February 1, 2007, carnegie newsletter

FEBRUARY 1, 2007 FREE

NEWSLE'I I'ER

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carnnews@vcn. be. ca www.carnnews.org 604-665-2289

IS IT NOTHING TO YOU?

"THEIR SPIRITS LIVE

WITHIN US''

Lillian O'Dare, Rebecca Guno, Sherry Rail, Yvonne Abigosis, Sheryl Donahue, Laura Mah, Elaine Allenbach, Taressa Williams, Ingrid Soet, Elaine Dumba, Nancy Clark, Elsie Sebastian, Kathleen Wattley, Sherry Baker, Teresa Triff, Gloria Fedyshyn, Leigh Miner, Angela Arseneault, Catherine Gonzalez, Catherine Knight, Dorothy Spence, Diana Melnick, Frances Young, Tanya Holyk, Olivia William, Cara Ellis, Marie Laliberte, Stephanie Lane, Jacqueline Murdock, Sharon Ward, Andrea Borhaven, Richard "Kellie" Little, Sherry Irving, Janet Henry, Ruby Hardy, Cindy Beck, Mamie Frey, Helen Hallmark, CynthiP Feliks, Kerry Koski, Inga Hall, Tania Petersen, Sarah DeVries, Sheila Egan, Julie Young, Angela Jardine, Marcella Creison, Michelle Gurney, Jacqueline McDonell, Brenda Wolfe, Georgina Papin, Wendy Crawford, Jennifer Furminger, Tiffany Drew, Dawn Crey, Sharon Abraham, Debra Jones, Yvonne Boen, Patricia Johnson, Heather Bottomley, Heather Chinnock, Andrea Joesbury, Sereena Abotsway, Diane Rock, Mona Wilson

1978 1 woman

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1986 1 woman

1988 I woman

1989 I woman

1991 2 women

1992 2 women

1993 4 women

1994 1 woman

1995 4 women

1996 3 women

1997 14 women

1998 9 women

1999 5 women

000 4 women

In January 1991 a woman was murdered¡on Powell Street in Vancouver. Her name is not spoken today out of respect of the wishes of her family. Due to the particularly violent way the woman was murdered, her family, people of the Coast Salish territory performed a ceremony at each of the sites her remains were found to cleanse her Spirit and allow it to travel to the Star Nations to rejoin her Ancestors.

This woman's' murder in particular was the catalyst that moved women into action. Out of this sense of hopelessness, frustration and feeling like no one was listening to them about the increasing violence against women in the community, they wanted to show the larger community that violence against women in the downtown eastside had to stop. They organized a march through the streets of the downtown eastside carrying placards and banners with the names and sometimes photographs of women in the community who had died or were murdered.

The march was held on February 141h, VALENTINES DAY, a universal day that denotes an expression of love, togetherness & caring. The colour lavender was chosen because it is the colour of healing. Red roses, Cedar boughs and tobacco were left at each of the sites women were murdered. Elders pay tribute to the women with a sage ceremony and prayers being offered. Yell ow roses were introduced as a symbol of hope when women in the community were "MISSING" in ever increasing numbers, these are now left at the sites these women were last seen.

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1984 I woman

1985 2 women

Herstory of the February 14'b Women's Memorial March

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1983 2 women

Fifteen years later the march continues, the ever increasing list of names to the memorial brochure is kept as a marker and stark reminder that much work has yet to happen to prevent and end violence against women in the downtown eastside.

2001 8 women

MURDERED AND LISTED AS MISSING Sixty-nine women are on the "Missing Women Task Force" poster, (the last official poster issued by the Vancouver Police Department in 2004) 30 have been positively identified as having links to "Willy" Pickton in their disappearances, 39 remain listed as "Missing". Three additional DNA samples have been found and are classified a 'Jane Doe". Four women have been found safe.

When one thinks of the number of women listed as missing in one year or the number listed as missing during some months of the year, one has only one conclusion to come to in all of this: Robert Pickton could not have acted alone, yet he is the only person charged to date with this heinous crime.

Sixty nine women over a period of 13 years. For example in January 1997 four women were listed as missing Cora Ellis, Marie Laliberte, Stephanie Lane and Jacqueline Murdock; then almost every month remaining in 1997 another woman was missing; total at the end of the 1997 - 14 women. (same number of women who were murdered at the E'cole Poly tech. nique' in the "Montreal Massacre" in 1989~.

