May 15, 2010

75th Anniversary

Work Wages

The Occupation of the Carnegie Museum By Sandy Cameron

They were young these men of Divis ion #3 of the Re lief Camp Worke rs' Union. T hey marched up the winding staircase of the Carnegie Library to the m useum on the th ird floor on May 18, 1935, at two o'clock in the afternoon.

They were young hungry desperate and disciplined. F or six weeks they had struggled w ith provincial and federal governments that wanted to starve them back to the relief camps called "National Defence Concentration Camps" by Angus Macinnis Member of Parliament for Vancouver South. and called slave labour camps by the unemployed men who worked in them for twenty cents a day.

While three hu ndred men occupied the Carnegie museum, hundreds of others took over the food floor at Woodward's. They walked the a isles chanting "When do we eat?" for they were hungry, and the government wanted to starve them back to slave labour.

Tns ide the museum the boys hung a banner from the windows of Carnegie's third floor. It read, "When do we eat?" That question was answered when a crowd of supporters gathered outside the Carnegie Library.

Ropes were dropped from the third floor, and sandwiches, coffee, cigarettes were hauled up by the men occupying the museum.

Eighteen year old Willis Shaparla climbed onto the roof of the Carnegie to get a better view of the street. He looked in the direction of Woodward's and saw a large g roup of unemployed men marching on Hastings Street towards him. They were marching four abreast, and were weaving from one side of the street to the other

in a snake parade. At the same time they were singing the song that became the rallying cry ofthe Relief Camp Workers' Union during the On-To-Ottawa T rek. These are the words that Wi lli s heard from the roof o f the Carnegie Library on that glorious day:

"We meet today in freedom's cause and rai se our voices high : we'll join our hands in union strong to battle or to die. Hold the fo rt for we are coming, unionists be strong. Side by side we battle onward, victory will come."

By early evening a crowd of four thousand citizens had gathered outside the Carnegie Library in support of the three hundred men occupying the museum. Relief camp workers, led by Arthur Evans, tri ed to negotiate for food and shelter, but Mayor McGeer was rig id. He, after all, was the one who had read the Riot Act to hungry men at Victory Square a month earlier. Police Chief Foster told the men at Carnegie that he would have to evict the m, but Oscar Salonen, a longshore leader, to ld the Police Chief that if he tried to evict them, one thousand, five hundred longshoremen would come to their aid.

Foster met with McGeer and the Mayor agreed to give two days' relief for all the men who were on strike from the relief camps. At 8:00p.m. the men left the museum, and were met with loud cheers by the crowd outside.

By the end of May the unemployed strikers had reached a dead end. Vancouver citizens had supported them, but private charity can never deal real istically with public catastrophe. Neither the provincial nor federal governments would help them, so the unemployed workers decided to go to Ottawa on thei r own. They demanded "Work and Wages", and this was the beginning oftlie On-To-Ottawa Trek.

In the autumn of 1935 the federal government of R.B. Bennett was defeated, and the Conservative Party would not hold power again in Ottawa until the election of John Diefenbaker in 1957, and in 1936, the new federal government, led by Mackenzie King, abolished the hated relief camps

Tuesday, May 18, 2pm Carnegie Centre, 2nd floor

Music I Stories I Food I Poetry

False Prcimis.es~on : . . ~

False Creek,.:o . ""'"""-;•"".., ......

2:30pm, Saturday May 15 2010 Meet @ Science World

Free food and smokes will be available

VAN.ACT!

False Promises on False Creek Mayor Gregor Robertson's recent homeless count shows a 12% increase in homelessness since 2008, the year of his election to office. While Gregor ran on a platform to end homelessness, he and the Vision caucus have responded to this increase with the unac­companied strategy of millions of dollars for in­creased policing. Now, as of April 20, the vast major­ity of the promised low-income units in the Olympic Vi llage are being handed over to the pol ice and other

"essential" City workers. During the 2008 election campaign, Gregor and Vi­sion smeared their opponents for not hiring extra po­lice officers and for being soft on crime [1]. This strategy included criticizing mayoral opponent Peter Ladner for having once voted against a Police De­partment budget increase earmarked for additional street cops under Vancouver's Project Civil City.[2] In retrospect, Gregor's rapprochement with Project Civil City is significant, because since that time his police department 's ticketing quota system has been circulating Vancouver's poor population through the jails daily, with endless charges for petty offenses introduced under the rules of Civil City- offenses like jaywalking, spitting, unlicensed pets, and street vend ing. The VPD's 2008 Annual Business Plan projected a 20% increase in charges falling under Project Civil City and the Safe Streets Act dealing with "street dis­order."[3] To meet the staffing demands of this new "results-based" approach, whereby results are pre­determined through the enforcement of ticketing quo­tas, Gregor has hired I 00 extra cops, giving an extra $13 million to the VPD in 2009 alone.[ 4] Now, in order to house these new cops, Gregor has voted for a staff recommendation that eliminates all promised dedicated low-income social housing in the Olympic Village.[5] Gregor has announced that his plans would "honour our commitment to affordable housing in the Olympic village."[6] It serves to navigate past this lie by look­ing at the original plans themselves. Until 2006, the c ity's Official Development Plan (ODP) for the Olympic Village was for roughly 400 units of low­income social housing. In other words, 33% of the total units at the vi llage were for the homeless and those at risk of homelessness.[7] This ODP estab­lished a three-way breakdown for the overall project: 1/3 social housing ("deep core need"), 113 affordable housing ("shallow need") and 1/3 market condos.[7] Those commitments were then reduced under Mayor Sam Sullivan. In March of2007, city council ap­proved a reduction from the promised 66% non­market down to 20% non-market, represented by the 250 units now familiar to journalists and the public. Those 250 units were to be divided three ways: 40% '·deep core" social housing, 40% "shallow need" af fordable housing, 20% low-market housing. In other words, the original 33% for low-income social hous-

