F.A.Q.
- Dear 24Hours,
- In the eye of the storm.
- Pure Reason
- Raven
- the provincial budget and welfare
- Rally calls for higher welfare rates
- PWD earnings exemption now $500
- How the Legislative Assembly works?
- FIGHTIN' FOR JUSTICE
- Free Public Lecture: Ben Swankey
- Pathways Information Centre: Expo
- International Women's Day
- REMEMBERING OUR SISTERS Downtown Eastside and Juarez, Mexico
- News from the Library
- When I see their faces,
- MONUMENT TO CIUDAD JUAREZ:
- deliberate mass murder...
- One Flaw in Women
- CARRALL STREET GREENWAY
- SHAKEDOWN
- Main Street Spit; KJ; Sam; RUN Girl!
- Systemic Violence: The Social Dimensions of Prohibition
- Drug War Crimes
- For Earle Peach,
- ANARCHIST/SURREALIST JAMBOREE.
Dear 24Hours,
On February 22, your cover proudly announced (with yet another scare-mongering photo of a drug user) that Vancouver now enjoys a "zero tolerance policy" on outdoor drug use. Inside on page three, Matt Kieltyka's article quotes Insp. Bob Rolls saying "the problem is simply not going away," and informs us that "it will take many more arrests before police start driving drug users away." Away? Where is away?
Rolls then tells us that up to now, police have been treating drug addiction as a medical, not a criminal problem. This is news to me, a Downtown Eastside resident who has witnessed police brutality against drug addicts, and wonders why there are only 54 detox beds available in this neighbourhood.
Insite only opened two years ago. It is too early to assess it's usefulness and the ripple effect of its services in this tightly-knit neighbourhood. And it is much too early to write off health-focused attempts in the fight to save the lives of current and future drug users. Unless, of course, one's priority is not human health and lives, but protecting property and "reclaiming" this valuable real estate for the use of developers.
I had to roll my eyes, then, when I turned to page six and read the headline of your article on the situation in Afghanistan: "We have to be patient -- It took three decades for Afghanistan to reach this state of chaos, so don't expect it to be rebuilt overnight." Replace the word "Afghanistan" with "Downtown Eastside," and you have a phrase I would love to hear spoken by the people responsible for enacting policy in my home community.
Thank you,
Gena Thompson
In the eye of the storm.In the eye of the storm.
First I would like to take this opportunity to thank our friends of the DTES who made it possible for five members from our community to visit
The day was dark and windy and I believe it was raining also, but that didn’t dampen our spirit because we were pumped up and geared for an eventful day, preparing for possible interviews with the media (which never materialized, as we had hoped it would). We went to respond to Rich Coleman, Minister responsible for Housing, who said at a banquet for the Canadian Home Builders Association, “You want to see the worst experiment in social housing in
In Victoria Jenny Kwan and staff met us at the depot. Photos were taken while walking to the Legislature. Inside Jenny’s office we were briefed as to the process inside the parliament & Question Period. But just prior to going inside the house, we were checked for security purposes and required to leave our personal belongings behind. Man! It made me fell like a criminal. Seated inside, introductions as Jenny shared our bios. Jenny’s question to Minister Coleman’s earlier statement made him to back track, but not before attempting to skirt the issue. If that’s any consolation at all to us, that was it. A small victory. Back in Jenny’s office a quick briefing, what the next step is and being kept posted. We thanked her for the invitation and we left, feeling confident that we’ve played a role in the back track somehow for our community.
In closing, I find it frightening that we have people in government like Minister Coleman letting statements like ‘failed experiments’ or ‘integration’, spew from his mouth. Hell, what does he know?!. This man-in-charge should be discharged. And other ministers like him as well. I think some of our elected representatives are in deep over their heads, which is criminal The visitor shake down, you tell me who is the real criminal. Man, I wish I had a shovel. The crud* was really flying high and fast. At the end of the day, I somehow felt like being left in the dark.
By Stephen Lytton
Editor’s note [*Crud is a synonym for the word used to describe the product of a bull’s bowel movement..]
Pure ReasonPure Reason
I know this Carnegie Hall, like my own stomping ground. I got into drugs when I was about 11 or 12 years old. I am 38 years old now. Just got off the down for about a year now and on the methadone program for a year as well and works like a dream. Anyways enough about me!!
I’ve got some talent that I’m using to give back to the community. I am on disability now. I am very grateful for what has been done for me and I am now giving back, such as using my empathetic listening skill - just let people tell me their stories of life, pain, joy, happiness, grief, frustrations, and so on. When they feel they have ventilated themselves, they all, and I mean every one, gives thanks and are very grateful. They say things like, “Thanks for listening, man, I really feel much better.” Now this tells me not enough people open up to their fellow Brothers and Sisters. With the drug problem we all have to help to infuse in addicts a sense of their own self esteem along with the fact of being souls and realizing their own divinity and unending Joy and Bliss they can tap into and it does not matter what religion they’re from. Love is pure reason.
By Mike Hughes
RavenRaven
Raven
Trickster
What could amuse you
But yourself
Like any GOD you formed the
Earth from your own droppings
Set your heart in the sky
to burn with clarifying pain
Dreamt us
And works with a wry smile
Bill Easlie
(for Bill Reid)
the provincial budget and welfareWhat the provincial budget gave to people on welfare (Don't spend it all in one place)
The provincial budget came out last week. Many of us worked to get the government to raise welfare rates but they didn't. Here's what they did do:
*Double the school start up allowance for children on welfare to $84 for kids under 12 and $116 for kids over 12;
*Increase the earnings exemption for people with disabilities starting March 1, to $500 per month (this has already been announced numerous times);
*Extend the Community Volunteer Supplement to 2500 more people over the next 3 years. This is the program where the government gives you $100 a month if you volunteer in the community. About 1400 people are on the program now.
