Jennifer Pete, Josephine Johnson, Joyce Paquette, Julie Mai Smith, June Hill, Kandice Mills, Kanwaljitk Gill, Karen Ann Baker, Kathleen Dale Wattley, Katherine P. August, Kelly Myers, Lana Morin, Laurie Ann Rix, Laurie Scholtz, Lavern Jack, Laverna Avivgan, Leanne Cupello, Linda Jean Coombes, Linda Louise Grant, Linda Leaming, Linda Nelson, Lisa Leo, Lisa Marie Graveline, Lisa Moosomin, Lois Makie, Lorna Carpenter, Lori Newman, Lorna George (Jones), Lorna Lambert, Lorraine (Ray) Arrance, Lou-Anne Stolarchuck (Bonnie), Margaret Vedan, Maria Ferguson, Marjorie Mack, Marjorie Susan Prisnen, Martha Gavin, Mary Ann Charlie, Marina George, Mary Ann Jackson, Mary Anne Monroe, Mary James, Mary Johnson, Mavis McMillan, Mathilda Charles, Maureen Riding-At-The-Door, Mavis Hippolyte, Maxine Paul, Melody Newfeld, Meranda Isaac, Mertyl Roy, Michelle Lafleshe, Michelle Liza Webster, Michelle Wing, Monika Lillmeier, Marietta Smoker, Naazish Khan, Nadine McMillan, Nancy Jane Bob, Nancy Anne Clark, Nancy McDonald, Nancy Jane Poole, Norma Clarke, Nya Rane Robillard, Olivia Gale William, Patricia Andrew, Patricia Ann Wadhams (Trish), Patricia Thomas, Pauline Johnson, Peggy Favel, Peggy Snow, Peggy Suhner, Rachael Davis, Ramona Wilson, Ranjitk Toor, Rhonda Gaynor, Rhonda MacDonald, Rita Holy-White-Man, Roberta Lincoln, Rose Merasty, Rose Peters, Rose Piapst, Roxanne Thiara, Ruby Williams, Ruth Anderson, Ruth Oliver, Sadie Chartrand, Sally Abou, Sally Jackson, Saltana Rafay, Sandra Amos (George), Sandra Flamond, Sharon Arrance, Sheila Hunt, Shirley Nix, Sonia Mathews, Susan Ball, Susan Jones, Susan Presvich, Swaranjitk Thandi, Tammy Lee Pipe, Tanya Emery, Tanya Marlo, Tanya Wallace, Teresa Brewer, Theresa Humchitt, Tracy Lyn Hope, Terry Lynn, Tracy Olajide, Vanessa Ferguson, Vera Lyons, Verna Missar, Verna Parnell, Veronica Harry, Vicky Buchard, Victoria Joesph (Misty), Victoria Yonkers, Violet Delores Herman,
Wendy Grace Lewis, Wendy Poole, Yvonne Stevens
*Some names have not been included, to have a name of a woman added, please call Marlene at (604) 665-3005. List is compiled from 2004 & pr
vious files & at the request of some families.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the families
whose daughters have been tragically murdered
Andrea Borhaven, Andrea Joesbury, Angela Jardine, Brenda Wolfe, Cara Ellis, Cindy Feliks, Dawn Theresa Crey, Debra Jones, Diane Melnick, Dianne Rock, Georgina Papin, Heather Bottomley, Heather Chinnock, Helen Hallmark, Inga Hall, Jacqueline McDonell, Jennifer Furminger, Kerry Koski, Marcella Creison, Marnie Frey, Mona Wilson, Patricia Johnson, Sarah Jean DeVries, Sereena Abotsway, Sherry Irving, Tanya Holyk, Teressa Williams, Tiffany Drew, Wendy Crawford, Yvonne Boen, &
3 as yet unidentified women known only as Jane Doe.