ing was reduced to 8%.[8] With council's recent reduction, half of the 250 will now rent for market rates. Most importantly, the 33%­cum-8% low-income element has been reduced to almost 0%. The staff recommended that zero units be dedicated low-income units ("deep core"), but due to a last-minute amendment forced through by housing advocates, there will be "some" deep core units mixed into to meager 126 non-market units, although zero parameters have been set for this token amount. Gregor's campaign promise was to End Homeless­ness. Without any clarification of a plan, or even a definition of what "End" means as a political termi­nology, what results is a deferral to the barbaric strategies of imprisonment and displacement that are already systematic in the city's rapidly gentrifying downtown easts ide. As his Olympic housing legacy, the mayor is e liminating social housing from the Olympic Vi llage and handing those units over to those tasked with enforcing the gentrification laws themselves: the VPD and their legacy of Project Civil City. There is a partnership, since while Gregor facilitates gentrification through zoning policies like the recent I Ieight Review process,[9] the police act on the ground as the literal foot soldiers of gentrification, driving the poor into the institutions and prisons, or­though harassment and impoverishment- out of the city altogether. In each case the way is paved for the settlement of the property-owning classes who would rather suffer themselves than recognize equality as an active concept for our time. A rally is planned for May 15 at the Grand Opening of the Olympic Village. ''False Promises at False Creek", http:llfalsecreekpromises. wordpress.com/

CCCAAGM The Carnegie Community Association Annual Gen­eral Meeting will be held on Thursday, June 3rd, 20 I 0 at 5:30pm in the Theatre. Voting for members of the Board of Directors will take place. Registration is from 5:00 to 5:30 pm. In order to vote, one must have a Carnegie membership card purchased on or before May 20, 20 I 0.

At the May 61h Board of Directors' Meeting: The following members were nominated.

Ben Rampre, Colleen Carroll, *Craig Hathaway, Ge­na Thompson, James Pau, Lisa David, Matthew Mat­thew, Pat McSherry, Phoenix Winter, Priscillia Tait, *Robert Milton, Scott Gentes, *Sandra Pronteau, James Oikle, Diane Tobin, Stephen Lytton, Robyn Livingstone, Ann Livingston, Magnolia Villalobos, Douglas Dunn, Paul Taylor, Darlene Joe, *Adrienne Macallum *=Not in a ttendance but gave written notice tha t they would stand for nomination

a) The following declined to stand for nomination: Matthew Matthew, Stephen Lytton, Robyn Living­stone, Paul Taylor c) The following 18 nominees are the candidates run­ning for the CCCA Board of Directors elections at the June 3, 2010 Annual General Mee ting : Ben Rampre, Colleen Carroll, Craig Hathaway, Gena Thompson, James Pau, Lisa David, Pat McSherry, Phoenix Winter, Priscillia Tait, Adrienne Macallum, Scott Gentes, Sandra Pronteau, James Oikle, Diane Tobin, Ann Livingston, Magnolia Villalobos, Douglas Dunn, Darlene Joe

UBC LAW STUDENTS LEGAL ADVICE CLINIC

Starting Monday. May 24 Ends Thursday. August 1 9

GOODBYE Phillipa

Today, the whole world seems to be different because I am thinking about you Amiga ... I am trying to find the right words to say the last goodbye to you Phillipa ....

Looking into the sky I see your face, your smile among the gentle clouds Phillipa and suddenly it starts to rain slowly but firmly the raindrops fill my eyes with your memory Phillipa and suddenly it starts to rain slowly but firmly the raindrops fill my eyes with your memory Phillipa ...

Little do we know about your childhood your springtime and your youth Phillipa but I travelled from far away for many years until I found you dear friend Phillipa you are the highest expression of maternal native love that we have found in this crazy world Phillipa you were born to change this unjust society to speak up, to be there in the streets with your flags, your drums and your love Phillipa

Oh celestial warrior and steelflower of the Vancouver downtown East side we all saw you rising , the sword and the eagle feather defending the native children's rights to be themselves, learning their ancestors' sacred culturE we marched with you looking for the native women who disappeared and were murdered Phillipa you were always there marching with us for peace, justice and equality in this world Phillipa

Thank you for teaching us to fly with the eagles to swim with the fish and to fight with the thunderbird Now your soul is part of the struggle and you will live in our hearts forever we are here to say goodbye to you with all the tenderness of our voices

Drop- In REST IN PEACE DEAR PHILLIPA M o n days & Thursdays 9-Spm REST IN PEACE DEAR PHILLIPA.

Tu esdays 1 - 9p Magnolia Villalobos

3rd Floor -Art Galle

CCAP's media speech: Re James Oickle We're here to talk about James and his situation today. 1. James cannot find a decent place to li ve that is a ffordable and liveable, she lters are full to capacity and he is forced to live on the street. 2. To make matters worse, we have an unjust city bylaw that prevents the homeless from erecting a tent on the sidewalk and instead forces the homeless to hide from the police. 3. When the homeless are hidden they are in danger away from eyes on the s treet. 4. When the homeless arc hidden ... a . We can forget that Hous ing Minister Coleman refuses to bui ld enough social housing; b. We can forget about the impact of gentrification; c. We can forget about poor incomes; d. We can forget that James is one in about 250,000 homeless people in Canada; e. And, we can forget that we're the only country in the rich G8 that docs not have a national hous ing pro­gram. What's the solution? The homeless and their s upporters need to keep rais­ing a fuss. 1\ rotten law stays on the books until folks with guts defy it.

lfthe Mayor of Vancouver was serious about ending homelessness, he'd make it legal for the homeless to sleep on sidewalks so they can be safe in public view. And this would also draw attention to the problem of lack of social housing.

Minister Coleman could spend the $250 mil Housing Endowment Fund to build housing and the federa l government under Diane Findlay, !lousing Min ister, could start a national housing program that builds 30,000 homes a year across Canada like they used to before they cancelled the housing program in 1993.

T he Geography of Vomit She falls on the oddest places may day fall almost anywhere Once a bankrupt country mile She is spewed on faces -CEOs, lawyers, bureaucrats .. Yes she can wind up art­Decoing about anywhere Front lawn;Dentists;Mayor! GeoTrick: llold your nose wherever she primly goes Shall become smelly prose!

