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SLETTER

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SEPTEMBER 1, 2006

carnnews@vcn.bc.ca www .carnnews.org

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CLOSED for Incompetence??! This is what Stephen Harper and his fascists want

us to believe, but the addition of the word "Political" tells the true story. The utter stupidity I ignorance I incompetent idiocy of his ordered compliance with the American Christian fundamentalism controlling the White House should be little more than a fucking joke, but what's a few (thousand) dead drug users, junkies, compared to the redemption of the world & salvation for the True Believers?!

How much of a stretch is it to connect the closure of InSite- North America's only supervised injection site - with the rabid fundamentalist mindset of those profiting from continuous war? Consider some basic observations that certainly

cannot be dismissed as radical, socialist/communist/ left-wing I warm&cuddly crap issuing forth from weirdos crying in the wilderness:

-the War on Drugs, both here and in the USA, per­mits the arrest, detention and ongoing oppression of poor and middle-class people. The oppressive aspect results directly from the illegality I criminality im­posed and blindly maintained by legislators which, of course, keeps prices and profits in the range of 1 000-1700 percent over the original investments by the rich and connected;

-diluting such profit-margins by the Four [equal] Pillars of prevention, treatment, harm reduction and enforcement throws the whole moral morass of the aforementioned fundamentalism into turmoil; drug users I addicts get status as people, get to make in­formed choices and can ask for available options; -harm reduction measures are anathema to the

quasi-moral high-rollers: Needle Exchanges are de­cried as giving people the idea that the government supports the use of (antichrist) narcotics etc so NO sanctioned needle exchange programs are permitted anywhere in the USA. Because Canada has the most cherished and wished-for health care system in the world - everyone has access to free care - the fact that preventing just 4 people from contracting HIV/ AIDS saves us the equivalent of the annual budget of the largest Needle Exchange in the Western Hemi­sphere can't just be ignored. -A factoid that has to be repeated constantly to gov­

ernment quasi-moralists is that a single person who contracts HIV and then AIDS will cost said govern-

~ent a minimum of $150,000 in treatment until they dte. The annual budget of said Exchange has been $600,000. . -

-In the States, with their pay-as-yo~-get-sicker sys-tem, everybody is definitely not responsible for eve­rybody else, so those who have - the same rich & connected who have the wherewithal to do the whole number of such multi-billion dollar drug businesses­don't have to help those who haven't if they don't want to ... and virtually all of 'em don't want to. ("whole number": production -growing, harvesting, refinement; global distribution, with transportation, secrecy and multitudinous territories; financial cheque~ & balances for funding the production, pay­offs, bnbes, corruption of Jaw enforcement officials and subsequent laundering. -Over 2000 people died from drug-related. incidents in the last 15 years or so Gust in Vancouver). Insite was the culmination of years of activism and ham­mering the powers-that-be with the cold, hard facts of the result of not having a supervised injection site. The 3-year pilot-project was kept under a microscope for numerous studies, opinions, reports and evalua­tions by very hard-nosed conservatives. The outcome astonishes only the certified half-wit: in every report, category and analysis, Insite shines as an unqualified success. No overdose deaths, a huge jump in the number of users seeking treatment &/or counseling, and even reduction in the amount of health paranoia cum mental degeneration because of the relative sta­bil~ty ~ffered by this program - removing the fear of dymg m an alley from an 00 or getting a rig-poison from taking water out of a puddle on the sidewalk.

The political incompetence inherent in Harper and ~roni~s seeing .more in pleasing George Dubya than m domg what ts best for people ... think of the most offensive compound word in the English language!! The next step up from Insite should be to expand

the number of sites and the scope of holistic ap­proaches; after that (or even at the same time) would be the decriminalization of small amounts effec­tively cutting the international drug trade~ off at the knees. In England prescription heroin is 3 cents a hit and property crime in high-use areas has dropped by almost 90%- this stat from the police there. Come September 12, Harper and his masters are

going to "let [Insite] close." Then "We'll make a

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decision." He can decide 2 + 2 is 1 if he thinks it'll get him brownie points or, as Mark Townsend was quoted as saying in a daily paper, "Harper can go on believing the world is flat, but the real world is round and he can't change it by ignoring that fact."

An ostrich is conservative; a religious fundamental ostrich should just be shot and buried. I ask ya'.

ByPAULR TAYLOR IF

If Mother Earth had a tongue She would be wagging out loud Where is your compassion? Are you being blinded by Greed? Take, take, that is all your goal Destroying all our beauty of

our land, ocean, sea & riverS Especially our air! . Never mind if you ruin the moun tams Building right in the midst of our animals No wonder why you have animals

at your doorsteps. Leave our Mother Earth alone.

Building condos on the water now What is up with that?! Ruining the marine life, bad enough,

taxing the waters now. Come on Mayor Sullican Wake up to all the pollution!

Vancouver is becoming like a concrete jungle

GREED is overpowering our environment

Wake up People Help solve our problem! Protect our land, water & air Especially protect our mountains

for our animals They need their homes too. Stop invading the mountains Their beauty is slowly fading away By having condos, houses,

buildings, etc, etc

BeaLty is in the eye Not in your pockets.

All my Relations Bonnie E Stevens

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"DEY AS programs provide windows of opportunity tj for youth and adults who are "street involved", and those wanting to leave the street. Through a range of personal interventions, harm reduction and health promotion services to high-risk and at-risk people in Vancouver, with focus on the downtown and east end, DEY AS helps individuals get better and make positive changes in their lives.

DEY AS Board of Directors invites applications for membership to the society, either general or corpo­rate. Contact society secretary Lyn Cutshall for an

application form or more information: 49 West Cordova Street

Vancouver, BC V6B 1C8 Tel: 604-685-6561 Fax: 604-685-7117 ~

Email: info@deyas.org

Harper arrogant, lying - media, too

The flight attendant on any airline will ask passen­gers to turn off their Blackberries and cell phones (because their electronic air traffic will interfere with the plane's own running). One did recently for Con­servative Prime Minister Stephen Harper on one of his flights, and he declined. (Apparently, Harper thinks he is above physical and safety laws.) So his pilot asked him personally to turn them off. This time, Harper did so. But at the end of the flight, the pilot was informed that his services would be no longer required on prime ministerial flights. Harper is, if nothing else, arrogant. (The Globe and Mail, "The unwritten bylaw ofBytown: Fall in line or fall out of favour," August 9, Lawrence Martin)

A poll ' s results announced on August 1 in The G&M declared that 56 percent of Canadian opposed Canada's mission in Afghanistan. (G&M, "Only 32% back PM on Mideast," August I, Brian Laghi) (also, G&M, "Opposition to Afghan mission rises in latest poll," August 16, JeffSallot) Previous to that Harper was publicly stating that Canadians backed Canada's military presence in Afghanistan. But Harper's office had been deluged for months by let­ters and e-mails from Canadians stating (in majority) their opposition to Canada being in Afghanistan. (G&M, "Afghan mission a hot topic in letters, calls to Ottawa," Aug 7, Dean Beeby) And doubtless Harper was aware of the results of the earlier poll as well. So Harper is also a liar .

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That PM Stephen Harper is arrogant and is a liar should come as no surprise. After all, he is a politi­cian, and North Americans have come to expect

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those qualities to be present in their politicians. But did you know that the media are arrogant and dis­honest too?

This might come as a surprise to more than a few, since the media are constantly declaring their un­compromising impartiality. So here are a few illus­trative examples.