During 1998 this pattern almost repeated Itself wtth 9 women listed as missing.

People were horrified by the Montreal Massacre, but what about the women of the downtown eastside? So little attention is paid to them.. why? Not much attention was paid to the increasing numbers of women who were disappearing more and more frequently. After all, they were just sex trade workers, addicted women, worthless and disposable in the eyes of society.

These women died because of who they were.

These women died because they were surviving sex trade workers, they were poor women, they were addicted women, and many were Aboriginal women These women had been involved in the sex trade ou of necessity- The need to feed their family and/or .

the need to feed their drug habit.

Only after a $1 00,000 reward was offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of individuals responsible for the break-in of several garages in the Eastside community of Renfrew was enough pressure put on City Hall to post as much of a reward for information on the Missing Women of the Downtown Eastside.

The women in the downtown eastside were "miss. "m . .mcreasmg . numbers throughout the late 70's mg up until the end of 200 1 when, in early 2002, Robert Pickton was identified as the man responsible for the disappearances and murder of (to date) 29 women from the community.

Highwav of Tears What is apparent in all of this is that this tragedy is being repeated today on Highway 16, dubbed the "Highway of Tears", whereby 99% of the murdered and missing women are Aboriginal.

The murdered and missing women on the missing women poster from the downtown eastside are approximately 30% Aboriginal women.

Not to lessen the tragedy of even one woman being murdered but one has to ask why, in recent weeks during 2006, a Caucasian woman was found murdered on the grounds of Vancouver's city hall, within weeks a huge billboard was posted at a prominent comer of Cambie & Broadway in an attempt to find her killer. Why the disparity in the size of visual public attention put forward in solving this crime; One billboard 25 X 35' for one woman, one poster 20" X 25" for sixty nine women; 1.25" X 2"square for each woman? Each one of the sixty nine women of the downtown eastside deserved as much public attention being paid to their individual case. Each one of the now ten women from Highway 16 de serve as much attention being paid to their case.

Cost so Far

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200,000 DNA samples, 750,000 pages of evidence, 75 million dollars spent so far, this is expected to reach $120,000,000 by the time the trial is complete.

They say the cost of investigation is about $1 million per person.

The cost to the families is far greater than financial and the impact last a lifetime, considering there are at least 75 children left without their Morns.

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The 16th ANNUAL WOMEN'S MEMORIAL MARCH WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 14,2007

Gather at Carnegie Community Centre at 401 Main Street, Vancouver, BC beginning at NOON March will begin at 1 P Mfrom Main & Hastings This event is organized and led by women because women, especially Aboriginal women, face physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual violence on a daily basis The February 141h Women's Memorial March is sponsored by organizations and individuals like you and is held to honour the lives of women who die each year due to violence and to remember the more than 40 women who are still missing. Each year the Memorial March committee must raise funds to pay for such things as hall rental, sound system, food, red & yellow roses, memorial brochures, posters, candles, tobacco and other expenses.

This is an opportunity for the community and those that support us to come together to grieve the loss of our beloved sisters and remember the lives ofthose who are still unaccounted for.

Please respect the march and leave your agency banners at home as the Women's Memorial March carries five banners to honour the women.

All donations are welcomed and appreciated.

We thank you in advance for your suprort and 1 look forward to you joining us at the 16 Annual Women's Memorial March. It will be held on 1 Wednesday, February 14 h, 2007 starting at 12:00 at the Carnegie Community Centre Theatre, 401 Main Street, Vancouver, BC Please make cheques payable to Women's Memorial March, c/o the Downtown Eastside Women's Centre Assn. (DEWC) 302 Columbia St. Vancouver, BC V6A 4Jl. All donations over $10.00 will be gratefully acknowledged with a tax deductible . receipt.

For more information please contact Marlene George at Carnegie (604) 665-3005, email address :marlene .george@vancouver.ca Thank you very much for your time and attention,

~&~ On behalf of ~he organizing committee •

THE TRIAL STARTED MONDAY

These women already convicted By society Already guilty Already punished For being available for the crud That pours out of the male psyche (is there one?)

Montana's First Solo Art and Poetry Exhibition

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You know who you are The men who used and abused Who paid Who gave aids as a gift to their families?

Who gave the gift of hate cause they ...

So far away from themselves I would be an addict too If my job in life Was to satisfy tools That have no heart.