John Alan Douglas

To: Robertson, Gregor Subject: Temporary Shelters

Mr. Robertson, I would like to express my support of respecting the

Charter of Rights of homeless people to protect them­selves from the elements by erecting temporary shel­ters on publ ic property.

While I enjoy the privilege of a comfortable home, many do not have this basic need and it seems cruel to displace them by disallowing them the right to set up a safe place ro sleep.

Regards, D Clarke

From: Robertson, Gregor <Gregor. Robertson@vancouver.ca> Subject: RE: Temporary Shelters

Upon learning of the incident of Mr. Oikle being issued a ticket, I spoke to Chief Jim Chu and as you may have already heard, we were able to determine this morning that it was a VPD officer, not City of Vancouver Engineering staff, that issued the by-Jaw ticket for obstructing the sidewalk. The VPD have followed up with the officer and it appears that it is a case of a brand new officer not completely under­standing the VPD policy of deferring the matter of people camping in parks or on sidewalks to the City. The VPD will be cancelling the ticket and will be tak­ing steps to ensure that new members get refreshers on all current policies. Thanks for taking the time to write.

Gregor Robertson Mayor of Vancouver.

THANK YOU ARTISTIC TEAM, CAST, CREW AND PARTICIPANTS

The Minotaur Dreams The Downtown East side Labyrinth Project

top 1-r: Mike Richter, Priscillia Tait, Elwin Xie, Kuei·Ming Lin, Leith Harris; middle: Fanna Vee, Martin Wong. Varrick Gnmes, Sarah Redmond, [Tom Quirk, workshop participant), Phil Schulze, Kelty McKerracher, Jim Sands; bottom: Muriel Marjorie, Doug Vernon, liisa Hannus, Savannah Walling, Stephen lytton, Tom Jones, Cathy Stubington, Terry Hunter, Jocelynn Mortlock. Not in photo: Flo Barrett, Beverly Dobrinsky, Joseph Danza, ltai Erda I, Ron Horsetail, Will Miller; and volunteer participants Rick Archambault, Murray Black, Sharon Burns, Cindy Fedora, Rosanne Gervais, Maggie Holland, Alex Martin, Ruth Matemotja, Germana Mirci, June Seto and all the many people who joined in since November to share ideas, help at the workshops, explore, and build. To the wonderful Minotaur team ... thank you so much for all your hard work, commitment and passion you poured into this show. As Rudi leibik said about the show: 'Never doubt that you ore affecting the world in beautiful and inspiring and powerful ways.'

As always, Terry and Savannah

7

The MINOTAUR Dreams Live at the Russian Hall

The Minotaur Dreams, workshop performances created and produced largely by Vancouver Moving Theatre, in association with Runaway Moon Theatre, that were recently staged at the historic Russian Hall on May 8-9, were another tremendous success and a hit for these two long-time Theatre companies. They always raise the bar, setting the standards not only for themselves but a ll in the Show Business community!

Based on ancient Greek mythology, the always popular and intriguing fable of the fight to the death battle of Theseus and the Minotaur: a particular fav­ourite of VMT's always daring and mystically adven­turous Artistic Director Savannah Walling, haunting in a magical and beautiful way, almost since the day she was born (when she was 4 years old in fact). The Minotaur was the subject of her first mask dance over 30 years ago. Finally, this year, all the stars became aligned for her, and gave her the rare and wonderful opportunity to stage and transform this long-held dream, th is mystical, incandescent, transforming, empowering myth into a living, breathing reality, brought to life right in fron t or our very eyes - the sold-out audiences' !

The shows we eagerly saw were splendidly realized in what at first seemed, then became an expansively marvelous, tangled web of intrigue, love, betrayal, duty, courage and persistence all wrapped up into an explosive and yet poignant conclusion; the Final Sol­ution, both shocking and emotionally profound in scope - In the beginning, as you arrive at the Russian Hall and gather in the foyer at the start of the evening performance I attended, Varrick Grimes - the Play's amazing director - appears almost out of nowhere to explain to everyone that this is, in fact, a form called Promenade Theatre, which means that we the audi­ence are to be a part of the action, involved and sur­rounded by all of the actors, props, and technical crew, whether you choose to react or not to all of the mirth, mayhem, merriment and drama spouting in every which way, with surprising and unpredictable direction.

At first as we entered we were involved and caught in the center of an actual O lympic Games that were both qu irky and compelling and, most of all, loads of fun. After a short while we were instructed to please have a seat -either in a chair, on the floor- or remain

I standing if you wished. Exquisitely blending ancient mythology with our modem reality, in historic prop­ortion that most certainly applies to the trials and tribulations of our daily lives in the 21" century, in

and powerful. Stylish, accurate and detailed are the hand-held puppets, characters which are maneuver­ed with exacting care, making them to appear as if they are a living, breathing, human being, as many folk in the audience imagined. As the Play continued to unfold, an ancient world

took fonn before our very eyes: lively, vibrant, with sometimes somber, sometimes comical adventures. Funny for me was a toy bulldozer mowing down low-cost housing buildings that were made of card­board, glue and tape; quite inventive. The narrative continued to build throughout into a rising crescen­do, reaching an absolute fever pitch, when the Minotaur appears, at first sleeping, then building into the ultimate battle with Theseus, and the death­defying bravery of Mino's daughter Ariadne! Velty McKerracher was extremely effective in her por­trayal of Minotaur, incorporating mask, costume and powerful Flamenco dance steps with a flawless, deft maneuvering ability on a scaled-down riser. She was totally spent after a short ordeal, spilling her guts, leaving nothing on the table after being violently slain by Ariadne: It was a most shocking death.