It looks like we have to keep pushing until we get a real increase.
--Jean Swanson
Rally calls for higher welfare ratesRally calls for higher welfare rates
BC could easily afford to increase welfare rates by 50 per cent. That's what Seth Klein of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives told about 70 people at a demonstration demanding a rate increase. It would cost $500 million, he said, while the budget surplus is over $2 billion. The demonstration began at
Speakers at the Hyatt came from the Anti-Poverty Committee, the Kettle Friendship Society and Raise the Rates Campaign, Neighbourhood Helpers, and the Asian Society for Intervention HIV/AIDs. They all noted that welfare doesn't provide enough money to rent a safe, secure place to live or eat a nutritious diet. The demonstration was sponsored by the Save
Low Income Housing Coalition.
Jean Swanson
PWD earnings exemption now $500PWD earnings exemption now $500
On April 20, 2005 (just before the last provincial election), Gordon Campbell promised to increase the earnings exemption for persons on the disability pension (PWD) from $400 to $500. This interested me greatly because I am one of the few PWDs who makes quite a bit more than $500 per month, so the more I could keep, the more disposable income I would have. (Please excuse the greed factor here; I will be explaining myself later in this article.)
When the BC Liberals were sworn in after winning the election, they didn’t enact the promise. The next chance for them to do so came in the September 2005 mini-budget, and it didn’t happen then either.
There was a budget consultation process (for the 2006 provincial budget which will come about in March, 2006) taking place late in 2005, and I provided some input to that asking that the promise made in April finally be fulfilled. When I received the document detailing budget recommendations made in the process, although my submission had been read, there was no indication that any action was going to be taken on it.
MLA Jenny Kwan was on the budget consultation committee and since I live in her riding, I e-mailed her asking if she knew if anything was going to take place regarding increasing the earnings exemption. She replied that she didn’t have access to any information that the BC Liberals had regarding their plans for the March 2006 budget, so she couldn’t answer my question.
Finally, on February 2 on the BC government’s website, there was an announcement stating that the earnings exemption for PWDs would be raised from $400 to $500 per month starting in March 2006.
I think this came about as a result of the policy review that MLA Claude Richmond’s ministry – the Ministry of Employment and Income Assistance (MEIA) – is currently undergoing. Specifically, as a proactive action to head off complaints about nothing being done to raise welfare rates, the MEIA is raising the earnings exemption for PWD so as to be able to say that they have done something after all.
Robin Loxton of the BC Coalition for People With Disabilities provided figures indicating that of the 60,000 PWDs, about 7,700 declare earnings each month. Let’s say that 5,000 don’t qualify for the increased earnings exemption (because they don’t make enough money). That leaves about 2,700 who do qualify – less than five percent of the total cases receiving the disability pension. In other words, very few people benefit from this increase.
What is actually needed is that the earnings exemption be applied to everybody receiving any type of income assistance. As
The Carnegie Community Action Project, under long-time anti-poverty activist Jean Swanson, is trying to get the government to raise the welfare rates. Contact her or the Project at the Carnegie Centre if you want to help.
By Rolf Auer
How the Legislative Assembly works?J.Kwan Today I have the pleasure of introducing five very special citizens from my community. They include Muggs Sigurgeirson, a strong, strong advoca1e for equality and social justice, a tireless volunteer in all sorts of sectors in our community. Along with her is Stephen Lytton, who is a member of the Lytton Aboriginal Band. He is on the Carnegie board, on the aboriginal homelessness ring committee and the B.C. Aboriginal Network on Disabilities. He is also an actor. Gena Thompson lives in the Lore Krill co-op on Georgia Street and is also on the Carnegie board, and a student at Langara. Harold Asham is a computer tutor volunteer at the Carnegie learning centre and writes for the Carnegie Newsletter Last but not least is Luka, a musician and community activist.
CONDITION OF HOUSING IN DOWNTOWN EAST SIDE
J. Kwan: "You want to see the worst experiment of social housing in British Columbia, go to the downtown east side of Vancouver. It's a failed experiment because we forgot about the fact that people need to beintegrated." Those were the words of the Minister of Housing. Visiting us today are individuals who are active volunteers in the community who live in award-winning social housing projects in the downtown east side. Can the minister explain how these people are failed experiments in their community?
Hon. R. Coleman: Through to the member, there is a variety of very successful social housing projects in British Columbia, and there is a variety of projects that need to be enhanced for services for their clientele. There are also a number of people who are slipping through the cracks, who don't get the assistance they need when they have multiple barriers and addictions that they need to be helped with in various forms of housing. I don't see any reason why we shouldn't look at a continuum of housing from homelessness through to social housing and other options to help everybody that could possibly be helped for the maximum ability we can do it.
J. Kwan: Interestingly, that's not what the minister said - not once, but twice. Let me quote: "Major cities all across North America today are bulldozing their housing projects, and they're doing it so that they can redevelop their communities and integrate people into society." Words of the Minister of Housing once again
The Premier himself negotiated an agreement with the former mayor of Vancouver, Larry Campbell, to fund 200 units of social housing in the Woodwards project in the downtown east side as part of the Olympic legacy. If the downtown east side was such a failure, then is the Premier wrong in signing that agreement?