After The G&M published their results that Cana­dians are opposed to being in Afghanistan, it began periodically publishing letters to the editor from people in favour of Canada being in Afghanistan­and none from those opposed, although it' s obvious from the poll results and from the prime ministerial communications from ordinary Canadians that in fact a majority are opposed (and so, one would ex­pect the majority of letters to the editor to be op­posed as well, and thus fairly represented). But The G&M (like most conservative-led news media) sup­ports Haiper, and so is arrogant in its depiction of Canadians' reality.

As for the media being a liar- that case is much easier to prove. It has long been known that the me­dia give short shrift to stories about the poor, and that when they eventually do get around to writing stories, these are invariably poor-bashing. (When was the last time you remember hearing about the Raise the Rates campaign- the effort by the Carne­gie Community Action Project to get welfare rates in BC raised to proper living standards- in the main­stream media? Answer: never, because it has never been written about there, although the media are surely aware of it. [NB: Actu.ally, it was mentioned once on the editorial pages of The Vancouver Sun, on August 24- after this article was written])

But my illustrative example is as follows: U.S. President George W. Bush recently assigned himself even more power; a homeless man in BC is starving

. himself to death in jail to protest his being unable to

sleep in a park without being arrested; in the US, some video was shot depicting " Bumfights," where poor people are paid to hurt each other or themselves for viewers' amusement, appar~ntly endo_rsed by professional asshole Howard Stem. None of these stories made the G&M. What did get endlessly writ­ten about instead were Mel Gibson's anti-Semitic remarks upon his being arrested for drunk driving. As I remarked to a friend, I couldn' t care less what Gibson said, when I am much more concerned about what happened to Canadian Jazz legend Oscar Peter­son and his being subjected to racial epithets yelled repeatedly by some young thugs driving by his resi­dence. That subject was barely mentioned. So it co~e~ as no great surprise that the media lie by OmiSSIOn.

So there we have it. What a great combination: both the Prime Minister and the nationally read me­dia are arrogant and liars. How convenient for the Conservatives. That 's the way they' ll slither into a majority government.

Paul Taylor Editor, Carnegie Newsletter Dear Paul,

By RolfAuer

23 August 2006

Congratulations on the Carnegie Newsletter 's 20th Anniversary!

I am always pleased to see the latest edition of the Carnegie Newsletter because it is the only publica­tion that allows the voices and opinions of people in the Downtown Eastside to come through so clearly. As a result, it offers a reference point for my work as the local Member of the Legislative Assembly Thank you to everyone involved in creating and dis­

tributing the Carnegie Newsletter and many thanks to you for your work as the editor. Well done!

Here's wishing for another 20 years of success!

Jenny Wai Ching K wan, MLA Vancouver-Mt. Pleasant

I sent this to the Globe&Mail (which will as usual, be ignored):

Dear Letters Editor, Re "B.C. bylaws targeting homeless face court

challenge," August 29: The article's opening question asks, "Should mu­

nicipalities have the right to make it illegal for peo­ple to sleep in public spaces if there isn't enough shelter space for the homeless in the community?"

What kind of a question is that? That ranks right up · there with, "Should the homeless be shot on sight if

they have no place to stay?" The community should be taking every possible

action to ensure that the homeless have proper hous­ing, even if it means lobbying the provincial and fed­eral governments to help out.

Making it illegal to sleep in public places is a cruel and uncompassionate action by a society that is mor­ally bankrupt and refuses to acknowledge the plight of the less fortunate among its citizenS.

"The measure of a society is found in how they treat their weakest and most helpless citizens."--Jimmy Carter

It is quite significant the Jimmy Carter has been involved for a long time in providing housing for the homeless. Why shouldn't our society be involved in the same thing?

Rolf Auer

Oh Goody, it's the

Sarti Walk along the

Coquitlam River

Adventure Excitement

Discovery Good Company

FREE Carnegie Picnic Lunch!

Friday, Sept. sth, 9am-4pm Open to all Carnegie members. You must have

·current membership. Pre-register in 3rd floor office.

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I saw Jesus again today

I saw Jesus again today .. . He's still begging at the Library Living under a bridge;

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Has no I.D. so Welfare will not see him

He showed me his wounds Said he would be going to jail. I pressed a coin into his dirty, weathered hand; Along with my regrets. He asked my name, where I could be found If I lent him money he would repay Tuesday. Maybe he is a junkie Maybe he is a con artist who believes his own stories. For sure he is desperate; for sure he is Jesus.

Wilhelmina Miles

WOMEN'S CENTRE

The Downtown Eastside Women's Centre, with the generous support of several DTES community groups, eagerly invites you to its 3rd annual event. ...

Celebrating Our Journeys: A Downtown Eastside Neighborhood Street Party

12- 6pm, Sunday, September 17tl\ 2006 300 Block Columbia Street

Please join us at Celebrating our Journeys, an occa­sion where women are given the opportunity to con­tinue - despite the difficult circumstances which afllict their daily lives - to laugh, sing, dance, re­joice, and resist. See you at the Party! For further information or to volunteer at the event, please call 604-681-8480 x242, email celebratingowjourneys@yahoo.com, or drop by the Centre and ask for Cara, Event Coordinator.

The Downtown Eastside Women's Centre is located at 302 Columbia Street (on the Southeast corner of Columbia and East Cordova).

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Welcome back to Ted Chiang! He actually was sick and had an operatioll (no, not on his head!) and he has returned to work as part of Carnegie Security.

CONGRATULATIONS

1. 1 would like to congratulate Marlene Trick on her marriage! 2. Thanks to Colleen and Sindy for your wonderful contribution in everything you've done for our vol­unteers. Too many occasions to mention!! 3. Congratulations to Les Nelson and Joe Chow on graduation from the Native Education Centre: 4. Congratulations Paul Taylor and those domg our Newsletter. Many more years of printing!!!

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Love & kisses, Norma-Jean B.

CE and CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: Some of you know, or at least heard of !ohn Fergl_!­son, the head of Carnegie Security. John thinks he's retiring and his last day is September 29. There will

. be space set aside in the Sept. .15th issue of this Newsletter for any and most comments, anecdotes and memories of his romp here for the last decade. Submission deadline is Tue.sday, September 12th!

<::;alleY!:j <::;acV1et 88 E.Cordova; 604-687-2468

On Friday, September s•h, Gallery Gachet is pleased to present "Distant Intimacies: the art of cell phone video", new work by Vancouver media artist and Gachet member, Stephen Long, concurrent with "The Drag King Project'', a new project by Vancou­ver-based artist Toni Latour. These shows are pre­sented as art of the Pacific Association of Artist-Run Centre's SWARM 7 gallery-hop.

"Distant Intimacies" is comprised of six short narra­tive videos aiming to discover and describe the dis­tinct dynamics of media creation and explore the mental and social barriers enabled by cell phone technology. Stephen Long has a three-decade long tenure in new media production and innovation.

Toni Latour's motivation in conceiving "The Drag King Project" came from a desire for continued queer representations from within queer communi­ties. "The Drag King Project' includes photography, video documentation oflive performances, and a textual component derived from audio interviews.

Toni Latour teaches New Media at the University College of the Fraser Valley, and Media Art at Cap lano College.

Gallery Gachet is Canada's premiere art and healing centre, run by artists informed by mental health is­sues; viewing hours are Wednesday to Sunday, 12 to 6pm. Information on our calls for submissions and programming is available online at www.gachet.org.

Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned, Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned. - 1657

For the first time, the top 40 photographs in the Hope in Shadows Downtown Eastside Photography Contest will be ranked by the general public.