Beverly Dobrinsky's and Pepe's musical score was haunting and textured throughout the Play, just right and profoundly authentic and accurate for the times. The Minotaur Dreams brought to life the age old tale of Good versus Evil in a very believable and emotionally moving rendering. All in ali i found this to be an incredibly amazing production, pulled ofT yet again by Vancouver Moving Theatre along with Run­away Moon Theatre. Considering that both troupes' fund ings were cut by over 50% in the March 20 I 0 Provincial Liberal Budget on top of last year's cruel, Draconian cutbacks, VMT had no choice but to re­duce the size of this year's project; the scope and range of critical preparation time from a much more favourable and necessary 5 weeks of rehearsal was condensed to a rushed, measly 2 weeks for everythin! The ever-expanding Arts communities throughout

the entire province, along with the federal expanse of Canada, need your he lp to reverse thse Machiavellian cuts to the vita l, vibrant realm ofperfonnance. If we don't, the powers-that-be wi ll continue to slash and bum, with more irrational funding cuts, until there's not one red cent left to spend for the wonderful world of visual and performing arts across the land. We have to vigorously and vocally confront this assault

by right-wing, conservative governments. Does it notj seem alanningly ironic to you that all three levels of government seem to have an unlimited supply of cash (in a so-called recession, whether it be real or a fickle figment of their collective, cluttered imaginations) to bankroll the 20 I 0 Winter Olympics; cutting them an unending supply of blank cheques to be filled in with simply enormous numbers, all according to unques­tioned whims and wants, and at the same time forget­ting that for every dollar spent in BC and across Canada on Arts every day of every year, one dollar and fifty cents comes directly back into all sectors of the economy. This is accepted and agreed on, with the twisted exception via the misconstrued perception of the 'ruling' class and their pampered politicians!

We need your help desperately right now in these trying and taxing times for the Arts. Please find the time and write to a City Councillor, the Mayor, your MLA, MP, Premier, Prime Minister, whomever, and exhort them to restore and expand funding to the Arts world immediately, the sooner the better. Please visit www.stopbcartscuts.ca and www.creatvitycounts.ca Thanks so much to all who support the Arts, past,

present and future. I know I'm speaking to the vast majority of you in the Arts-loving world. Against all odds we shall win and overcome all of this when all is said and done. Right now theres a clear and present danger [$462 Million for the new roof for the stadium while schools close and the Arts are left to starve.) Be exceptional! Be proactive!!

By ROBYN LIVINGSTONE

The 'PaCifiC 'Baroque OrcheStra presents

Baroque fandango: The SPain Of Charles m

FREE CONCERT

Our season finale emulates a spirited Spanish soiree, combining music by European composers with hum­mabie 17th century dance tunes from Latin America.

0/i!

Friday May 14, 7:30pm -St. James Anglican Church, 303 E Cordova St.

www. paci ficbaroq ue.com

Downtown Eastside

Photography Contest

First prize: $500 cash + lots of other cash prizes

P ick up @] at 10:30 a.m., T uesday June 1 Interurban Gallery (1 East H astings)

120 cam eras available on th e day.

Free to en ter, cameras and training provided!

m ~e~ontest categories 1. Our Com munity (30 black & white photos) Show the

DTES: this commumty's strengths, including respect for

one another, workmg for justice, the people & activities 1n

your life, compassron, hope and more• (First pnze photo

selected by communoty vote from thos category)

2. You r Ci ty Landsca pe (4 colour photos) What are the

dofferent spaces m your world ' Capture nature or

human-made structures. Feel free to photograph your

voew of Vancouver or beyond.

3. The Julie Rogers Aw ard for Best Portrait ( l photo)

4. Best Colour Photo ( 1 photo)

Each contt!stant will be given a free single~usc camera. You ~ntcr photos by returningc.1mera to U1e Interurban Gdllery (l Easlllaslongs) on Friday june 4, ll,un-lpm. $5 cash paid when camera returned.

PI OT equoity ift1 eve<yone "'\\\.phodecoll.or"

HOPE IN SHADOWS p. ,,,.,,s ., •• , c.,.,.,,.ll) "" \.\'.ht>~x·in ... haduws cmn

For more information, call 604 255 9701

Tlus contest ts upt>n on(j· to low-income 1\'>tdents (includin~ duldren) of the Do11 nt<JII n E<J,r,ide.

VOICES The Qu'Appelle River runs through the Qu'Appelle

Valley in southern Saskatchewan. So graceful and harmonious is this valley that it reminds the traveller of that visionary homeland where each thing has what it needs to live a beautiful life. When I fi rst saw the Qu'Appelle Valley, I thought that this place was like the home I might have had if the Great War of 19 14-19 18 had not cast a violent shadow over the entire twentieth century. The Qu'Appelle River flows through the Qu'Appelle

Valley like a Queen on parade. Her name, "Qu'Ap­pelle", is French fo r "Who calls?" This is a rough translation of the origina l Cree words for the river, and there are many stories as to how the river got its name. One story goes like th is-

Long ago a First Nations person was going down the river in his canoe. One day he heard a voice calling to him. He stopped paddling, and listened intently. Again he heard the voice calling, and he called out in his turn. No one answered him, so he carefully looked around for the tracks of another person. He couldn't find any tracks, and from that time on the river was known as "Who calls?" ( I) Today we cannot hear the earth speak in the same

way as aboriginal people did before the coming of the Europeans. In the old days the re lationship of First Nations people to nature was intense and personal. Everything in nature had the power to reveal itself as

a living presence, should it choose to do so, and should a person be ready to hear or to see. This rela­tionship went both ways. Human beings were part of nature as were fish, trees, rocks and grizzly bears. And because humans were created late r than most other creatures, people were often humbly thought of as the younger sisters and brothers. So did humans see themselves as members of a larger fam ily on a living earth . Black Elk said, "The first peace, which is the most important. is that which comes within the souls of human beings when they real ize their rela­tionshi p, the ir oneness, with the universe."

In our technological, urban world we have lost much of our abi lity to hear many of the voices in nature. We long for connection to the beauty we sec, and we ta lk of spirituality rather than formal religion. Spiri­tuality is about the quality of our relationship to the world. It is about our abi lity to see our connection to

ever) thing around us, to see the beauty, to hear the voices, to be present to the miracle of that which is simply in front of us. Chief Seathl, after whom the City of Seattle was named, put it this way: "Every part of this land is sacred in the view of m) people. Ever) hillside, every valley, every plain and grove .... "

We reach out to the people around us with deep car­ing. We watch. We listen. Rain falls. The wind is like breathing. "All real living is meeting," Martin Buber said. Life is relationship. First Nations people close many of their speeches and prayers with the expression, "All my relations."