Hon. R. Coleman: The member knows well what's happening at Woodwards. Woodwards is actually an integrated project. Yes, there are 200 units of social housing that are going to be funded by the provincial government, but there is also market housing integrated into the same project.
D. Routley: The Tellier Tower. The Pendera. Four Sisters Housing Coop. Bruce Erikson Place. Laurie Krill Co-op. Hon. Speaker, if the downtown east side is such a failed social experiment, why do the minister's own officials repeatedly bring international guests to the downtown east side to tour these very same award-winning housing projects? Why do they tour what the minister has called "a failed social housing experiment"?
Hon. R. Coleman: You know, it is very interesting to listen to this. I had debates last fall with the member opposite during estimates debate also about housing, and there was this big concern that somebody might go out and do a program and expand something like SAFER to help seniors to stay in their rental apartments in British Columbia when we helped 7,700 more people. There was a big concern that we might be doing or even looking at rent supplements in housing in British Columbia, but when we became government there were already thousands of rent supplements put in place by the previous government. You actually talked about integration of housing in your own programs and debates when I was in opposition. Let's get real, hon. member. What we need to do is we need to have housing strategy that goes from the continuum of homelessness right through to home ownership, and that's what this government is intending to do. We're going to help as many people as possible with the maximum dollars that we can put into place.
D. Routley: The big concern of this member and the big concern of the residents of social housing in B.C. is a minister who seems prepared to turn his back on all of that and apply simplistic, one-sided black-and-white solutions. My question, though, is to the Minister of Finance. The Minister of Finance was an advocate of social housing when she was a councillor in the city of Vancouver. Will the Minister of Finance step in and ensure that these award-winning projects are not abandoned and commit today the needed funding for a comprehensive social housing plan that includes new developments of social housing for the residents of British Columbia?
FIGHTIN' FOR JUSTICE
Yesterday at 9AM, a small group of warriors set out on a quest to bring a message to the ministers. The message “We are integrated into our society.” I shouldn’t say the message was for our ministers, it was for the Liberal MLA’s and one of their leaders, Rich Coleman, who had stated in a recent article “You want to see the worst experiment of social housing in British Columbia, go to the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver--- it’s a failed experiment because we forgot about the fact that people need to be integrated.” Among the group were Muggs, Steve and Gena of the Carnegie Board of Directors. Steve and Gena live in social housing in the DTES. Also there was Luka, another person who has lived in social housing in the DTES. And of course I was there, having lived in social housing for 3 years.
Before that I lived in Single Room Occupancy (SRO) hotels in the DTES. I was brought into the DTES to manage one of those SROs. You may have heard of the Walton Hotel. I was manager there for almost 2 years before I succumbed to the pressure of running a rooming house in this area. I was lucky to have had a great boss who cared about his tenants. We were continually told that we had one of the best places to live in the area. We still had all the problems that come with running an SRO. You know what I’m talking about. Cockroaches, drug paraphernalia or drug users in the washrooms, rooms that are too hot or too cold, haven’t any kind of view, no stoves for cooking and all the other little things that degrade the lives of ordinary people trying to exist on below poverty level income. Our rooms were available for $325 per month, which is the Ministry maximum.
Now I hear hotels are charging more than that and this extra charge has to come out of the few measly dollars you get for food or other necessities because the maximum is still $325 and there isn’t any way the government will pay more. They want to get rid of social housing.
Quote ”Major cities all across North America today are bulldozing their (housing) projects and they’re doing it so they can redevelop their communities and integrate people into society” and “the day for low-rent government-owned housing has passed” Rich Coleman said the government wants to shift from owning housing projects, which stigmatize and ghetto-ize low-income people, to providing rent subsidies toward privately owned units. I guess those subsidies would really be for the landlords who could raise rents whenever they wanted to just so they could use up the subsidy and still rent the same old crappy place where there is no privacy or dignity for anyone. Perhaps we could ask the Honorable Minister to come live in an SRO for a month and see what its like to live down here. Then we could let him live for a month in one of the housing projects that one of us warriors lives in and he could see the difference up close and personal.
He could follow one or all of us around and see if we are integrated into our community to a level that he understands. Speaking of integration we were guests of Jenny Kwan for Question Period in the Legislature. It felt good to be recognized and introduced to the House.
As I was saying speaking of integration I noticed that questions are asked of Ministers by other representatives and they have to be directed to the Speaker who then asks the appropriate minister to respond. The Minister never seems to answer the question that is asked but he manages to toss some kind of wisecrack in to belittle the question asked. Integration would seem to me to be to have respect for the question and the questioner. I noticed that this hardly ever happens.
We had a little lunch before heading back to the mainland and the conversation was about the total lack of respect the government has for their critics. I and the rest of our little band were thoroughly disgusted. We could see why nothing seems to get done in the house. Question Period is a farce. To paraphrase one of the NDP critics “I like to hear you answer a question because of your great prose in answering questions even if it isn’t the answer to the question which is being asked.” I would like to close by saying if you get a chance to go see our government in action, go and you’ll be disgusted in person. Have a nice week.
-hal
Humanities 101 Free Public Lecture Series
presents
Mr. Ben Swankey
"How a Green Kid from the Prairies became
a Social Activist in BC -- for 70 years!"
Mr. Swankey, a remarkable 92 year old gentleman, will speak about his 70 years of experiences in social activism, political struggle and trade unionism in BC and beyond.