The top photographer will receive the first prize of $500 at the annual award ceremony, which will be held at Carnegie Centre on Tuesday October 17 at 10:30 a.m. The 2007 calendar will be launched at the award ceremony, and street sales training will be held in the week of the launch (October 16 to 20). People who would like to sell the calendar can put their name on the list by calling Pivot and there will be a Jist at the judging exhibition. The second place winners are five photographs that

receive the next most votes, resulting in the photog­raphers receiving $100 each. The ten third winners get $50 each and the remaining photographers get $25 each. All winners also get an enlargement of their photo and a certificate. [The quality of repro­ductions on this page is the best available with my current computer knowledge. Ed.]

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Security Programs Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General PO Box 9217 Stn Prov Govt Victoria BC V8W 9Jl

Mr. Greg Langham A/Deputy Director Private Investigations & Security Agencies Licensing Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General PO Box 9217, Stn. Prov. Govt. Victoria, BC V8W 9Jl 1-250-356-1509

[Re: Harassing Behaviour by Primcorp Security,] Dear Mr. Langham: August 9, 2006

I would like to advise you of an incident that oc­curred recently involving a security guard employed by Primcorp Security, #302 211 E. Georgia Street, Vancouver.

At 11 :45, August 6, 2006, I was standing on the southwest corner of Main and Pender Streets, in . Vancouver's Chinatown, waiting at a light to cross the street. Beside me was a man, Caucasian, in his mid - late 30's, 5'2-5 '4, 110 lbs, skinny, light brown hair, clean shaven, with some debilitating disease affecting muscle coordination (visibly handicapped), supporting himself with two walking canes. A Primcorp security guard in uniform (Caucasian

male, 30, 6' 1, 180 lbs., dark brown haif, moustache and short beard around his mouth and chin, walked up and, standing on the public sidewalk within a

I COUple of feet of me, Started tO verbally harass the handicapped man. The guard said something to the

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effect of, "Scum like you shouldn't be here. Get out of here.'' I intervened by saying, "Excuse me. He has every

right to be here." At this, the guard said to me, "Fuck off. Mind your own business. Why don't you get lost." I repeated my assertion that the handi­capped man had a right to be on public property and told the guard to stop using abusive language. Once more he told me to, "Fuck off." As this loud ex­change drew a small crowd of observers, the guard said to me, "Fuck off, cunt. Why don' t you get a boyfriend." With that, the guard left the comer. In disbelief and shock over this Primcorp Security man's behavior, I stood and talked with the handi­capped man for a minute or two. He told me that this incident was not his frrst encow1ter with Primcorp Security or this particular guard. He also told me he was concerned for his future physical security be­cause of this incident and an earlier incident where he relayed he'd been manhandled & pushed aroWtd physically by security a couple of weeks earlier.

TI1e security guard returned to the corner a couple of minutes after he left, where the handicapped man and I were still standing, still talking. As he walked by, the guard repeated his insult to the handicapped person, referring to him as "scum of the earth pre­tending to be handicapped does not have a right to be here". After this incident, I called the Vancouver Police

Department. I was told there was little they could do as the guard had not actually threatened or physi­cally assaulted me.

I feel threatened and intimidated by this security guard's behavior. I am a total loss as to why he would treat an obviously handicapped person with such a lack of basic respect, and then tum his pro­fanity and anger towards me . This is clearly unprofessional conduct for a profes­

sion whose mandate is to protect people. The secu­rity guard has no legal right to "move" people off of public property, and certainly has no need to use such profanity in the course of his duties. This per­son should not be a security guard. By his demon­strated behavior, he cannot be relied upon to look after citizens' best interests in this neighborhood.

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I would like you to investigate this incident and I would like to know the outcome of your investiga­tion, as well as any sanctions you might impose.

Sincerely, Lesa Dee Tree

cc: Ms. Libby Davies, MP Ms. Jenny Kwan, MLA

4 Attention: Management Primcorp Security Daniel and Iris Lee,

I am writing again because I have yet to hear any response from you regarding the incident involving security guard misconduct on Sunday August 6, 2006. I have tried to call your office several times, left messages to return my calls, and sent additional emails asking you to please respond.

Having been encouraged today by the Chinese Mer­chants Association and directed by them to contact you in earlier correspondences, they assured me they would also be encouraging you to respond . I again ask for your immediate response by email.

In an earlier email to the Chinese Merchants I stated that the reason for no response can only mean one of two things, which I will also put to you: 1 That you are so disgusted by this situation that you wish to distance yourself from it 2 That this is in fact acceptable behavior to you somehow Needless to say, it is professional and legal protocol

to respond to such complaints. Lesa Dee Tree

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WRITERS' COLLECTIVE '.

. Starting again Monday, Sept .4, 1 0:30am . . . · 3rd floor, Carnegie Centre

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Join us for a no pressure, fun way . ·• to unleash creati · · .

Attention All, I am seeking media contacts regarding a story about

the security of the downtQwq east side. Seeing the lack of accountability by Primcorp and the China­town Merchants in their non-response to address the situation of August 6 2006, I am considering ap-proaching the Medi!l. ·

Since bringing this information forward I have been informed of several other incidents regarding Secu­rity mistreatment of residents in the dtes. This issue is partly being addressed in a program being devel­oped by the Human Rights Coalition. More needs to be done and people need to know that this treatment is unacceptable. Perhaps the media is one powerful way beyond the Ministry of Solicitor General and its current investigation into these incidents that real change can happen.

Lesa Dee Tree

I think to think of all the sunsets we have missed Many of which I cannot count Our lives were not caught in a busy lane Maybe because we were in the midst

of not caring There, there my sweet heart My love for you is not being forgotten You still are the most important person

tome We will always be in some other world Come back to realize

what I have missed Dwell with remorse, asking for forgiveness Making up is the most wonderful part

of relationship All I ask for is patience

My love will never run out for you

Bonnie E Stevens

Food: The Stuff of Life At this time of year, as we gather together with

family and friends to celebrate our abundance of food, it is easy to forget that a large percent of the worl~ suffers from a perennial food scarcity. At har­v~s~ time ~II cultures have their own unique thanks­gJvmg. It ts a tradition as old as the race.

In the Western World we take it for granted that food, and food in sufficient quantity, is a basic hu­man r~ght. Indeed, of all the human rights, none is more tmportant. A people without sufficient food are unable to demand the other basic necessities of life. It has been the case that oppressive political regimes

have succeeded merely due to promises of employ­ment -which translates as food. In other cases these regimes simply promise enough food. To a starving populace no other promise would bring such an im­mediate response. A hungry.person is ripe for any ideolo!:,>y that guarantees to fill the ache in her belly, and in the bellies of her children. Some of these re­gimes have even been true to their promise.

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In the modern world of food production we have become very sophisticated. However, our problems with famine and starvation remain. Even First World countries experience diseases caused, not by a Jack of food, but by malnutrition and by the consumption of food grown with an eye to the maximization of profit rather than the production of healthy and non­contaminated food stuffs. We have enough food, but not healthy body and mind- building food. But we do have a choice Nutrition is a complicated issue. A country in which

pregnant women do not receive proper nutrition ex­perien~es a generational disadvantage. Whole gen-

erations grow up unable to compete with other na­tions in physical and mental capacity. Without the necessary tools to deal with their environment these . '

children of the undernourished grow up to continue an economic condition that keeps their countries backward; from keeping- up in the global market, both economically and intellectually,

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Lack of food is at the core of many social ills. Too much we see, even in an affluent country like Can­ada, an increasing segment of the population who survive, but only just. Nutrition is not their priority; getting enough to eat is. This lack of proper nutrition contributes to ill health, especially in young children. And it certainly prevents people from enjoying one of life's basic pleasures- a healthy, well-balanced diet that promotes, or at the very least, aids the culti­vation of a healthy spirit. Good food is more than just vitamins and minerals; it is the staff of life.