In April, 20 I 0, an international conference for the protection of the earth took place in Bolivia. Presi­dent Evo Morales of Bolivia invited the peoples of the world to this conference, and more than 30,000 peo­ple from over I 00 countries came to share their con­cerns. President Morales urged the delegates to listen to the voices of indigenous people as they talked about respect for the earth and stewardship.

We can be more aware of the voices around us. and we can start \\ ith the people we meet every day. Can we hear the person who is asking for help? Eagles ny overhead at many of our ceremonies in the Downtown Eastside. What arc the eagles saying to us? Waves on the shore of Crab Park have stories to tell. The Op­penheimer Park totem pole speaks to the long history of First Nations on this land, and it also asks us to remember those \\ho have died in the Downtown Eastside, and those who have survived. The old heritage buildings in our community speak

to the early history of Vancouver, and in the streets late at night you can hear the voices of unemployed men during the Great Depression of the 1930's. They arc marching in a snake parade because they are hun­gry and have no place to sleep. Chinatown and Japan­town have stories to tell of those who fought for dig­nity and human rights. So many voices. So much pain and courage and

laughter. "Who calls?" we ask. and we hear the voice of the other one, reminding us of relationship. of our kinship to the mice in the fields and the stars in the dark sky. As Chief Joseph said, "The earth and my­self arc of one mind."

By Sandy Cameron ( I) Rtver In A Dry Land, by Trevor llerriot, published by Stoddart, 2000, page 12.

SAVE THE HEALTH CONTACT CENTRE[ I(. THE CONTACT CENTRE SAVES LIVES \

On May 3, the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority (VCHA) closed down the Health Contact Centre, op­erating in the Dovtntown Eastside in an alley off Main and Hastings. The Contact Centre has been a widely used service in the neighbourhood, providing direct access to basic health care with health care workers and nurses as well a community drop-in. The VCHA claims that the Centre was closed down due to 'duplication in services' citing the existence of other health services such as the community clinics and lnsite. But the clinics do not operate through the night and lnsite is not a drop-in intended for all residents.

As women residents of the DTES. we feel that the Contact Centre was a critical service that we relied on. especially during evening and night hours, where we and our friends have gone to for emergency care without having to call an ambulance, and where man) of us feel safe. We believe the Contact Centre closed down, without any notice, due to budget cuts that are a widespread legacy of the Olympic Games. Budget cuts across health. education, welfare with the recent disability regulation changes. and housing such as the erosion of social housing at Olympic Village, are af­fect ing all poor and low-income residents.

The DTES Power of Women Group is organizing an emergenc) protest against the closure of the Health Contact Centre. Defend public services and don't be fooled by the governmem's lies.

North?" On Apri l 13, 2010, a report hit the papers that Fal­

con had announced a so-called "patient-focused fund­ing model" that he claimed will save money and pro­vide better health care. ("llospitals offered incentives to save," Ian Austin, The Province, April 13, 2010)

(So, Bliss's article appeared to be a sort of prepara­tory propaganda trial balloon-which wasn't well received, I might add. judging from the feedback in the letters to the editor- particularly since the Fraser Institute is based in Vancouver.)

"Twenty-three of BC's largest hospitals will see additional funding to the tune of $250 million during the next two years in order to implement a new pa­tient-focused fund ing model , llealth Minister Kevin Falcon announced .. ... ("Targeted health care cash should improve waiting ti me, patient care," Derek Spalding. Nanaimo Daily News, April 13, 2010) BC NDP llcalth Critic Adrian Dix called it another bu­reaucratic layer that wi II cost taxpayers money and that will lead the province toward privatization of health care.

Falcon's plan would allow "medical tourism," that is, people from outside BC using available BC hospi­tal time and space. But it wouldn't allow "queue­jumping," that's one thing about which Falcon re­mains adamant. ("Kevin Falcon torn between surgi­caltOurism and local line jumping [at Dr. Brian Day's clinics]," Justine Hunter. The Globe and Mail, April 12. 20 I 0) (Dr. Day operates cl inics in Vancouver which extra-bill patients to allow them to queue jump. and this " two-tier medical service" is currently on trial. Falcon has gone on record that he is against two-tier health care (as long as the federal govern­ment upholds the Canada Health Act...).)

S ince the BC Liberal provincial government ap­pears to take its marching orders from the Fraser In­stitute (witness the non-movement on the minimum wage, for example, perfectly in keeping with Fraser Institute policy), we shall have to take a wait-and-see approach to find out how far down the road of medi­cal privatization we're headed.

If it happens in BC, there may well be a domino effect in other provinces, and then Canada's health care system wi ll be FUBARcd.

(Fouled Up Beyond All R ecognition.)

[There are 3 lakes in the northwest named SNAFU !A~FU and ~UBAR. While World War II was ra~­mg 111 the Pacific, the more paranoid here (both the USA & Canada) deemed an air attack by Japanese bombers was an imminent possibility. The War Effort called for a highway to be bui lt so

supplies cou ld get to and from Alaska. To avoid it being bombed. the idea was to make it rwist and turn and not go through tunnels. even if it meant engineer­ing nightmares. O~ders and directions came from Hcadq uar1crs,

whrle the work crews got stressed and cynical over "What horse's ass decided on this little change?! ' ' Members of the crew finally conferred names o n the 3 really trou~ l esome lakes. names that were acronyms for expressrons used ill.! the time: Situation Normal: All Fuckcd Up (SNAFU); Things Are R oyally Fucked Up (TARFU); and finally FUBAR - Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition. - Ed.]

Carnegie Theatre Workshop

Upcoming classes!