Facilitator: Paul Taylor
Friday March 17th, 7pm
Carnegie Centre
Pathways Information Centre: ExpoPathways Information Centre,
Road to Employment
We held our employment expo in January and, based
on the feedback, it was a great success.
This one was kind of a gamble for two reasons.
The first gamble was the concept behind the expo. We called it “Road to Employment”and approached pre-employment service providers. These included health, addiction, and shelter and more traditional employment folks including employers, training, and support. Our second gamble: we needed more room.
We held the expo in two locations; both here and across the road at Carnegie. We encouraged people to walk across the road in the rain and see the second site. They did!
One encouragement to make that trek was the great door prizes, many of which were supplied by businesses. We learned quickly to ask for donations(!)
* two day fork lift training from Hunter Industries
* prizes from LogoTex and Cook’s Studio
* two pairs of work boots; personal care products.
It was a satisfying month for two other reasons. Two people came to work here with satisfying results.
The first was Bart, who is an intern from VCN [Vancouver Community Net]. He worked with us to update and redesign webpages for Pathways and Tradeworks [our mother ship]. He learned lots. We learned lots. He’ll be teaching computer courses in our lab, so our members will be learning lots.
http://www.tradeworks.bc.ca/pathways/index.php
http://www.tradeworks.bc.ca
The second of our twins was Bill. He is a volunteer who offered to help us update the downtown eastside website [ www.dtes.ca ] and it’s 170 agencies. YOUR HELP IS NEEDED You could make his life easier. Go to the website. Find your organization. If there are changes, make a note of the label where the information needs to be changed [hours, description, contact etc.] and send the changes only to Bill at pic1@tradeworks.bc.ca
IT’S AMAZING! International Women's DayInternational Women's Day
March 8 is International Women's Day. Join us in the Carnegie Theatre from 4pm to 8pm to celebrate women with activities, music, poetry, entertainment, open mike, refreshments and a book giveaway. It's a women-only gathering to share good times with each other.
2006 is the 25th anniversary of
But a gap still exists between laws and the reality of women's lives. Issues such as violence and poverty have not been resolved. Today, as women join the labour force in record numbers, raise families and participate in their communities, barriers remain. These barriers keep women, whether they are Aboriginal women, women with disabilities, lesbians, single women, single parents or women living in poverty, from realizing their full potential. The legal removal of barriers is not enough. We need to close the gap between the sexes in our daily lives. The 25 year wait for equality is over.
REMEMBERING OUR SISTERS Downtown Eastside and Juarez, MexicoThe organizations PACE, PEERS and WISH invite
all women and men to an Open House
REMEMBERING OUR SISTERS
Downtown Eastside and
Wednesday, March 8, 2006
International Women’s Day
4:00-7:00 pm
Program starts at 5:15:
Greetings, Song, Dance, Theatre, Spoken Word
This IWD event is supported by the B.C. Federation of Labour, Women’s Committee;
During the last fifteen years,
This event is organized to honour our sisters and to strengthen solidarity among women from all walks of life.
WISH, PEERS and PACE are three organizations that support
current and exiting sex-trade workers in
Commemorating Missing women through Art/IWD 2006
Remembering our Sisters, poetry and music will be featured at an event taking place at
Remembering Our Sisters uses this Day to both commemorate the more than sixty-five women who have disappeared from
The organizations of Wish Drop-In Centre, PEERS and PACE, groups that provide counselling services for current and exiting sex-trade workers, are hosting the celebration, art and performances with broad community support from women in BC’s Labour Movement.
Support for these programs comes from BC Federation of Labour Women’s Committee,
News from the Library
In honour of International Women’s Week (March 5-11), we would like to welcome all women into the library.
We have lots of books on a variety of subjects that you can stop by and read, or take home with you (note: we don’t charge overdue fines at Carnegie Library!). Sometimes our system of organization can be puzzling though, so here’s a guide to some of our favourite subjects, with the dewey number included:
Astronomy 520 Painting (art) 750
Biography 921 Parenting 155, 306, 649
Cooking 641 Pets 636
Dance 790 Photography 770
Drawing 740 Poetry 821
Dreams 135 Psychology 150
Folklore 398 Pregnancy 618.24
Gardening 635 Religion 200-290
Health 613, 616 Theatre 790
Humour 808, 827 Travel 910, 970
Literature 800, 890 True crime 364
Mental health 616 Yoga 181
Music 780
We have lots more to offer! You may also be interested in: videos (popular movies and nonfiction),
kids books & videos, First Nations books, Spanish books, Chinese books, magazines, newspapers
novels: general, mystery, fantasy, Large Print,
books on tape / audio cassettes, internet computer
photocopier (15 cents per page)
We’re looking forward to seeing you, ladies! Oh, and please be sure to stop by Carnegie’s International Women’s Day celebration (March 8) in the threatre from 4pm-8pm. We will be giving away free books and would love to hear your feedback about the library – especially any suggestions you might have to make it better.
Also, look for us every Friday afternoon outside the Carnegie Centre on
Beth, your librarian
Emily, UBC Women’s Studies student
Freedom to Read
This year’s Freedom to Read Week runs from February 26 to March 4. It’s a week when librarians, publishers, booksellers, readers and everyone who loves books gets together to celebrate reading and act against censorship. Whether it’s Canada Customs blocking books headed for
There are lots of books in the library that you will disagree with. There are probably some books that offend you. These are the books making it hardest to believe in the freedom to read. Noam Chomsky once said, “If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don’t believe in it at all.”
Come down to the library and see our Freedom to
Read Week display, and read something dangerous!