Our prayers remain with the women who are still
unaccounted for
Angela Arseneault, Cara Ellis, Catherine Gonzalez, Cindy Beck, Danielle Larue, Delphine Nikal, Dorothy Spence, Elaine Allenbach, Elaine Dumba, Elizabeth Chalmers, Elsie Sebastian, Frances Young, Gloria Fedyshyn, Ingrid Soet, Janet Henry, Jacqueline Murdock, Julie Young, Katherine Knight, Kathleen Wattley, Lana Derrick, Laura Mah, Leigh Miner, Lenora Olding, Lillian O’Dare, Linda Grant, Marilyn Moore, Marie Laliberte, Mary Lands, Michelle Gurney, Nancy Clark, Nicole Hoar, Olivia William, Rebecca Guno, Richard “Kellie” Little, Ruby Hardy, Sharon Abraham, Sharon Goselin, Sharon Ward, Sherry Baker, Sheryl Donohue, Sheila Egan, Sherry Rail, Stephanie Lane, Tammy Fairbairn, Tania Peterson, Teresa Triff, Verna Littlechief, Wendy Allen, Yvonne Abigosis
Alberta Williams, Aleisha Germaine, Alice Hall, Amanda P. Flett (Mandy), Amy McCauley, Ann Wolsey, Angie Williams, Annie Cedar Jr., April Reoch, Barb Mills, Barbara Charles, Barbara Gus, Barbara Larocque, Barbara Paul, Basma Rafay, Bernadette Campo, Bernadette Grace Pierce, Bernadine Standing-Ready, Betty Case, Betty Lou Williams, Beverley Ann Desjarlais, Beverley Whitney, Beverly Wilson, Brenda George, Bonnie Catagas, Bonnie Lincoln, Bonnie Peters, Bonnie Pruden, Carol Cardinal, Carol Ann Wadden, Carol Davis, Carrie Ann Starr, Chantal Venne, Chantal Gillade, Charity Cassell, Charlene Kerr, Cheryle Joyce Vicklund, Christina Lorraine Christison, Christine (Chrissie) Billy, Christine Elizabeth McCrae, Cindy Williams, Clorissa Mary Adolph, Connie Chartrand, Connie Rider, Carol Ann Wadden, Corrine Dagnault, Corrine Sherry Upton La Fleur, Dana Draycott, Darlene M. Johnston, Darlene Small-Legs, Darlene Weismiller, Darlinda (Dawn) Ritchie, Dawn Lynn Cooper, Debbie Ann McMath, Debbie Kennedy, Debbie Neaslose, Deborah Chisholm, Debra Foley, Debra Lucas, Delilah Martin, Delores Rivet, Denise Stillwell, Diane Lancaster, Donna Rose Kiss, Dora Joseph Patrick, Edna Shande, Elizabeth Chalmers, Elsie Sabastian, Elsie Tomma, Enola Evans, Florence Isaac, Fong Min Wong and her 3 week old daughter, Gail Worm, Gerri Ferguson, Geraldine Williams, Gertrude Copegop, Gloria Duneult (Sam), Gloria Baptiste, Harjinder Knijjar, Helena George, Helen Lessardo (Bowers), Holly Cochran, Jacqueline Michelle, Janet Basil, Janet Pelletier, Janice Saul, Jane Hill, Jean McMillan, Jeannie Wiebe, Jennie Lea Water, Jennifer Moerike, Jennifer Pete, Josephine Johnson, Joyce Paquette, Julie Mai Smith, June Hill, Kandice Mills, Kanwaljitk Gill, Karen Ann Baker, Kathleen Dale Wattley, Katherine P. August, Kelly Myers, Lana Morin, Laurie Ann Rix, Laurie Scholtz, Lavern Jack, Laverna Avivgan, Leanne Cupello, Linda Jean Coombes, Linda Louise Grant, Linda Leaming, Linda Nelson, Lisa Leo, Lisa Marie Graveline, Lisa Moosomin, Lois Makie, Lorna Carpenter, Lori Newman, Lorna George (Jones), Lorna Lambert, Lorraine (Ray) Arrance, Lou-Anne Stolarchuck (Bonnie), Margaret Vedan, Maria Ferguson, Marjorie Mack, Marjorie Susan Prisnen, Martha Gavin, Mary Ann Charlie, Marina George, Mary Ann Jackson, Mary Anne Monroe, Mary James, Mary Johnson, Mavis McMillan, Mathilda Charles, Maureen Riding-At-The-Door, Mavis Hippolyte, Maxine Paul, Melody Newfeld, Meranda Isaac, Mertyl Roy, Michelle Lafleshe, Michelle Liza Webster, Michelle Wing, Monika Lillmeier, Marietta Smoker, Naazish Khan, Nadine McMillan, Nancy Jane Bob, Nancy Anne Clark, Nancy McDonald, Nancy Jane Poole, Norma Clarke, Nya Rane Robillard, Olivia Gale William, Patricia Andrew, Patricia Ann Wadhams (Trish), Patricia Thomas, Pauline Johnson, Peggy Favel, Peggy Snow, Peggy Suhner, Rachael Davis, Ramona Wilson, Ranjitk Toor, Rhonda Gaynor, Rhonda MacDonald, Rita Holy-White-Man, Roberta Lincoln, Rose Merasty, Rose Peters, Rose Piapst, Roxanne Thiara, Ruby Williams, Ruth Anderson, Ruth Oliver, Sadie Chartrand, Sally Abou, Sally Jackson, Saltana Rafay, Sandra Amos (George), Sandra Flamond, Sharon Arrance, Sheila Hunt, Shirley Nix, Sonia Mathews, Susan Ball, Susan Jones, Susan Presvich, Swaranjitk Thandi, Tammy Lee Pipe, Tanya Emery, Tanya Marlo, Tanya Wallace, Teresa Brewer, Theresa Humchitt, Tracy Lyn Hope, Terry Lynn, Tracy Olajide, Vanessa Ferguson, Vera Lyons, Verna Missar, Verna Parnell, Veronica Harry, Vicky Buchard, Victoria Joesph (Misty), Victoria Yonkers, Violet Delores Herman,