Saturdays: May 29, June 5, 12, 19, 26

!-2:30pm: Scenes, Monologues 2:45pm-4: Theatre gam es, Jmprov

Led by Teresa Vandertuin For more info call 604-255-9401

email: thirteenofhearts@hotmail.com

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News From the Library

On May 18, 1935, young men from Vancouver's relief camps marched into the Carnegie Centre and occupied the building to protest against conditions in the camps. The protest was a catalyst fo r the On to Ottawa Trek, which left Vancouver on June 6 of that year. This week marks the 7S'h Anniversary of the Occupation of the Carnegie. Please join us at 2pm on Tuesday, May 18 on the second noor o f the Carnegie Centre to commemorate the event with music, food, stories and poetry. Want to learn more about the Oc­cupation of the Carnegie and the On to Ottawa Trek? Check out the displays throughout the building, or read one of the following books (all available at the library). Fighting for Community: Stories from the Carnegie Centre and the Downtown Eastside, by Sandy Came­ron Sandy's story, "flold the Fori For We Are Coming" tells the story of the Occupation of the Carnegie. Being True to Ourselves: Downtown Eastside

, Poems of Resistance, by Sandy Cameron Sandy's poem, ''The Occupation of the Carnegie Mu­sewn" is a detailed, passionate account of the Occupa­tion of the Carnegie and the On to Ottawa Trek. Ex­tracts from this poem can be found throughout the Carnegie Centre as we celebrate the 751

h Anniversary of the occupation. Recollections of the On to O ttowu Trek, by Ronald Liversedge A rare personal account of the Depression in Canada, Ronald Liversedge describes the Occupation of the Carneg ie in detail, as well as providing a fascinating look at conditions at the relief camps and the On to Ottawa Trek. The book a lso includes reports and doc­uments about Trek, from Parl iamentary debates to the transcript of an interview between strikers and Prime Minister Bennett. All Hell Can 't S top Us: The O n-to-Ottawa Trek and Regina Riot, by Bill Waiser Waiser examines the social and political background of the On-to-Ottawa Trek, and provides an in-depth account of the trekkers, their supporters, and their powerful adversaries. We Were the salt of the Earth: A Narrative oftbe On-to-O ttawa Trek and the Regina Riot, by Vietor l loward

Published to coincide with the Trek's 50th Anniver-

sary, this book was written by one of the trekkers. (Available at Central Library only) 'Work and Wages!": semi-Documentary Account of the Life and Times of Arthur II. (Slim) Evans by Jean Evans Sheils and Ben Swankey Co-written by Slim Evans' daughter. this book tells the story of the labour movement through the story of one of its most famous sons. who was active in the Relief Camp Workers' Union and On to Ottawa Trek.

Friends

Friendship never fades Even when you lose one Their memories tend to linger Even the good or bad times-you especially remember the bad

In the goodness of both your hearts Making the mends Is so special.

Let go of all the sadness Celebrate one's life Pray to the Creator Day by day you will grow strong

Ask the ancestors to take care of your loved ones So their journey will be at peace.

All my relations, Bonnie E Stevens

CRUNCH - cltes

WJ[t~~®IM~~ ~©~~ ''SOCIAL Ml )( ''

The contaCt centre ShUffle Around 200 I, the City embarked on a consultation

process the scope of which I'd never seen before in this neighbourhood. In conjunction with the ( then Vancouver/Richmond Health Board), an oversight group compris ing resident groups, local agencies the Police, business groups from Gastown, Chinatown, the Strathcona B!A as well as condo owners was drawn together to discuss and shape a process where­by a Contact Centre in the Roosevelt Hotel and a Lifeskills Centre in the old Clinic site at Cordova and Dunlevy would be established ' to reach out to street­entrenched ind ividuals in the hope of drawing them into a continuum of services and linkages that would assist them in re-integrating back into society in a holistic manner.'

These meetings, held in a "neutral" site (the Ch inese Cultural Centre) were intense and difficult. Not many of the people at the table had much in common with each other at the best of times and tension was always a measurable presence at the table. The City even hired outside consultants to do outreach to the broader

community and steer the process with an arm's-length relationship from the City and llealth Board.

Nothing like this clearly would have been necessary were it only to support --as current Health Authority officials now erroneously report in the Vancouver Sun-- "an interim service, never intended to be per­manent". Clearly, the current spokespeople for Coastalllealth hoped there would be nobody around whose memory of the origins of this proposal was fresh enough to call them on this, and remember what the focus of the programming was and who it was aimed at.

The Contact Centre was proposed as a resource to reach out to that segment of the community--the ad­dicted homeless and dual-diagnosis individuals who were so estranged from formal service delivery mod­els of care that they simply went without any access to care and scrutiny. And The Police were looking for some place they could refer people to on a 24 hour basis; people they encountered on the streets who were clearly in need of some kind of health interven­tion but instead ended up improperly folded into the criminal justice system.

The Lifeski lls, on the other hand, was a secondary level of intervention: a site that higher functioning people could access to gradually learn new ski ll s at a pace appropriate to their comfort levels--a space, the theory went, that people could "graduate" to from the Contact Centre once they were assessed and intro­duced into modes of recovery that they were able to succeed at.

For the current Health officials to try now to re-­invent history and gloss over the shortfalls in care they have now created by denying that this is nothing less than a callous cost saving measure on the backs of the most vulnerable among us is reprehensible. The babble disseminated that other sites are duplicat­ing this service is preposterous. If there is duplication, why did they open the newer s ites to begin with? Why not refer new patients to the Contact Centre instead? Why? Because the clinics offer a broad range of ser­vices to a broad spectrum of the resident population who would otherwise never go to the Contact Centre, and the new clinics still remain as structural barriers to those whose specific needs can only be met through Contact Centre type settings which is to them a welcoming and unthreatening environment.

It was also reported that the current s ite was "well­meaning but inadequate from the beginning as it's

only a postage-stamp size drop-in centre". So is the Dugout and It's been servmg a gratetut poputauon 01

patrons who depend on its services for over 30 years.(Definitely not an "interim" service).

It's no small measure of coinc idence that the cuts to these services follow the torrent of recent cuts to in­come assistance benefits and education budgets--all carefully crafted to appear as new improvements to existing service delivery modalities.

Another gold medal performance in world-class cal­lous-thenics and thinly disguised deceit.

By Ian MacRae.

VANCOUVER OPERA MADAMA BUTTERFLY

Giacomo Puccini

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The first 75 people will receive free tickets to the

final dress rehea rsal of the opera.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010 @ 7pm Carnegie Centre Theatre

The Royal City Concert Band was founded in 1987 by New Westminster band di­rector and educator, Fred Turner. Earl !Jobson be­came Music Director in 1998. RCCB members in­clude students, business professionals and retired people, all of whom enjoy making music. The band welcomes new members.