When I see their faces,When I see their faces,
their photographs
Sometimes I wonder if their
souls are still trapped there
Smiling photos of deceased
people have always scared me
haunted me
If I turn away from these
pictures, then turn back to see
these stolen souls—will
they no longer be smiling? Will
they have aged? Will these women
be crying?
Maybe other people see
this (though I doubt it)
and save themselves
by slapping degrading labels
and tell themselves
that it won’t
happen in their backyards
C’s T’Mutch c2006
MONUMENT TO CIUDAD JUAREZ:MONUMENT TO
Claudia Bernal (
March 3 - April 2, 88 E.Cordova
Opening Reception: March 3, 7-10pm
Gallery Gachet presents a video installation and
performance piece by visiting
Monument to
first were considered isolated events but now are clearly the expression of an historical sacrifice, a holocaust against women: the violent assassinations since 1993 of more than 300 women in the city of
In abandoned cars and run-down motels, in wastelands, the outlying desert and the suburbs of this cursed city, the bodies of these women and girls were discovered murdered after having been kidnapped, tortured, mutilated, sexually brutalized and strangled according to some sort of fixed ritual. To these 300 must be added an unknown number of disappeared women whose bodies were never found
"With the video installation, I pretend to 'raise and bury' in a symbolic way 300 murdered women in order to fix the facts (the murders) in the past and give these a certain a-temporality (through the burying)," says Bernal. "Thus, I bring to the forefront the real violence against women in general, and the brutality of the
Located at the border with the
It is no coincidence that Gallery Gachet is hosting this exhibition. Located in the Downtown Eastside, where the disappearance and death of more than 65 women went unheeded by authorities for years, Gallery Gachet has a mandate to support issues of mental illness, abuse, and trauma and to provide a focal point for artistic discourse around these issues. In that sense, Bernal's artwork expands the dialogue on gender-based violence, promotes healing, and highlights those who survive, as well.
For more information, visit the Gallery Gachet website at www.gachet.org or call 604-687-2468regular hours, Wed-Sun 12-6pm.
deliberate mass murder...The Editor,
Now that the notorious denier of the Jewish Holocaust, David Irving, has been jailed, I am waiting with baited breath for the western world to be consistent in its supposed moral values and start arresting every academic or writer who has publicly denied the deliberate mass murder of tens of millions of aboriginal people here in North America. Or are some Holocausts more worthy of our denunciation than others?
Rev. Kevin Annett
One Flaw in WomenOne Flaw in Women
Women have strengths that amaze men
They bear hardships and they carry burdens
but they hold happiness, love and joy.
They smile when they want to scream
They sing when they want to cry
They cry when they are happy
and laugh when they are nervous
They fight for what they believe in
They stand up to injustice.
They don’t take “no” for an answer
when they believe that there is a better solution.
They go without so their family can have
They love unconditionally.
They cry when their children excel
and cheer when their friends get awards.
They are happy to hear about a birth or a wedding
Their hearts break when a friend dies.
They grieve at the loss of a family member,
yet they’re strong when it seems there’s none left.
They know a hug and a kiss can heal a broken heart
Women come in all shapes & sizes,
They’ll walk, run or ride far just to be with you;
That is how much they care about you.
The hearts of women keep the world turning
They bring joy, hope and love.
They have compassion and ideas
They give moral support to their family & friends.
Women have vital things to say
and everything to give
However, if there is one flaw in Women
It is that they forget their worth.
Pass this along to your Women friends and relatives
to remind them just how amazing they are.
CARRALL STREET GREENWAYCentre A gallery (SW corner of Carrall and Hastings)
Tuesday, March 7th, 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
Dinner included!
RSVP to john@verdant.ca by March 2nd, 2006
What?
The City of
Why?
The Carrall Street Greenway represents a great opportunity for the community renewal an neighbourhood building. The forum will provide a venue for residents, business owners, community groups, property owners and others to explore and discuss new opportunities for social enterprises, small businesses, public art, community events and environmental features along the greenway. With facilitated small group discussion tables and presentations on some related initiatives in the area, some of the questions the forum will explore include:
*How can the greenway support new and emerging social enterprises?
*How can existing businesses along the greenway better support one another?
*What kinds of public art should be included along the greenway and where?
*What kind of exciting and innovative community uses and events could the street support?
*How could you, your organization or your business contribute to making the Carrall Street Greenway a model for sustainability and dynamic community revitalization?
Please come and help us imagine how we can make the Carrall Street Greenway one of the city’s truly special gathering places and a centre for economic activity and recreation.
Who?
Sponsored by the
SHAKEDOWN
The latest initiative by the
First the facts. Upon seeing this crime take place, the crime of trafficking in narcotics and misery, the grand pubah of public protectors decided to arrest not the purveyor of this blight on our community but instead consciously chose to let the real crook go and further marginalize an already extremely marginalized citizen of our community. Whatever petty crime or vending of the soul that addict (victim of society) had to commit to afford the misery sold by the real criminal, who was given a free pass by the chief, was just going to be repeated again.
Do they really allow epsilon semi-morons to rise to the post of chief of police in a major metropolitan center? We already know what the addict is going to do to get better, no matter what needs to be done. How about the dealer? Well I would bet every donut in the police station to dollars that he will laugh at the spineless puta that let him go and continue to sell his/her slow death. At a handsome profit no doubt. Hmmmm. Also, is it not aberrant that the chief let the addict go but now insists that all such offenders of his sensibility must be jacked then punished? And how about the front line officers? How are they motivated to conduct what they know is a futile endeavor. Are they told to go out there and kick a little ass, further marginalizing citizens of this great city?