Perhaps in the kinds of food, and in its abundance, we can see the greatest disparity between social classes. An Anglican clergyman from an underclass parish in England recently proclaimed from his pul­pit that it was not a sin to steal food if you are hun­gry. There appears to be a coming together of ideas that traditionally kept the starving in their place. Is this a revolutionary idea or just one whose time has come?: That the poor have the church-sanctioned right to take from society what they need to live. Yes, to talk o( food is not just to speak of basic hu­

man rights. I could go on - about the improper use of land for efficient food production; the market-driven forces that create a bigger-is-better philosophy of farming. More and larger animals and vegetables that please the eye and the pocket of the businessmen, but contribute little to the health of the consumer or the economy of smaller and ecologically-sound opera­tions. And we have come to a place where having sufficient food is not the comfort it used to be. Our food, due to the relentless push for profit, has be­come a means by which we can become sick. We need to look carefully at the new cost-effective means of farming, and also to examine the methods of traditional farming. If we have the knowledge to feed our World properly perhaps then we can begin to deal with the other questions that plague human­kind- war, pestilence, disease.

Wilhelmina Miles Carnegie Writers' Group

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Carnegie Community Action Project (CCAP) Newsletter

Written by Jean Swanson

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c September 1, 2006

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''The Price is not Right'' A group of Carnegie actors performed

their skit, "The Price is not Right" at the Dragon Fly festival at Cates Park in North Vancouver on August 13th. The play was developed to show audiences that the welfare rate of $510 a month for a single person is not enough to live on. Several workshops were held with low income people at Carnegie to help develop the script.

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Your next chances to see the skit will be at the Art Against Brutality Festival in Oppenheimer Park on September 16th and at the Womens' Centre Street Party on September 17th. People who are working on the skit now include Bob Sarti, Joan Morelli, Sandra Pronteau, Lou Vodnak, Trish Garner, Colleen Carroll and Kelly.

If you know of an event where the skit could be performed, call Jean at 729-2380.

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Welfare rate campaign having an impact

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An editorial in the Vancouver Sun (Aug. 26h) is now calling for an increase in welfare rates and for allowing people on welfare to keep some of the money they earn.

That editorial followed another one on August 24th, which said, "Social activists like Jean Swanson of the Carnegie Community Action Project argue persuasively that successive provincial governments have allowed basic welfare rates, which have not been raised in more than a decade, to erode to the point that people in real need have no choice but to beg for further assistance."

The first editorial was a response to articles about people in the tourist industry complaining that panhandlers and drug users were affecting their businesses.and Vancouver's reputation. CCAP responded to these articles with a letter to the editor (see page 3).

Meanwhile the Raise the Rates Campaign that CCAP works with has distributed almost 2000 flyers and even more leaflets around the province. They call for raising welfare rates 50%, ending the barriers that keep people in need from getting on welfare, allowing everyone on welfare to keep the first $500 they earn, and raising minimum wage to $10 and hour and ending the $6 an hour training wage.

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In addition, last month the BC branch of the Dieticians of Canada joined the Raise the Rates campaign. It is a professional organization that puts out annual reports analyzing how much a healthy diet costs, and it sees that welfare is too low to support healthy eating.

Also, the City ofKelowna passed a resolution calling for higher welfare rates. This now means at least 4 BC cities are working for higher welfare rates. The Kelowna motion will be debated by city councilors at the Union ofBC Municipalities convention in October.

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: Colleen Carroll and Joan Morelli ., 'perform in "The Price is not Right"

at Cates Park.

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CCAP letter to editor of Vancouver Sun Saturday, August 19, 2006 Re: Beggars, drug dealers kill convention business, Aug. 18

Fifteen years ago, Vancouver had drug dealers and addicts. People with mental illnesses lived here, too. But we had virtually no panhandling, searching the garbage for food and items to sell, or homelessness, or, as the academics call it, "street disorder." To solve these problems we need to look at what h~s changed since then.

One, the provincial government has changed welfare rules so many people in desperate need can't get it. Two major reports say this is the biggest cause of homelessness.

Two, welfare rates are so low that people can't live on them. At $510 a month you need extra money to survive, let alone look for work, and the government won't let you keep any extra money you earn (another new rule from 2002).

Three, federal and provincial governments have ended the national housing program that built thousands of units of affordable housing across the country every year.

The Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association, Tourism Vancouver and the tourist businesses

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~ ' -should be· begging the provincial government to raise welfare rates, end the barriers that keep people in need from getting welfare and allow people on welfare to keep some of what they earn. They should be going after both senior governments for affordable housing.

You can attack impoverished people endlessly, but they still have to eat and sleep. It would be more humane and efficient to change the policies causing the problems. --Jean Swanson Carnegie Community Action Project

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BC has second worst poverty rate . in Canada

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A branch of the federal government has come up with a new way to measure poverty and guess w hat? BC has the second worst poverty rate of all the

• provtnces. The new way of measuring poverty is

called the Market Basket Measure. It was developed by Human Resources and Social Development Canada. And it's based on what it actually costs to buy certain items that people need to buy, like food, clothes, rent, transportation, childcare, etc. It even includes (are you listening, Claude Richmond?) things like telephont..:, fh:~~iure, rugs, sewing machines, lamps, toys, video rentals and bicycle repairs.

For the last few years, anti-poverty activists have been asking the BC government to justify how a person could actually survive on the pitifully small amount of money that is allowed for welfare. This Market Basket Measure shows that living a safe, healthy life on the BC welfare rate for a single person of $510 a month is virtually impossible.

The government report, called "Low income in Canada: 2000-2002 Using the Market Basket Measure," also compares poverty rates in the provinces. Only they call it "Incidence of Low Income" instead of poverty. For example, in Canada as a whole 13.7 % of people have "low

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incomes". In BC it's 22.5 %. Where children are concerned BC' s poverty rate is an astounding 30.1 %, almost twice as high as the Canadian average of 16.9 %. For single parent families headed by women, the Canadian poverty rate is 45.6 %, while the BC rate is 57.9 %.

The report also shows, to no one' s surprise, that single parents, people with physical and mental disabilities, immigrants and Aboriginal People are more likely to be poor.

The report is just one more piece of evidence, in a huge list, of why it' s time for the BC government to raise welfare rates and minimum wage.

''That's our problem, Charlie--t.he m.ore we get, ~ more we want. "

Discredited "Broken windows". theory means cracking down on the poor

We' ll probably be hearing a lot about the "broken windows" theory in the Downtown Eastside as we get closer to the Olympics in 2010.

"Broken windows" is a discredited theory that has helped increase the number of people in US jails from under 200,000 in 1970 to about 2 million in 2000 according to Bernard Harcourt a US academic who has studied the theory and the policing policies that come from it.

The "broken windows" theory comes from an article in the Atlantic Monthly in the early 1980s written by George L. Kelling and James Wilson. They said "One unrepaired broken window is a signal that no one cares, so breaking more windows costs nothing." Their idea was that if neighbourhoods didn't deal with minor disorder, they would soon have a lot of major crimes.

According to the Vancouver Sun, Mayor Sam Sullivan plans to introduce something similar to a "broken windows" policy in Vancouver to deal with "street disorder." In fact, the city has sent out a news release saying that they will be doing an extra cleaning of the lanes around Columbia and Hastings between Aug. 14 and Sept. 8th. According to the news release, the project, which involves the police, is "an innovative way to

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address street disorder based on the "broken windows" theory."