Wendy Grace Lewis, Wendy Poole, Yvonne Stevens
*Some names have not been included, to have a name of a woman added, please call Marlene at (604) 665-3005. List is compiled from 2004 & pr
vious files & at the request of some families.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the families
whose daughters have been tragically murdered
Andrea Borhaven, Andrea Joesbury, Angela Jardine, Brenda Wolfe, Cara Ellis, Cindy Feliks, Dawn Theresa Crey, Debra Jones, Diane Melnick, Dianne Rock, Georgina Papin, Heather Bottomley, Heather Chinnock, Helen Hallmark, Inga Hall, Jacqueline McDonell, Jennifer Furminger, Kerry Koski, Marcella Creison, Marnie Frey, Mona Wilson, Patricia Johnson, Sarah Jean DeVries, Sereena Abotsway, Sherry Irving, Tanya Holyk, Teressa Williams, Tiffany Drew, Wendy Crawford, Yvonne Boen, &
3 as yet unidentified women known only as Jane Doe.
Our prayers remain with the women who are still
unaccounted for
Angela Arseneault, Cara Ellis, Catherine Gonzalez, Cindy Beck, Danielle Larue, Delphine Nikal, Dorothy Spence, Elaine Allenbach, Elaine Dumba, Elizabeth Chalmers, Elsie Sebastian, Frances Young, Gloria Fedyshyn, Ingrid Soet, Janet Henry, Jacqueline Murdock, Julie Young, Katherine Knight, Kathleen Wattley, Lana Derrick, Laura Mah, Leigh Miner, Lenora Olding, Lillian O’Dare, Linda Grant, Marilyn Moore, Marie Laliberte, Mary Lands, Michelle Gurney, Nancy Clark, Nicole Hoar, Olivia William, Rebecca Guno, Richard “Kellie” Little, Ruby Hardy, Sharon Abraham, Sharon Goselin, Sharon Ward, Sherry Baker, Sheryl Donohue, Sheila Egan, Sherry Rail, Stephanie Lane, Tammy Fairbairn, Tania Peterson, Teresa Triff, Verna Littlechief, Wendy Allen, Yvonne Abigosis
Trystyn and TelmaTrystyn and Telma
My holiday was so good. I got to see my son on Boxing Day at my church. He was getting dedicated to the Lord, his foster mother's parents drove in from
I got adopted over the holidays - they are lovely people whose names are Faith and Andy. They are elderly people and they love me to death. I go over to Faith's place everyday to help her with the running around and household duties. I love being there because she also has a 5 months-old Basset Hound. Her name is Telma and she thinks I’m her chew toy. She knows that I come at 11 in the morning and when I don't show up, she starts to pace and look out the door, she even starts to wimper and cry. But when I get there she jumps all over me and she settles down quickly. She likes to go up on the rooftop and play in the garden, but she hates her harness and leash. She gets really scared of the outdoors, of the people, cars, other dogs, everything scares her. We are trying to train her that outside is a good place but it is taking a very long time. I have taken her to Crab Park a couple of times and she makes me run all the way there., then all the way back again. When we get home, she loves to play with all her bouncy balls and toys. We do not have to play with her because she plays all by her self. We are still training her to go to the bathroom on the paper, but I guess it will take some time. She loves to eat french fries, I think it is her favourite meal (other then her dog food that is.) She also thinks that she is a lap dog, but she isn't. Faith is getting really upset with her and is almost ready to give her away. But I know that she won't; she loves her to much. Telma is making new friends each and every day. I just hope that she keeps it up. I know that she can't be afraid of the outdoors forever.