More disturbingly is the apparent surrender that the police, crown prosecutors and most surprisingly Larry Campbell have conceded to the cadre of dope peddlers that have continued to operate unabated for what seems like forever down here in the void. Hmmm.
Now I don't have any kind of justice or police education, although I have known many students and instructors in the field, but I can state with certainty that I could come up with a plan of attack to remedy this situation in a heartbeat. Many other residents of the area could say the same. We all see the reality of the situation each and every day. Instead we get a half-ass scheme by a half-witted police chief who seems more interested in making a good media/ public image than truly trying to better the conditions that exist on his front lawn. Maybe he has aspirations for the mayor's chair? Don't be surprised, because that is the only thing that will be gained from this futile exercise - a public image. It is up to us, however, to determine what that public image is to be. Visionary or moron.
More disturbing yet is that it is the most marginalized of the already marginalized that will truly suffer under the jackboots of chief Graham and his cohorts. It is hard enough to be an addict to a substance the government deems morally reprehensible not to mention illegal while a police officer, even a high ranking one, can be addicted to government approved mind-altering chemicals (how's the drinking and driving coming along chief? ) Addiction to the chemicals these dealers with the free pass distribute entails plenty of associated social ills from welfare and health care to the enormous burden placed on the justice system. Yet the chief's vast wisdom dictates that we target the symptoms and not the cause. To be an addict is one thing but to be an irresponsible public servant is entirely another. The approach he has taken is like trying to chase the flies away from the piles of horse shit I see deposited on the streets by none other than police equine services. Get rid of the f’ing dealers. Simple. And when they get to court drop the hammer on them.
So to summarize, we have a weak-kneed chief worried about public image and sensibilities targeting the weakest and most disadvantaged of the weak and disadvantaged for what can only be ulterior motives because any schmoe can see that absolutely nothing positive will come out of this latest debacle of law enforcement on the lower east side.
Does anyone else have a problem with this?
Sincerely
Rabble Rouser
Main Street Spit; KJ; Sam; RUN Girl!To: Karen “K. J.”
We are physically apart,
And I miss you terribly,
But even this is not truly a separation
You are ever with me
And I with you.
Nothing can separate us.
Everywhere I turn, I see you,
Every song I hear reminds me of you.
I pray often, and you are always in my prayers.
When I read my Bible, I think of you.
I long to see you again,
To feel your hand on my face.
To hear your words of love,
To rest—really rest—in your arms.
However, I shall not be sad,
How can I be unhappy
When I have you in my heart?
George H.
Sam Slanders Rides Again (sort of)
Dear Folks
If you’re robbing a bank and your pants fall down… I think it’s okay to laugh and let the hostages laugh, too, because come on, life is funny.
Yrs Truly,
Sam Slanders
Lady judged me when I was startled
By the bus that spat and farted
As if started from a stop on
Lady, would it be such a strain
To judge both noises or none?
Did you have to pick only one?
She picked only my startled scream
Why not, with conscience clean,
Mention to the driver when you get on
That the bus spits loud and strong
Whenever the light turns green,
A senselessly LOUD machine?
Too many fearful drivers anyway
Who feel like sitting ducks of prey
In their job among the human masses
Angst creeping up on them like molasses
Lets return to muscular, strong drivers
Who won’t fear late arrivers
Or other passengers with difficulties diverse
They deserve to be here in my verse
These drivers Don’t Need Power Steering
Or other noisy plagues appearing
As though promoted as beneficial
To all of us by some official.
Men and women both, they drove the school busses
And more they made grunts than fusses
When around some tight curve they’d be turning
A giant wheel, if gloves forgotten,
their hands burning
Hydraulic brakes spit like a curse
I’ll bet they even do it in reverse
I know they do it at other times
But lacking the consistency of rhymes!
Only when not at the expense
Of some of us, whose ouch is intense
From the butt side of monolith machinery
Are modernisms good for humanity.
Francis Sommer
This is your warning, girl
RUN!
Run as fast as you can
Away from him. Don’t
Stop cause you think he’s pretty
Or that you can handle him.
He’s an old snake in the grass
Old cause he has practise on
eating up little girls like you.
FLEE!
He’s just like your daddy
And I’m still hurtin from him
LISTEN TO YOUR GUT,
YOUR INTUITION
And leave this one be.
C’s T’Mutch c2006
Systemic Violence: The Social Dimensions of ProhibitionSystemic Violence: The Social Dimensions of Prohibition
A thought-provoking presentation of Susan Boyd,
as part of Creative Resistance
In many ways the prohibition of some drugs is an old story. History teaches us that our government today is not the first one to prohibit the use of certain plants and drugs. The witch hunts of old were accompanied by the suppression of plants used for healing and easing childbirth, but like today, it was not only the plants that were condemned. The people suspected of using them were criminalized; they were called witches and punished and executed by religious and government authorities. A similar story is unfolding today.
Today, we are living under a regime of drug prohibition. One that is strangely reminiscent of past times. Today, we associate and confuse the impact of poverty, racism, violence, lack of housing and private space, and mental health problems, with the effects of illegal drugs.