According to Harcourt, the "broken windows" theory results in numerous arrests for minor offences and discriminates against people who are "dark, young, and poor." Besides that, it doesn't even reduce serious crime.

The broken windows theory boils down to harassing the poor so you can be seen to be doing something without fixing the real cause of poverty: wrecked welfare and housing systems and low wages.

Instead of enforcing a "broken windows" policy, our governments should be fixing broken welfare, EI and housing.

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The Columbia Hotel court case an ~ urban myth

For years people in the Downtown Eastside, myself included, have thought that back in the early 1990s there was a court case involving the City of Vancouver, the Columbia Hotel and the Standards of Maintenance bylaw. We thought that the Columbia Hotel refused to do repairs that were required under the bylaw so the city did the work and billed it to the owner. Then, we thought, the Columbia Hotel took the city to court and the court said the Hotel didn't have to pay the city the full cost of the repairs. City councilors and staff told us about this. And the court case became the reason given as to why the city couldn't use section 23 .8 of the Standards of Maintenance bylaw that allows it to do needed repair and maintenance work, and bill the costs to the owner.

A few months ago CCAP asked David Mossop, a lawyer with Community Legal Assistance to look into the court case to see if it really is a good excuse for not using the bylaw. But Mossop couldn't find the decision or any record of the court case. Beth Davies, our Carnegie Librarian, found media articles about the city planning to do repair work on the Columbia Hotel. In April, 1990 the city hired a contractor to do $253,000 worth of work at the Columbia. But there was no mention of a court case. Beth checked

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Supreme Court records and found no mention of a court case there either.

Then, last month, CCAP learned that the court case is an urban myth. The city had looked for the court case records and found nothing. It also checked financial records and found that the Columbia had paid the city in full for the repairs. When I tried to verify this with city lawyer Katherine Kinehan, she stonewalled me, saying she could not talk to me because I was not her client. Another city official didn't return my calls.

Then I talked to our Member of Parliament, Libby Davies, who was on city council in 1990. Libby said she could remember her husband, Councilor Bruce Eriksen, pushing council to do the repair work at the Columbia, but she couldn't remember a court case. Neither could Jim Green, who left DERA just before 1990, or Barb Daniels who replaced Jim in 1990. Kim Kerr of DERA says they have no record of a court case.

So at this point it looks like there was no Columbia Hotel court case, and the city has no good reason for not enforcing section 23 .8 of the Standards of Maintenance bylaw which allows it to do repairs and bill hotel owners for the work. - Jean Swanson

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American Hotel threatened with· closure Pivot news release, Vancouver August

18 The relentless assault on low-income

housing in Vancouver continues in Au­gust as the American Hotel, a 37-unit low-income residential hotel on Main Street in Vancouver, issued illegal evic­tion notices to all of its tenants demand­ing that they leave by September 30.

"This is beginning to look more and more like Expo 86," said David Eby, lawyer for Pivot Legal Society. "The eviction notices are illegal, but the process for appeals under the Residen­tial Tenancy Act is so difficult that most tenants will probably get kicked out nevertheless."

The reason given by the American Hotel on the eviction notices for evict­ing all the tenants is that renovations they are planning cannot occur with tenants in the building. However, no City permits have been obtained, a re­quirement before evicting a tenant to make renovations under the Residential Tenancy Act. In addition, the forms used were invalid. When the representa­tive of the American Hotel was advised of this fact, he told lawyer David Eby: "I don't care. I'm going to change the locks at the end of September anyway.

Under the Residential Tenancy Act, a tenant who wishes to appeal an illegal eviction notice must go to Burnaby to

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obtain an. arbitration decision, a process which can take up to six weeks. If the landlord ignores the ruling and changes the locks anyway, the tenant must apply to Supreme Court for an enforcement order. This entire process can take up to two months, an almost insunnountable challenge for many low-income tenants.

"The temptation for owners of SRO hotels to find ways to evict their tenants and make a quick dollar is only gong to increase as the Olympics approaches," said Eby. "If the City of Vancouver and the Province of BC do not begin to make good on their commitment to pro­tect low-income housing, the world will arrive on our doorstep in 2010 to wit­ness a major homeless11ess crisis."

The impending closure of the Ameri­can Hotel (3 7 units) by the owners of that building follows the slow-motion closure of the Lucky Lodge ( 61 tenants as of July, 2006) by the City and the Province where 9 units are now vacant due to welfare' s new policy to refuse to issue rents to prospective tenants of that building. These closures in progress fol­low the dramatic closures of the Bums Block hotel ( 18 units) and the Pender Hotel (36 units) in March, 2006, and the closure of the Marble Arch hotel (148 units) and St. Helen' s hotel ( 1 00 units) to low income tenants through renova­tions and rent increases.

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The main players are small in number but large in self-effacement. This photo, taken by Carl MacDonald, shows Jean Swanson with a smile after giving a great 'speech', the DE historian Sandy Cameron in the middle making sure posterity is served, and a rare shot of Harold David in his totally unconvincing 'retirement' sitting on the right.

Thanks to all the unsung heroes and heroines of the Carnegie Newsletter production crew and everyone who had anything, however remote, to do with the 20th Anniversary celebration. Thanks especially to Lisa David, my wife and partner, for her love and patience.

VOLUNTEERS -

Mondays; Seminar Room; 11 am- Spm First come first serve. Sign up with Colleen Monday morning in the Volunteer Program Office, 3rd floor Please come with clean hair or no cut

Volunteer Chili Dinner. !h Monday, Sept. 25 5-7pm, 2nd Floor Cafeteria

Please pickup ticket from Volunteer Program Office

PaulR Taylor, editor.

Volunteer Committee Meeting Wednesday, September 13 @ 2pm in Classroom ll

Movie With Colleen: Volunteer Out-Trip Monday, Sept. 11 tJ1 Meet at 11 :30arn at Info Desk Sign up with Colleen

KWEEN COLLEEN IS HAVING A BIRTHDAY This Year. Happy 45th Birthday Kweenie Sunday, September 1Oth ALL DAY

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Volunteers of the Month (July 2006) James Hance "Mr:Smiley" is a brave, tenacious soul who has climbed many mountains and slain many dragons. We are fortunate to have him as one of our Cashiers on the 2nd floor. Due to the multi task/customer service nature of this position, along with standing on your feet for a good solid four hours (sometimes more) it is a hard position to fill and James manages it proudly. Les Nelson Les is a mild-mannered soul who volun­teers as one of our Lane Level receptionists. He is a man with a kindly, considerate character who makes it a pleasure for the community to be served by him. His gentle spirit makes a little lighter those who cross his path in a world that can be cold, rude and indifferent.

LAUGHTER IS THE MUSIC OF THE SOUL

OUR VOLUNTEERS: OUR GREATEST ASSET THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR HARD WORK

Akerna~vts Cociiltolii\D Education

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Sex Workers Support Group TUESDAY' S 4-6PM

#416-119 W.PENDER ST.

You don't have to feel alone! SNACKS AND COFFEE PROVIDED

For information: 604-872-7 651

Everyone at PACE - staff, members, or visitors ­has the right to be respected and safe while here.

- Street issues/business stays on the street. · -No yelling, no insults, no threats.

-No abuse or violence: verbal, emotionaJ, physical.

Volunteer Dinner . Wednesday, September 20, 4:30pm in the Theatre This is a dinner for all volunteers with a minimum, of 12 hours service for the month. This dinner is one way Staff show our appreciation to all of you for all that you do for the community

New Volunteer Position: Senior's Lounge Monitor This person will help out the Coffe.e Seller by moni­toring the room. For more information please talk to Colleen or Sindy in the Volunteer Program Office or Marlene on the Lane Level. This is a sweet job for someone who has customer service skills and likes watching 'television!