The band plays a variety of music including marches, show tunes, traditional music, and band arrangements of orchestral music, and has appeared on stage and on parade in numerous venues throughout the Lower Mainland and around B.C.

7:30 PM, Thursday, May 20th Carnegie Theatre

TNAfailiud I face a sign with two posts, one reads wrong way,

and the other slips around my body in its vicious wrath and whispers, no way out . .. l stare at my reflection in the mirror completely fixed on what stares back. I think to myself, wondering is this what !look like? Is this what a normal person looks like? My brain has become a fiend for devil's candy, and I wouldn't have it any other way. The yel­low flowers on the wall dance, and recreate right in from of my eyes. Everything is unknown and nothing is reality, but the drugs seduce me and trick this little girl into believing anyth ing it wishes to teach me. l slowly leave the bathroom taking tiny steps fo rward, my body crunched and back slightly hunched. A room of people surround me, distant, living their trip in a hollow existence. A hand grants me a gold key; I dip into the bag of white crystals with my spoon and feed the brain a couple more bumps to get it through the night. When morning spoke, my friends and I left the house discussing the unreal events of our drug­induced night, my last couple of bumps begin to kick. Days, weeks, no s leep. My existence is purely for the drugs. My mother stares into my large black eyes and fright stains her expression as she no longer sees me .. only the eyes of the devil peering back. She prays over me, asking her saviour to spare me, give me an­other chance, save me from the everlasting fires of hell. Her screaming and pleading has no effect on me; all that's on my mind is finding my next line.

Jade Bourcier

[Health[ M inister Falcon :

Last week o'l May 3rd, the (Vancouver Coastal Health Authon ty) closed down the Health Contact Centre in the Downtown Easts ide. This facility is lo­cated right bes ide the Carnegie Community Centre. You may not be aware that th is important faci lity was opened in 2000 as part of the Vancouver Agreement. It was one of 4 health fac ilities that were established as part of a four pillar approach strategy.

The context in which this fac ility was opened in­cluded overdose deaths, epidemic rates ofHIV/ AIDS, llepatitis C and publ ic disorder in front of the Carne­gie Community Centre. The decision to suddenly c lose down the Health Contact Centre is shortsighted public policy. The health contact centre was particu larly important for low income residents during evening and night­time hours when other faci lities were closed. It a lso resulted in less emergency room visits and 9-1- 1 calls. Budget cuts in social assistance coupled with a reduc­tion in health services will have real negative conse­quences on the ground and result in deteriorating population hea lth outcomes. This sudden cutback is driven by cuts to population

health programs that arc part of a Ministry directive to cut costs. Unfortunately, this dec ision will result in more costs to the health system.

I ask that you stop this misguided cut to fron t- line services immediately.

Sincerely, Jenny W.C. Kwan

MLA Vancouvcr-Mt. Pleasant

To the Urban Development Institute: CCAP is a project of the Carnegie Centre Community Association in the Downtown Eastside. We do com­munity based research and organizing on social hous­ing, income and gentrification issues. We organize residents to have a voice in planning for the future of the area. Our overall goal is to create a DTES that is safe, healthy and affordable to the low-income resi­dents who live here now. We have just com pleted a two year visioning process

w ith 1200 DTES residents to see what they would like fo r the future of their community. We would li ke to share this work w ith your members. Hopefully it will give them ins ight into some of the good points about our DTES community. Of course, we'd also

I ike to see if we can get some support for the actions that need to be taken to secure the tenure and community assets of our low income community be fore more condos are built there

The Carnegie Community Action Project sent the info and request above to the Urban Development Institute ask ing to make a power point presentation at the Insti­tutes Annual General Meeting on May 20th. The UDI includes 500 corporate members who are developers, property managers, fi nancial lenders, lawyers, engi­neers, planners, architects, appraisers, and real estate professionals, among others. "We want the UDI to understand that there arc lots of

good things about the DTES," said CCAP organizer Wendy Pedersen. "We also want them to help us get more desperately needed social housing for our com­munity and to keep new condos out of the area until our community assets arc secured and we have enough decent social housing for low-income people who live in the DTES now."

[As this goes to the Printshop, the UD I has not given CCAP permission to enl ighten its members. Perhaps it's the $850 per tab le fee that, since funders have a dim view of paying mult i-billion dollar coteries of corporate s grant money, the UDI wouldn't break even ifCCAP got to come for free. Ed. ]

"Capitalists exploit society through their gigantic propaganda machinery, and create unhealthy, artificial de­mands which not only poison the mind but encourage dangerous habits detri ­mental to psychic sanctity and expan sian." -Prout In A Nutshell

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I

What is Fair?

There will always be somebody who has more than you. More luck; more money; more friends; more advantage; more success. And it just isn't fair!

There will always be somebody who has less than you. Less luck; less money; less friends; less advantage; less success. And it just isn't fair!

Videha

THIS NEWSLETIER IS A PUBLICATION OF THE CARNEGIE COMMUNITY CENTRE ASSOCIATION

Articles represent the views of individual contributors and not of the Association.

WANTED Artwork for the Carnegie newsletter

Small illustrations to accompany articles and poetry. Cover art- Max size: 17cm(6 %')wide x 15cm(6')high. Subject matter pertaining to issues relevant to the Downtown Eastside, but all work considered. Black & White printing only. Size restrictions apply (i.e. if your piece is too large, it will be reduced and/or cropped to fit). All artists will receive credit for their work. Originals will be returned to the artist after being copied foe publication. Remuneration: Carnegie Volunteer Tickets

Please make submissions to Paul Taylor, Editor.

GET CLEAN! Shower up at the Lord's Rain

327 Carrall Street (just off Pigeon Park)

HOT SHOWERS (towels, soap, shampoo, the works! & coffee)

Monday llam-3pm; Tuesday 7-8:30am;

Tuesday 1-4pm and LADIES Only!