Since the mid 1800s, the Canadian state has been in the business of drug control. First, they criminalized "status Indians" from buying and possessing alcohol. White Canadians could still drink. This law did not stop First Nations people from drinking, what it did do was this: It forced them to drink illegally, dangerously, and as quickly as possible to avoid arrest. And it also created a black market. Further, thousands of people were arrested and jailed as a result of the law. The law was a convenient tool of social control used by Indian agents and the police against Aboriginal people in
You would have thought that we would learn from this experience the first time around, but we didn’t and by the early 1900s, the Canadian state criminalized a host of other drugs, including marijuana. There was no evidence that these drugs were dangerous. Right from the beginning our drug laws emerged out of race, class, and gender concerns and they were specific to regulating certain groups in society: the poor, visible users; racialized people and what was perceived as foreign "Others." (anyone who wasn’t white, middle class, and Protestant.).
Yet, the classification of drugs-- illegal and legal-- is political and it has nothing to do with dangerousness. Because we know that alcohol and tobacco are two of our most dangerous drugs, and they are legal. Yet, each decade since our drug laws were enacted, a new demon drug is thought to be more dangerous than the last. And police, and some government officials, with the help of the media call for more laws and police powers to fight it. Little is said about the failure and the cost of law-and-order initiatives.
Little is said about the ever expanding global pharmaceutical industry that creates new drugs and markets everyday, advertising drugs to manage newly created diseases. Pharmacologically there is little difference between our legal and illegal drugs, and many legal drugs are sold on the illegal market. However, the pharmaceutical industry and its CEOs are not viewed as drug traffickers, nor those in the tobacco industry. Rather, "drug traffickers" deal in "illegal drugs" and they are seen as more deserving of punishment.
Little attention has been given to problematizing these stories, because if we look at who is arrested for drug offences in
In
In
Around the world, non-violent people are arrested and convicted for drug offences. Many are imprisoned far away from their family and their children, serving long prison sentences--up to life, and some are executed. Most remain nameless and forgotten. Most often it is poor and racialized people filling up our prisons. Around the world the war-on-drugs is playing out in the following ways:
*Drug arrests continue to rise.
*Illegal drug use continues.
*Police budgets and powers continue to increase.
*We see the destruction of farm land and water, and risk to people through fumigation, arial spraying of marijuana, coca, and poppy plants.
*Displacement of impoverished farmers who have traditionally grown these plants.
*We see increased militarization of strategic areas such as
*We see the suppression of plants and drugs, for cultural, spiritual, religious, and recreational use.
*We see a huge unregulated, untaxed illegal drug market.
*We see violent turf wars.
*We see police & military corruption; and state complicity in the drug trade, especially when it suits their political needs.
*We see the criminalization and stigmatization of people who use drugs; and the infringement of civil liberties.
*We see the global prison industrial complex and lots of bodies to fill it (The
*We see
*We see Drug Enforcement Agents (DEA) taking up residence in cities outside of the U.S, For example we have 2 stationed on the lower mainland; and
*We see politicians like Prime Minister Steven Harper pushing forward a law-and-order agenda and harsher drug laws rather than harm reduction initiatives.
*We see the spread of diseases such as Hep C, HIV/AIDs; and over dose deaths due to an unregulated markets where quantity and quality of illegal drugs are always uncertain.
*We see, criminal records for millions that hinder employment and travel and in some states the right to vote, housing, and financial benefits are denied.
*We see race and class profiling by law enforcement, and more recently gender specific regulation of women suspected of maternal drug use and an increase of female drug offenders in prisons around the world (including
We see billions of dollars throughout the world going to criminal justice and the military rather than to social and economic supports such as housing, health, and education. For example, in
*We see punitive drug treatment regimes that often collude with criminal justice; and a scarcity of drug treatment services.
*We see propaganda rather than drug education or harm reduction.
*And finally, we see a costly war, one that contributes to families being broken apart through child apprehension, imprisonment of parents, and death.
I could go on and on about the negative effects of prohibition, but I think you get my point.
We need to look more closely how local, national, and international drug prohibition impacts people and neighbourhoods. Capitalism, cut-backs, economic restructuring, the global prison industrial complex, poverty, and the war on drugs are interlinked. These factors shape the lives of people in the DTES and in the rest of
We should always keep in mind that drug laws are not static. No law is static. They never have been. Otherwise witches would still be burnt at the stake.
Drug reform is possible.
The term "war on drugs" can deflect our attention away from the fact that it is a war on people. The drug user may be yourself or possibly the person standing to the left or right of you. We all consume drugs in one way or another. So let’s end prohibition now and attend to our more pressing needs like housing, food, and social supports.
Thank you.
Drug War CrimesDrug War Crimes
my mother had been in the
and while hospitalized on base in a locked ward
after her first pyschic breakdown
was gang-raped by american soldiers
and lived mentally ill from then,
became a drug addict
and at 64 years old
dying from cancer
was arrested and locked in a freezing blind-cell
because of a handful of marijuana
my son is banned from
he’s in and out of jail in the States
for possession of pot
and disqualified from minimum wage jobs
for failed urine tests
and has 2 small children to support
so he began cooking crystal meth
once on my way to visit him
I was in an area where hitchhiking was legal
going from
when two Paso Robles police cruisers pulled up
and the first cop said, “Empty your pockets!”