·Pool Room: Volunteer Monitor Meetins: When: Monday S~ptember 4th Where: Pool Room Time: 11 :00 am

COMPUTERS: There is a standing joke in the com­puter business that your computer is obsolete as soon as you get it home from the store. Well here at Car­negie we have updated our computer rules. Firstly due to previous problems, there has been a change in policy. If security or staff bars you from using our computers in one area, it will now apply to all com­puters under Carnegie control. You will still have access to the rest of the Centre.

Due to the demand the computer lab now opens at 9:15am everyday. Also ifyou are in a hurry check out our new express service in the computer room, Computer #2 is now reserved for Internet or e-mail access of 15 minutes or less, 8,n if you need to check your e-mail, check a bus schedule, a job posting you can be in and out faster, If you have any questions just ask one of our helpful computer monitors. While you are there read the updated rules and guidelines .

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From The Computer Lab: /n a Huny? Need to

1. CHECK YOUREMArL 2. LOOK UP A BUS SCHEDULE 3. CHECK A JOB POSTING 4. ANY OTHER QUICK USE OF THE NET

The computer room now offers access to a maximum of 15- minutes on computer # 2. If this is what you need, please print~ beside your name.

Guard(ian) Angels (?) Identification: Friend or Foe? (Fiend or Faux)?

Several weeks ago, the DTES was "visited" for the first time by the Guardian Angels, a para-vigilante

~ group, and their founder Curtis Sliwa The Guardian Angels are what could be loosely

termed a pro-active anti-crime citizen group made up of volunteers who, for whatever motivation, wish to help society in the fight against crime. While I have no problem with attempts to address the matter of criminal activity and would be one of the first to come to the aid of a helpless victim of assault, (should it be a viable option), I think it would be wise for the city of Vancouver and our police de­partment to consider carefully whether we want the kind of knee-jerk vigilantism dished out in Doc Mar­tens, the kind of anti-crime radicalism that could pose more problems than it could solve. What is really required in the redress of the issue of

crime is addressing the root cause of most criminal behavior- poverty and its attendant social ills (addic­tion, homelessness, and marginalization). Only as we begin to address these core issues will society be able to adequately deal with the more immediate concerns of crime prevention and law enforcement.

The Guardian Angels and Curtis Sliwa can stay in New York and keep it all to themselves. We'll find a civilized way, a CANADIAN way to solve our crime problems .

Rabble Rouser

THE TEDDY BEARS PICNIC (revisited)

On Monday the 21st of August, the Carnegie volun­teers and seniors we~t on our uow yearly, officially

• named "Teddy Bears Picnic." I want to publicly give thanks to our Codfather Ian for his arts in cooking our fantastic roast beef dinner .. and to that Gerald guy who forged them Mr. Sub recipes so well.

We arrived at Boundary Bay in a long bus. (Egor came in the short bus.) After a nice Gerald sub and a few glasses of apple juice, some of us went on a walk along the dyke area. Gerald guided us to the local sub pump house. Thnx Gerald, well done!! Alas there was nowhere to squat. Upon Colleen's request for water, even though there were ducks swimming in some, we went back to camp. Marlene took off to have a Big Mac and a Slurrpee in the Carnegie van and got back just in time for the teddy bear judging. Colleen had us sit our bears on a log and clapping

carried the judging. My bear got the most! (No! My bear does not now nor has ever got the clap.) Any­way last year you might recall my bear was not even picked as a contestant and was laughed at and called "loser" by all the other bears. He was so hurt he tried to commit suicide a few times. After munths of ther­apy he has come out of his depression. You can read about his story at www.Getwellbear.tripod.com (his new name is Winner Bear).

I will be posting pies of this party soon. In the meantime I have put together a video of our trip (in­cluding my temporary defection to the USA.) Come and see me if you want a peek. Remember,

"a day without a bear is like a day without beer" mr. mcbinner

mrmcbinner@hotmail.com

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How Cruel Are We? a white girl

is below my balcony

keeping 6 in the alley while a Latino man

shoots up behind her valuable skin

so often torn by objects more comforting

than our harsh hand locking her up again and again

because we cannot stand to see her love where we do not

and consequently refuse to help her

no help for her Standing in a Chinatown doorway

leaning defiantly smoking a cigtu .:~~c

and ready to not take

any shit from police

whose handcuffs scar the wrists of

Support Groups

Bud Osborn Signs of the Times

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our

abandoned

daughter

The in and outs of the Native Organizations are sometimes new to me. When I was in great need of help there was none to be found. I was employed and my own employer fired me, even when I had a Doc­tor's letter. This is an organization that is helping Women who have drug & alcohol problems when they are pregnant. Instead of sitting me down & talk­ing to me, they said "You're fired." My employer tried to demoraJize me, saying I wasn't fit to be in the

work force. The employer also tried to make it hard for me to collect E.l, but sorry folks! I had proof from the Doctor that I had <l: problem with drugs & alcohol. · · -

With my drugs & alcohol experiences, I've come to believe that any or-ganization should look at their staff issues too. The staff go through many things working with all the women, and wind up getting caught up in their problems. They end up taking it home. Why not try a glass of beer or drug of choice; it will take my pain, anger, loss, or anything away. I ended up dong this all. l realized it, confronted it,

but ended up with a slap across the face. Come all you Native & Non-native Organizations: Open your EYES, it is probably happening as we speak.

Instead of dismissing your staff, look at all issues first before judging the person. Today, T would like to thank YWCA for having support groups; I likely wouldn't be on this Path. I'm proud of being a part of the F ASD PEER SUPPORT GROUP. It has helped me out. ·

Now I want to know what is happening with our Correctional system, Are they looking into why our children are in & out of the system? Where did the · .r

• problem start? Did it start at home or school. Did the professionals look into her problem? Did they take the time to see why there is a vicious cycle here? Maybe she has a learning disability and does not re-alize what is right or wrong... . It is about time that all professionals, native and

non-native, open their eyes. We as the community should all start to work together instead of ignoring the problems we are having. Teach our children early about the danger of drugs & alcohol, especially if they are planning to have children of their own. As a grandmother of 8 or P)Ore, I'm learning how to love myself. It has been a long journey, fighting all the way to be drug &alcohol free. The Creator is my mentor.

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All my relations Bonnie Stevens

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DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE YOUTH ACTIVITIES SOCIETY 49 W.Cordova 604-251-3310

FREE - Donations accepted

n o

,N ~ w·s·L E-TTE-R THE NEWSLETTER IS A PUBLICATION OF TilE

CARNEGIE COMMUNITY CENTRE ASSOCIATION. Articles represent the views or individual contributors and not or the Association.

~ Contributors m~y not _malign, attack, or relegate any person, group or class, tncludmg drug users and economically poor DCODIC, to a level referred to or 'less than human'.

~r-We -;k;o~dg;thai C:m~gie c~,;;;;u~i~C;n;;, ~dti,~ Newsletter, arc on the N,.tion 's t .. rr;''""''

Editor: PauiR Taylor; cover Zeina Waheed, layout Lisa David.

Subnlission Deadline for next issue:

Tuesday, September 12

~ Coni ad ·"' ... ,,... Jenny

•• n'ol CAing ~

.7 ""'tilt ~LA

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workang tor You lfi7D-16.&1 Commercial Dr VSL JVJ

• Phone; 775-0790 Fat: 77~-0881 Downtown Eastside Residents Association

12 E. Ha.sllngs Sl, or call682-4t9JI

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DEY AS Needle Exchange Van Schedule Telephone (604) 6'7-6,61 AM Van 7:00am- ':OOpm (on the road Bam-4pm) PM Van 4:00pm- 2:00am (on the road ~pm-lam) 7 D~ya I Week .