Friday llam-3pm; Saturday 7-lOam

lei on parte Francois Hab/amos Espana/

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has." -Margaret Meade

102.1 FM Co-op Radio Next issue is Tuesday, June 151

•

SUBMISSION DEADLINE

Friday, May 28tti

We acknowledge that Carnegie Community Centre, and this Newsletter, are occurring on Coas~ ~alish Territory.

Editor: PaulR Taylor; cover art by . Collation & distribution crew: Bill, Liu Lin, Harold, Ada, Videha, Mary Ann, Miriam, Kelly, Lisa, Robyn, Nick.

2010 DONATIONS: Libby D.-$50, Rolf A.-$50, Margaret D.-$4l Jenny K.-$25, Sue K.-$30, Michael C.-$50, Jaya B.-$100, Christopher R.-$180, Barbara & Mel L.-$50, Leslie S.-$50, Sheila B.-$25, Wilhelmina M.-$10, CEEDS -$60, Laurie R.-$6C Vancouver Moving Theatre -$100, Sarah E.-$46

Carnegie Services for Members include: Basketball; Tai Chi; Yoga; Shiatsu; Dance; Run Club; Soccer; Nature Hikes; Floor Hockey and more. See Monthly Program Guides

Membership is $1. Open to all!/

camnews@,shaw.ca www.camnews.org http://harvesters.sfu.ca/chodarr (lndexl

Jenny Wai Ching Kwan MLA Working for You

1070 -1641 Commercial Dr, VSL 3Y3 Phone: 604-773-0790 ·

J.IIU .

.. i have the audacity to believe that people everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, dignity, equality and justice for their spirits. I believe that what self-centred men have torn down, other-centred men can build up.'

Solder & Sons Used books - Coffee .a: Tea

Curious ~udio rccordin;s &. equipmc

· 247 M3in Sire~ I - )I S-71 QR Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

-Share & S hame Alike

Ever find phone numbers with no name? Probably important but no garbage can so into the street they go where every crooked person shall know; Now when th is guy god set apart the lame, I misinterpreted - I thought he was g iving out brains. l want a Riverview where knowing you' re human is as crippling a debt to society as parasites (always the I '1 three bites). Give me Riverview where all the anti-social ites mingle with self-muti lators, help yourselfmedicators, the new Dim locators & all the rest... you know the place. Fact 1: bui lt in '04 and hit its peak in '5 1, although no McDonald 's-like signs declaring 99 Billion Served! (or saved) it's not the people it's the cash they like & keep. OK: I in I 0 are mentally ill, you do the math from Gal ilee to your back alley- excuse me this is a restricted area to see. I knew this kid whose dad bought him a new bike the next day he sat silently go bell go, ran outside no­where in sight no Please GOD No supposed to last a year.. how can I day bring so many tears; back to Fact II: rooms got smaller waiting lists longer we ' re now in '83 they tore part of it down then drove "tenants" to Main & Hastings, kicked 'em out of the car, a faint cry of 'good luck' (TRUE STORY) was heard, granted being zombieized was brutally free; now I used to think a pocketful of butts and a couple fu ll bags of empties was the definition of financial success. I lost my Achilles soul during a day in the afterlife, does every favour have to turn into such a mess? Now be­fore your mouth opens ful l of doubts for once hear me out. Broke is a sad world to live but all the$$ in the world could be the worst g ift to give. Depression. Frustration & self-hate .. or as I call them

my 3 squares a day on I plate but back to Fact Ill: in '92 they tore down even more, the ill & poor shown the door with a little busfare & a kick in the ass (ex­pect the same from every class) Class lesson for today Step 1: How to clasp your hands behind your head; Step 2: No jerky movementS - the young & old alike will learn the meaning of death; Step 3: Comply with every commandment or you wi ll be found in an Abandoned Refrigerator Playground. I'll stop with the steps but as for the facts back in '97 they created Colony Farm Road, more hideous prom­ises were made & kept, former treatments still mis­placed but with love then immediately swept (blood can be swept away even DNA one day). Why is no one accountable, rolling around in insur­mountable evidence & still common sense creates 2 armies, one that hates & one that lives in fear & dies a thousand deaths every day, like the silence you hear in court while thinking of ways to cut short this life led so blind into a line of fire that refuses to shine or lose its psychotic desire or design, a sure sign we are working with psychotic minds like mine, the class you're in is DisMissed!!! The world that we leave behind, I swear to god, plant­life was more kind.

By ROBERT McG ILLIVRAY "Last words are for fool s who haven' t said enough."

Karl Marx.

V ANDU EVENINGS The Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users facili ty at 380 E Hastings is now operating lOam-midnight

every day. Harm Reduction Supplies, Toilets, Phone, Computers,

Peer Support, Referrals, coffee and a safe place to hang out.

604-683-6061 I www.vandu.org

Carnegie Monthly De-Clutter Discussion

Tall~, share experience, learn The last Sunday every month at 6:30pm sharp in Class room II. Dinner available -5-6:30 -on the 2"d floor, $3.

Facilitator: Ingrid Sochting

ANOTtiER TEA PAID

!JJ()(Jj __ _

6/WAT CC5TUMES!

... SAME RA66, Sft.JV.£;

lNCOf'.Efl£NCE, 5AMEmECT

r.'IEATC,._ ..

Come to a sneak preview of Yippies !It Lore By Bob Sarti

A musical play-in-progress about the wild-and-wooly ·60s in Vancouver. Taken from real li fe.

This will be a reading wi th professional actors, singers and musicians; a chance for you to be a critic

Sunday, May 23, at 7 pm Carnegie Theatre A Theatre In the Raw production. [Jay & Bob together again?!?]

DIGNITY, HUMAN ·BIGHTS AND SDCI4L JUSTICE FOB

PEOPLE ON WELFARE MARCH to STOP the CUTS

TUESDAY MAY 26 3:00 pm

MEET at MAIN &

~HASTINGS

NO ~ Supp011cd 'J V4NDU, CW, Raise the Bales and Organizing Centre for Social & Economic Jusllie

lhanks to the Vo.ncou.ct' d [Mtnct ~ Coww:•l for pr•nt•"9