Montana King And just like I am an Artist. ..

Portraying Global issues And I use Stinky toxic paint and Tons of trees

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i\:[a reb 1' to April 1.f , 2007 1

Open House - T hursday March 1s\ 2007 6 pm- 9 pm ·

•~ ·~ . c ·~arnegte entre

(thi rd floor)

1 MAIN STREET (at Hastings) Vancouver montanaking@hotmail.com

604-895-9742

Montana Kirig

Talking Stick Festival Schedule - Feb 5-11, 2007

presents

• first nations performance • Festival

February 5 - 11, 2007, Vancouver Celebration Aboriginal Performance, Art, and Expressio featuring Ab-Original Cabaret, Dance, Live Music, Theatre, ORiginAL Writers, Youth Showcase, Workshops, Forums, and more!

www .fullcircle.ca for information about daily schedule, volunteering, tickets

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UNBC Aboriginal Writers and Storytellers Festival Wednesday Feb. 7107 to Sunday Feb. 11 /07

1: ~·-~=:i:s:'~.'i;/~I'ii~:~•: '~"''\·i~' ~~; ~r:~;~:.i'i:,··: ·::. ·.'·:, ~~~y.:~ l r~Qr~~t;Y'~~ ·:;_~;{.: --,·:·._;: ·-·-. _, Time Event

'" February 7 Wednesda., Time

Event

6 PM

Refreshment Reception: FN Centre Coffee, Tea and Drinks

7 PM

UNBC AWSF Room # Canfor Theatre Welcome: Alden Pompana & Paul Michel

7:15PM

Note: Please sign up, we need approximately 10 storytellers

1 PM to 2 PM

School District # 57 and Performers (Marcel Gagnon, Paul Michel, Gail Tait, Ivy Chelsea Room: Cantor Theatre

6 PM

Food and Refreshments Reception: F.N. Centre I

Eden Robinson ?

7PM

UNBC AWSF Room: Weldwood Opening Keynote: Dr. Greg Sarris

Gail Tait

7:45PM

Fyre Jean Graveline?

·8:15PM

Ivy Chelsea

Adam and Aleah Gagnon?

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Deanna Wolfear

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8·:30 PM

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Donald Andre ~-------+------------------------~'· Story teller

Friday Febr,•~ry 9, 2007 Number

Name

Satul\.lay Feore-::y 10,2007 Name

Number

7 PM

Native F~ic-ndship Centre 1600 Third Avenue

Please Sign Up We need approximately 10 storytellers

7 PM

UNBC AWSF, Room: Cantor Theatre Paul Michel

Eden Robinson

Joanne Arnott

Duncan Mercredi

Roger Smith

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Barbie Everett

Fyre Jean Graveline Jane Smith

Andy Robinson Storyteller

Others??

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,Give ._, . money, send energy, take the best of yourself and give it away. Struggle is the essence of life. '

Paufs Law: You cant fall off the floor.

Welcome to the Monkey House

"A STITCH IN TIME" SEWING CIRCLE For Women and Men In the Seniors' lounge Every Tuesday 10 a.m. - noon Materials provided Hand sewing, embroidery, applique, quilt making, and mending This is your chance to add a panel and a name to the Women's Memorial Quilt for the March on February 14.

Indigenous Beauty They gaze upon our beauty As we day to day our lives Work, budgeting, back to schooling, parenting, Running for buses, umbrellas dripping The mystical power within our Being Emanate to Preconceived Notions Causing loss of control of Unenlightened Selves Body language revealing unconscious, subconscious reactions By the very nature of our existence They watch as we hold our heads high and more than just survive dancing the dance Young manhood, young womanhood, Leaving-youth- ceremonies in disorder chronicled now in memoirs locked in vaults under layers of quagmire of which there was none in this land.

They gaze upon Indigenous beauty as we strut past Heads held high, red ochre regalia, Full black tip eagle feathers, dusty plumes keeping time with the drum clanging bells, dance pulled hide and drumsticks held by those who call back and sing of days gone by

Old poems for sale!

Old poems for sale!

I never would cry Old poems for sale I

If I had the voice And the song of a whale I never would cry Old poems for sale!