2006 DONATIONS Libby D.'-$100 Rolf A.-$50 Barry for Dave McC-$100 Christopher R.-$30

· Margaret 0 .-$40 Bruce J.-$15 The Edge-$200 Mary C-$10 Penny G .-$50 MP/Jelly Bean -$20 RayCam-30 Janice P.-$30 Wes K.-$50 Paddy -$60 Glen 8 .-$25 John S.-$60 Leslie S.-$20 Wm.D -$20 Michael C.-$80 Humanities I 01-$100 Gram -$20 Sheila D.-$20 Ben C.-$20 Brian $2 CEEDS -$50 Joanne H.-$20 Wilhelmina M.-$10 Saman -SlO Phyllis L. -$200

HANDCRAFTED IN VANCOUVER, CANADA

BY DIANE WOOD

e-mail: dianeew@vcn.bc.ca

NEW CONCESSION HOURS:

9am-ll:l5am; 12pm-4pm; Spm-8pm

~ DO YOU HAVE A LEGAL PROBLEM? Come to our Free Clinic on Carnegie's 3'd floor UBC Law Students Legal Advice Program

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Tues, l0am-8pm; Wed & Thurs, 10am-4pm

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a community celebration of the resilience of .the spirit and the healing power of art .

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. Saturday Septembe~ 16 2006

·oppenheimer park noon-dusk Art Against Brutality is a day long multi-media community celebration of the healing and revolu­tionary power of art. As last year, the event will take place in Oppenheimer Park, where we are building a huge labyrinth to showcase people's art in the form of drawings and painting, sculpture, carving, writing and collage. There will also be an interactive area with workshops lined up to include: chapbook mak­ing with Steve, mural painting with DES Media group, silkscreen and stenciling with APC and a ta­ble for general artistry for individuals to draw paint or colour their experience. The main stage promises to inform and entertain with speakers and perform­ances throughout the afternoon. See our blog for the latest details of just who is performing and when.

Other highlights of the day will be some fun games, a graffiti wall, random performances and a salmon bar-b-que in the late afternoon.

How to prepare for Art Against Brutality: Think of a visual way to present your experience and thinking on the subject. Make an altar, or decorate an item that is personally meaningful. Copy a poem for the poet tree. Find a stone to bring for the medicine wheel, and/or something to remember a loved one lost to violence. Let your friends and neighbours know about the event and invite them to do the same. You can contact us, to register or for more info, and to help with the various tasks that we are

worki on.

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 16, 2006 open to the public at noon:

Dress festive and bring your art to the park for display, or just come as you are!

Artagainstbrutality .blogspot.coml ( 604) 682-3269 extension 7400 to leave a message

News from the Library

New Books: We have some great new books with interesting

things to say about city and community building. Bel/town Paradise/Making Their Own Plans (710.4) recounts how citizens of a Seattle neighbour­hood beset by drug addiction, prostitution and homelessness came together to create a beautiful green people-centered street. In Ecocities (307.12) Richard Register shows us how to re-build our · cities using ecological principles. In Shadow Cities (307.3 NEU) author Robert Neuwirth discovers worlds of vitality and creativity thriving in the face • of government indifferences and hostility while liv­ing in four different squatter communities around the world. Events:

Downtown Eastside Poets Come to the Carnegie Theatre Saturday September 2 · at 7:00pm to listen to some poetry or offer up some of your own. Coffee will be served. Book Giveaway Every Friday afternoon at 2:30pm outside the Car­negie Centre on Hastings Street we have a book giveaway. There are often magazines to take away as well. Come say hi and grab a few books.

Mark the Librarian

KARAOKE with Steve Friday, September 8, 7-lOpm

Carnegie Theatre . Karaoke is a form of singing available for everyone. It is a golden chance for people to discover the joy of singing in an encouraging, accepting environment.

· EVERY WELCOME! Refreshment served to the brave souls.

Addiction: }t's Not About Drugs

Our neighbourhood is not the Downtown Eastside. Yet we have severe addiction problems of our own, and not just to drugs. What are people in the Britan­nia/Grandview area addicted to? What causes these addictions? What can we do about it? In this pro­gram we will review some new literature on addic­tion, discuss our own observations, and formulate practical solutions both on a neighbourhood and a personal level.

Course number: 44909.401BR Mon 7:00-10:00 pm Sept 18-Dec 4 Britannia Community Centre LRC B Alexander $40/10 sess (No class Oct 9, Nov 13) Call604-718 5800/5807/5809/5811 - 7 days a week)

Bruce Alexander and Terry Patten have been organ­izers for "A Community A ware" operating in the Commercial Drive area, for discussion of social and political issues. Bruce is a retired professor who specialized in addiction at Simon Fraser University. Terry is a retired businessman.

Poverty

Amidst Plenty

We can brighten the dark side

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to BC's economy. By Marc Lee

Without any fanfare a report popped up on the web site of Human Resources and Social Development Canada this past month. No press release, no com­munications strategy at all. Just another statistical report on poverty in a society that thinks of itself as middle class. But tllis is not just another statistical report on pov­erty (or "low income" as the government politely calls it). It is a whopper, especially for folks in B.C. The average poverty rate in B.C. was 22.5 per cent in 2002. But the rate is much higher for certain fam­ily types. Over 30 per cent of children were living in poverty, as were 58 per cent of single moms. For almost every group, B.C. poverty rates are higher than previous estimates, higher than the national

• • average, and higher than every other province except : Newfoundland. • What is particularly interesting is the report's ap-: proach, which calculates··a ''market basket" to esti­• mate what households minimally need to spend not : to live in pepury. This includes provisions for food, • shelter, clothing, transportation and some other mis­e cellaneous items. • • • For a family of four in Vancouver, this adds up to : $28,944; a family with less disposable income • would be considered poor. A few thousand dollars • could be saved if this family were to live elsewhere • • in B.C., or in, say, Calgary. Only living in Toronto • would be more costly than Vancouver . • • Reading between the poverty lines • First, some context for these new numbers. For • • many years, forces on the right argued that poverty • rates in Canada were overstated because they used : "relative" measures, based on the idea that whether • one is poor or not depends on how others are doing. : The right has taken particular exception to Statistics • Canada's Low Income Cut-Off, or LICO. These : complaints pushed the federal government to de-• velop a "market basket measure" of poverty, or : MBM. The poverty line ba!::v<l on the ~1BM is actu-• ally quite similar to the LICO ($30,433). In truth,

almost all measures of poverty lines are relatively close to one another, with the exception of the Fraser Institute's "thin gruel" measure, which is about $10,000 less. The point is that welfare incomes fall below the poverty threshold no matter how they are measured. Including both provincial and federal benefits, a family of four on welfare in B.C. receives $16,951, about $3,000 a year less than the Fraser Institute's

• • muumum. BC in 2006 Should we care? This is 2006 and the numbers pre­sented were for 2002. The economy has indeed im­proved since then. The labour market is steaming, with unemployment in the 4 to 5 per cent range. There are cranes everywhere. Housing prices make jaws drop on a daily basis. The Olympics .... What the new report does is reinforce the accumulat­ing evidence of a dark side to B.C.'s economy. B.C. had the highest overall poverty and child poverty rates in Canada in 2004 (the last data year for the LICO). And while some are getting rich,. median