I reached inside my coat for a book
and both pulled and aimed their guns right at me
and one said they could take me into the desert
shoot me
and no one would ever know
instead they tore my notebook of poems into pieces
ripped my few cigarettes into shreds
and scattered my clothes
while continuing to ask where the drugs were
I told them I didn’t have any drugs
“But what if I find some anyway?” the cop said
and I knew they could magically materialize
a kilo of crack in my pocket if they wanted to
then I was told to get in a cruiser because
“We’re gonna have to strip you bare-ass naked!”
they wedged me between them
they banged my head against the steering wheel
they hauled my pants down
and a slender metal flashlight
was shoved so far up my ass
it felt like it was tearing my soul
the front seat rocked with their laughter
until they threw me onto the highway
traffic slowing to see me humiliated
empty blue sky overhead
and the cop said
“Don’t ever come back to Paso Robles!”
years later
I was in one more courtroom for possession
and the judge
before sentencing me said
“You’re of no use to society!”
and I took his remark as a compliment
I’ve never wanted to be ‘of use’
to a human rights-erasing
family-shattering
community-destroying
genocide-generating
prison-profiting
war on the poorest of addicts
who are trying to relieve the pain
of a society gone insane
I know a woman named Carolyn
who had a decision sent from hell to make
she’d once been a teenager turning tricks
as a cover for running heroin
from
and was finally busted
but after doing the time
made a change in her life
a hard-won degree helping
brutally beaten and addicted women
discover they were somebody
somebody infinitely important
Carolyn knew both myself and my street partner
Lance Smith
young dopefiends
but already barely able
to steal and score
with lives lost in childhood
and broken more everyday
by prohibition’s terrorism
and tight as we were
Lance and I each wanted Carolyn to be
our personal samaritan
and take us home
to her 3-room slum apartment and 4 kids
the anguish was that Carolyn loved both of us
and knew
neither Lance nor I would survive
without her for very long
not in the bloody alleys and burned-out storefronts
where our junkie acquaintances
were beaten, poisoned, and frozen to death
but Lance was not the one chosen
by a choice
Carolyn should never have had to make
so Lance tried once again
to return
to his very wealthy home
of “tough love”
and was begrudged
only a single night
of relief from the street
Lance rebelled
all alone
late in the night
and loaded his father’s shotgun
in one of the family bathrooms
where the persecution of prohibition
ended for him
all over the walls
I pray for Lance everyday
and have always believed
in a horrific way
he gave his life for mine with forgiveness
and in protest against prohibition
and I pray for Carolyn
who nearly died
during emergency surgery twice
when her intestines twisted inside her
from the tension of trying to save me
whose addiction and prohibition
twisted me
like
into a self-centred cold-hearted
dangerous human being –
I had frozen Lance out of Carolyn and my lives
erased him out of the lives of his only friends
I was possessed
by cruel needless jealousy
and a dope-driven need for every penny
which the absence of prohibition
would likely have never forced out of me
so this poem
is my accusation
and my confession
and my realization
that one day I will celebrate
even if in spirit alone
that one day I will rejoice with others
as damaged as myself
that one day we will all
live a beautiful freedom
and the amazing possibilities
for which we have been born human beings
when truth
suffering
sacrifice
and a powerful global communal movement
defeats the deadliest bunk drug of all –
prohibition
Bud Osborn
For Earle Peach,For Earle Peach, on reading "I Cannot Draw Near."
You
who greets
each one of us
with a smile
and a kind word,
and helps us
turn our anguish
into song,
you are already in
the community of saints,
don't you know.
Where else would a prophet live?
Sandy Cameron
ANARCHIST/SURREALIST JAMBOREE.Just when you thought it was safe to think inside the box again, here comes…
The ANARCHIST/SURREALIST JAMBOREE.
It’s a weekend of music, performance, spoken word, film, art openings and politics at Carnegie Centre, Friday March 3 to Sunday March 5.
Get ready for visiting mind-blowers like the Surrealist jazz band Thread, from Courtenay; the subversive DJ Fools’ Paradise Sound System from Denman Island.; and the young aboriginal women Hip-hoppers The We team, from right down
And what better guides to the unknown terrain outside the box than the perennial Carnegie favourites, the Downtown Eastside Poets and Theatre In the Raw?
It’s a free, all-ages weekend.
There will be a lot happening all three days, and here’s the program so far:
Friday, March 3
7-10 pm Sound Insurrections w/ Thread and friends (experimental, improvisational jazz), and Fools’ Paradise Sound System (politics with a beat).
Saturday, March 4
Noon – 2 pm Surrealist films: Sci-fi movie trailers etc., plus “Les Vampires” (feature film).
2-4 pm – Workshops (How to start a pirate radio station; The Olympics: threat or menace?, moderated by Insurrectionary Anarchists).
4-5 pm – Slides (Anarchy in Art), by Alan Antliff.
5-7 pm – Surrealist dinner party (Food, Surrealist games with Don LaCoss and mystery guests, and art opening)
7-8 pm – Women’s Empowerment Team (Young aboriginal women hip-hoppers).
8-10 pm – Downtown Eastside Poets
Sunday, March 5
Noon- 2 pm – Surrealist films: Jan Svankmeyer festival: “Darkness Light Darkness” (short) and “Little Otik (feature).
2-4 pm – Workshops (Prison Barred, moderated by Joint Effort; and The Police – Why do they do those things?, moderated by Insurrectionary Anarchists.)
4-5 pm – Theatre In The Raw performance (Live reading of the radio play “The Rat”).
You know, people keep asking, what the heck is anarchism, anyway? And Surrealism? And why a Jamboree? Well, hopefully it will all become clear this weekend. But meantime, chew on this:
Anarchism: No Bosses, No Leaders.
Surrealism: Convulsive Beauty
Jamboree: A Noisy Revel
And if you want to launder your mind some more, check out the website at surreal.dtescai.com.
Bob Sarti