We will get her used to it somehow.
By
my cat
MY CAT HE DOES NO TRICKS
MY CAT GIVES HUGS AND LICKS
MY CAT HE GETS HIS KICKS
MY CAT GETS STONED ON CATNIP
MY CAT HAS CLAWS THAT RIP
MY CAT HAS PAWS THAT GRIP
MY CAT TAKES NO LIP
MY CAT AIN'T NO DIP
MY CAT HE AIN'T RICH
MY CAT IS NO ONE'S BITCH
MY CAT IS A FLIPPED OUT FLIP
MY CAT THINKS HE'S IT
MY CAT DON'T GIVE A SHIT
MY CAT AIN'T GOT NO FLEAS
MY CAT'S NAME IS "SOCRATES"
Carl MacDonald
PTERODACTYLSPTERODACTYLS
Carnegie's ancient stones
Rise up from ancient floors
Based on history
No mystery.
Carnegie's walls are not smooth
As are the walls of the local sleuth's
Observing the upper floors of the police station
From the newsletter office there was elation!
Seagulls flew in the sunshine
Their wings reflecting on the station
Large ancient birds circling
The old ones now presently mingling
Above Main and
Ancient times.
Many Pterodactyls were out there, flying again!
Cast in shadow on smooth granite
Birds with a very long wing span
Startled and made one scan
The walls with amazement.
The Seagulls’ thin wingspans were so enormous!
The bird shadows so large!
Made one think and recoil
At Pterodactyls returning
Dora Sanders
Junk LoveJunk Love
(written while enjoying the lemon/raspberry
whipped-cream pie for Carnegie dessert)
Soft and luscious
smooth and creamy
And sooo irresistible
(oh yes give it to me!)
Mmmm… how I crave it
Can’t get enough
Even tho’ it’s just junk food
I know it’s not good for me
Why do I keep hoping
for a few more crumbs?
But I’ll be back
Oh yeah I’ll be back
You can bet I’ll be back
for one more taste of that
Sweet, sweet love.
Louisa de Plume
Enemy of the State: The New NiggerEnemy of the State: The New Nigger
To be homeless in
If looks alone could kill there would be no more homeless. Whatever colour your skin may be, to be obviously homeless is to draw down upon yourself the fear and loathing of the vast majority of the tax-paying public.
To have a wallet full of money yet be denied entrance to a pub on account of carrying a fully loaded packsack is just one fragment of the hostility felt by every homeless person. Denial of the use of public washrooms is another fragment. Shouted insults of teenagers - “Get a job you bum!” is a refrain heard all too often, screamed by those yet too young to understand life’s twists and turns. To sleep in doorways invites robbery and attack. How long before we set aflame the sleeping wino the way they do in
I am reminded of an older gent a few years ago who was found under the
Personally, recently, I was chased off a church’s property by the caretaker at 8 o’clock at night. It seemed to me that this good Christian gentleman deemed me unworthy of sleeping beside his garbage in the rear of the church. I walked 25 blocks to another church, spread my bedroll on a bed of gravel and slept until four in the morning without any more “Christian charity”.
To be told by the owner of a convenience store that the building has no water is just one of a thousand reasons to insure the abhorrent bum moves along quickly. Mothers shield their children as you walk past with your 40 lb. pack.
I’m glad to be homeless right now. It’s been enlightening to see how our just, great Canadian society treats the downcast, the disabled, the walking dead.
Coming from the ‘60s I know how to camp urban style. It appalls me that in 40 years nothing has changed. Rumour has it the Law wants to reinstate the vagrancy laws. The idea of being considered a criminal for the crime of having nowhere to go is just something I cannot fathom.
Yes I’m homeless, but I still have my dignity, my
freedom, my desire to live on in peace.
R. Loewen
New Kid on the BlockNew Kid on the Block
The Vancouver School of Drugwar History and Organic Cultivation, otherwise known as
A Drugwar history walking tour begins at
Photo copies and organic nutrients will also be available for a reasonable cost.
For more information and to book private tours, please call David at 604-842-7790
Please note,
there is no cannabis, opium or any other drug on the property, and there are no drug or herb sales at the school (not that there is anything wrong with selling herbs).
"In wise hands poison is medicine. In foolish hands medicine is poison". A quote from Casanova
I Saw Jesus Again TodayI Saw Jesus Again Today
I saw Jesus again today
He’s still begging at the Library
Living under a bridge
Has no ID so Welfare can’t see him.