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- -incomes have stagnated after accounting for a higher cost of living. To my eyes it seems there have never ~een niore street people in Vancouver than this year:> and they appear to be living not just on the streets, but in pub­lic parks, under bridges, on the Flats and in almost every part of town, east side or west side, downtown or the suburbs. We know that what is in public view is only the tip of the iceberg. A count of homeless in Greater Van­couver turned up 2,17 4 homeless people in March 2005, up double from 2002, a large share of whom are long-term homeless. For every homeless person there are many more who are in inadequate housing or who are but a paycheque away from the street. And to (badly) paraphrase Yogi Berra, the housing market is so hot no one can afford a home anymore. According to the Canadian Association of Food Banks, about 30,000 B.C. households used food banks in March 2005. A survey a few years ago found that about eight per cent of households went hungry at some point in the year. The conclusion is inescapable: there is deep poverty in Vancouver, ?"~~£Jled by addiction and mental health problems, and linked to Canada's highest property crime rates. Even The Economist magazine, known for its advocacy of free markets, wagged its finger at us in a recent issue. Lights, camera, apathy

There are solutions, but they require the political will to be bold. We need to double the supply of affordable housing. We need to raise the minimum wage to $10 an hour so that anyone working full­time and full-year is above the poverty line. We need to raise welfare rates by 50 per cent so that they are adequate to basic survival, and we should allow people to combine welfare and paid income in ways that are currently not permitted. Mostly, we need to stop moralizing about the poor­est and whether they are sufficiently deserving of help. The economics of doing the right thing are favourable: more money in the hands of the poorest goes right into children's bellies and benefits local merchants; we spend more on homeless people right now -- through health care, social services and the criminal justice systems -- than we would if we were to pt:ovide them· with homes; and it makes more sense to pay for addiction services through our taxes than after the fact by replacing broken car windows .

As mentioned up front, Newfoundland has also reg­istered among the highest poverty rates in Canada. But unlike the B.C. government, .the. Dann~ Wil­liams government does not deny the problem. In­stead, they have made poverty reduction one of their overarching goals. Their Action Plan has a long­term focus -- including measures aimed at the labour market, income support and education -- and is grounded in consultations at the community level. B.C. would do well to engage in a similar approach. It is not like money is the real problem. B.C. just finished the last fiscal year with a record $3.1 billion surplus, even after Carole Taylor took out close to a billion for public sector negotiating carrots. This tops the 2004/05 surplus of $2.6 billion. These sur­pluses go towards paying down B.C.'s debt, but our debt is already quite low-- relative to GDP, B.C.'s debt is the lowest among the provinces (except for oil-rich Alberta). This year's surplus will also be in the $2-3 billion range, though you will not get that from official es­timates. Over the past four budgets, surpluses have been under-stated (or deficits over-stated) by a total of $8 billion. That is unhealthy for democratic de­bate in B.C., and should be a concern whether you are a right-wing tax cutter or someone like me who wants to use those available tax dollars to tackle some of these festering problems. Tax cuts cannot solve our poverty problem. They will not build more affordable housing. They cannot help vulnerable children. Tax cuts only widen the gap between rich and poor. Did I mention that the Olympics are coming? Think lots of visitors and lots of cameras. But what will the world see when the spotlight goes on?

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PIVOT Legal Society is re-locating in September

to

688 East Hastings Street

604-696-1322

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Poverty i.n B.C & Everywhere in Canada

I am aware how things are in your Province (B.C.) and especially in Vancouver. I used to live there (1980 to 1994) in the downtown eastside. I have seen things degrading in this city over the years; I am sure that it has gotten worse since then and I am not sur­prised. I had some dealings with Gordon Campbell in the past when he was your Mayor, and I must say I never liked him. He and his government are simply greedy; no wonder why things are not getting better for the homeless.

We also have a government here in Alberta that is very greedy. Premier Ralph Klein and his Govern­ment are equal to yours, if not worse, when it comes to our less fortunate. The only reason why our Prov­ince is not in the red anymore is because our gov­ernment has been cutting down on everything from social housing to welfare and health care.

The A.J.S.H. Program has been rai.sed only recently to $1.000 and even this is not enQugh. Same with our

. minimum wage, it has gone up to a little over $7 per hour but a person needs to make at least $1 0 per hours or have two jobs in order to be able to survive in our city. I personally had to fight for the past five years with the system here to get on A.I.S.H., and only recently our government decided that I deserved to be on it. (This was because I had to spend a week in the hospital due to internal bleeding caused by my stomach. It was the second time in two years this happened to me and this time around I almost didn't make it so they had no choice but to help me out.)

Ralph Klein and his government lie to the people in the rest of our country when they say that things are just fine here. There is a very serious situation with homelessness everywhere in our Province - from Edmonton to Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Grande Prairie, Fort McMurray .. especially here in Calgary.

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Art for Art's Sake

Jean Jean maid a machine JoJo mad it go But Art Art blew a fart and blue the hole machine apart!

We are one We do it in unison .

I don't know where these governments and insti­tutes get their numbers but what I see in Calgary is the making of a disaster when it comes to homeless­ness. Even some of our cit)''s ·Councillors admit that our city is in very bad shape when it comes to this issue. Our Mayof, as far as I am concerned, is in complete denial when it comes to this, and believe me I am not the only one who thinks so. Our city is growing too fast and we are behind the eight ball when it comes to addressing social issues here.

As I mentioned before, our last count for our home­less jumped from 2500 to a little over 3400, and those are only the ones who are living in the shelter system. This isn't counting those who are living in abandoned houses, cars, parks or along the river. As well, in excess of 50.000 households are at risk of becoming homeless. A bout 20% of our homeless are women while the majority are actually low income workers. We have a lot of work available here but we lack the social support for our low-income workers.

Rents are sky high. For example, most rooms in rooming houses are between $375 and $400 per month and these are not the best places; one bed­rooms go anywhere from $575 to $700 and two bed­rooms anywhere from $750 to ahn~!! $900 in some places. I am one of those who has to pay $700 per ~onth f~r a two bedroom but, as you can imagine, it IS very difficult for me to survive because it doesn't leave much for food and other necessities of life. .This is why I and a lot of people in our country be­

heve that we need to have a stronger voice for our less fortunate, we need to work together to address these issues and show our governments that we are no longer prepared to sit and watch things degrading across our country and say nothing. In solidarity with our brothers and sisters across Canada.

The Creator is creative Change is painful for everyone The Creator is an Artist -

Daniel

Irony! is that shit stinks; then it falls apart and you've got stuff to make a rose garden!

Jessica

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Carnegie Community Centre & Vancouver Moving Theatre with the Association of United Ukrainian Canadians

The 3nd Annual Downtown .Eastside .

Heart of the City FeStival Wed. 25 October - Sun. 5 November 2006

Over 50 events at over 15 venues throughout the DTES and District

This year's festival features twelve days of play readings, opera and musical showcases, coffee houses, cultural centre open houses, dances, spoken word, processions, forums, workshops, discussions, gallery exhibits, mixed media viewings, art talks, history talks, and history walks.

Tell your friends about the festival. Come on out to the festival and support the artists, participate in history walks, workshops and forums and have a good time.

We' re looking for ideas for programming and projects for the 2007 a.nd 2008 festivals. Tell us about exciting artists, programs, activities, events, cultural groups and partnering opportunities. Your voice is needed and appreciated.

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For more information or to participate please contact Rika Uto 604-665-3003 or Terry Hunter, 604-725-3737

The Carnegie Community Centre and Vancouver Moving Theatre are members ofthe Downtown Eastside Community A rts Network