He showed me his wounds
Said he’d be going to jail
I pressed a coin into his dirty, hardened palm
along with my regrets.
He asked my name; where I could be found
If I lent him money he could repay Tuesday.
Maybe he’s a junkie
Maybe a con-artist who believes his own stories.
For sure he is desperate, for sure he is Jesus.
Wilhelmina Miles
Everyone should have a place to live.Everyone should have a place to live.
"Every man, woman and child should at least be entitled to a place to live." That statement, from a man who was homeless, seemed to sum up what everyone felt at a Carnegie workshop on
writing group and the ongoing human rights discussion group of the Learning Centre. It was held at Carnegie on Feb.2nd. About 25 people, including some who were homeless, listened to a summary of the report and then spoke their minds about it.
The Action Plan is 60 pages long and has 86 recommendations. Several people were skeptical that the politicians would listen to anything we say or even do what the report says they should do after it is passed. But almost everyone seemed to agree with the report's major recommendations that governments should
· end the barriers to getting and staying on welfare;
· raise welfare rates;
· build more affordable housing;
· provide more services for people who need them.
"Sickness, death, and crime" are the results of not ending homelessness, one woman pointed out.
Several people who were homeless objected to the part of the Action Plan that described most homeless people as having mental or physical health problems Sometimes people have to prove they are crazy to get on welfare, or even threaten to commit suicide, one person said.
People were critical of the part of the Action Plan that suggests the city allow suites with less than 320 square feet of space. Some said the recommended increase in welfare support payments from $185 to $230 is still not enough to live on for a month.
Our next steps
The meeting was chaired by Muggs Sigurgeirson, Carnegie Community Centre Association vice chair. At the end of the meeting Muggs agreed to report on the discussion at the workshop to the Association Board. Later in the week the Board of the Association agreed to support Vancouver's draft Homeless Action Plan in principle; to make some recommendations on the plan to Jill Davidson (the author of the report) before it is officially presented; to speak at City Hall when the report is discussed by Council in March and to encourage Carnegie members to do the same.
Thanks to everyone who participated. If you are interested in learning more about the report and/or speaking at the City Council meeting, call Jean at 604 298 1614. Watch the Carnegie Newsletter for information about when city council will deal with the report.
By JEAN SWANSON
Civilization of DeathCivilization of Death
"Mass slaughter has become the ultimate civilized achievement. War remains the decisive human failure." So wrote the world-famous economist, John Kenneth Galbraith, in a small book that takes an honest look at the violence, hypocrisy and cruelty of so-called western civilization. (1)
Although his book is about the
John Kenneth Galbraith is saying, as many others have said before him, that the
The global, corporate economy, with the Bush Administration in the lead, is on a path of self-destruct ion. The war policies of the American Empire have created enormous suffering and death. In
Many people in the Downtown Eastside know that our present avaricious economic system is cruel and violent. We have experienced its violence through unemployment, poverty, hunger and homelessness. The people running the system, like George Bush in the U.S., or Gordon Campbell in B.C., won't change it because they and their friends are getting richer, even though their policies are leading to social and environmental disaster. Those of us who are being pushed further and further to the margins of society can clearly see the suffering caused by unrestrained greed. We can support each other and speak what we feel, not what we ought to say. That's what John Kenneth Galbraith did when he looked at so-called civilized life in the
Dr. Ursula Franklin said, "We have to reclaim our country from those who occupy it on behalf of their global masters." (9) Not an easy task! Citizens will need to organize widespread popular resistance through intense, intelligent coalition building and non-violent action. Voting will only be one part of the struggle, but voting can help to avoid civil war.
By SANDY CAMERON
(1) The Economics of Innocent Fraud, by John Kenneth Galbraith, Houghton Mifflin Co., 2004, p.62.
(2) Galbraith, p.36.
(3) The Unconscious Civilization, by John Ralston Saul, Anansi Press, 1995, p.90.
(4) "
(5) The Canadian Establishment, vol.1, by Peter Newman, Seal Books, 1977, p.446.
(6) "100,000 Iraqi civilians have died since invasion, survey finds," by Sarah Boseley, The Guardian Weekly, Nov.5-11, 2004, p.10.
(7) "Global warming nears point of no return," by P. Wintour and P.Morenko, The Guardian Weekly, Jan.28 to Feb.3, 2005, p.1.
(8) Galbraith, p.61.
(9) "