Joanne Arnott

CEDAR COTTAGE NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE MOTHERS DAY TRADITIONAL POW WOW needs volunteer committee members. If you have organizing skills or specialize in fundraising, events coordinating, or even just volunteer @ the event, please call Kelly at the Neighborhood House (604) 874-4231. We meet every other week, eventually once a week until the pow wow.

Pow Wow dates: Fri Sat Sun May 11-13,2007 at the Trout Lake Community Centre.

They gaze upon our beauty as we strive to function successfully defying Indifference.

Minds heavy with images of weighted statues offering to drag pure souls down into the depths of a god not our god, wearing burnt charred coal doctor-of-death capes whose markings still lurk in the shadows of our hearts They gaze upon the beauty of youthful enthusiasm.

Red ochre baseball caps, shields of baggy attire Moccasins of white leather take the place of traditional dance regalia yet still represent a wealth of warrior hearts ...

These new shields serve to hide kindness to shield their hearts, all the while ... the strength and dreams and songs of our grandfathers still dance somewhere in their souls ... one day they may realize these are survival gifts to keep the fire burning..

They gaze upon our beauty .... those who pass us by ...

Kat Norris, Coast Salish Territory

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Squamish Elder Harriet Nahanee Jailed This morning, [Wednesday January 24, 2007] shortly after 1OAM, Madam Justice Brown sentenced Squamish elder Harriet Nahanee to fourteen days in jail for asserting her rights under the Constitution as an Indian and refusing to apologize to anybody, including the court, for blockading at Eagleridge Bluffs.

Betty Krawczyk, who had been acting in the courtroom as a McKenzie Friend of the court on Harriet's behalf, knowing full well the horrors of Surrey PreTrial where Harriet will most likely be kept, objected strenuously at the sentencing. Betty was forci bly ejected from the court room and refused re-entry.

It seems that these great grandmothers are the only two who have refused to apologize for trying to protect Eagleridge and are the two who will pay the price in jail time. Betty can't speak for Harriet right ' now because Harriet is in jail, but Betty wants everybody to know she will apologize to Kiewit and Sons and Mr. Falcon, Minister of Transportation, when they apologjze to the people of this province for destroying a valuable ecosystem to serve their own dark, troubled corporate-loving egos. Her trial begins on Monday, Jan. 29 at the Supreme Court in Vancouver. It will last a week. She will represent herself.

Documentaries, Movies that make you wonder Humanities 101 is showing the following movies at 路 6:00 pm in the Carnegie Theatre & on the 3rd floor:

Jan.27 -Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch on Journalism Feb.l 0 - The Money Masters Feb. l7 -Power &Terror in Our Times Noam Chomsky

Please support these two great grandmothers who are trying to help save life and breath for the riext generations.

Please support the immediate release of this elder/ grandmother activist and clan mother of the Squamish Nation. The INjustice system of British Columbia, Canada has no right putting this elder in prison for protecting her sacred lands. Harriet Nahanee has every right to take a stand and protest the destruction of her sacred lands and waters. By putting her in prison, the justice system has violated Harriet Nahanee's very human rights under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Indigenous Rights, Freedom of Speech and her Religious Freedoms.

By not taking a stand, this sacred land is already taking a severe beating. There have been land slides, mud slides, severe wind storms, rain storms... the list is endless. The summers have been getting even worse than ever, with severe dry spells. In turn, the animals suffer with no food or water and no homes of their own. What fresh water is left is getting so contaminated, and there is also a shortage of water during the summer. >This is truly disgusting and beyond contempt. The authorities should be ashamed of themselves for punishing an elder/elderly woman in such a fashion because she tried to protect the Earth from destruction and stood by her principles. This is noth ing more than abuse of power. >this is insane .. please support and send your letters in to mami@inkcatmedia.com. >This is the solution? This is what a provincial judge, a supposedly intelligent, highly paid civil servant, comes up with? A two-week jail sentence?!

What harm has this grandmother done? What threat is she? Will the precious Olympic Games come to a grinding halt if she's not thrown into jail? After all, that's what this is all about isn't it: an unneces sary road to the Olympic Games site.

Mar.l 0 -Manufacturing Consent Noam Chomsky

>I wonder what the First Nations are doing to support this woman and I wonder what we, the general public, can we do?

After the movie refreshments are served, there is a door prize and discussion.

For further information: 604.450.5326 Marni Norwich marni@inkcatmediacom

Feb.24 -Koyaanisquats: Life Out of Balance

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News from the Library We now have books on CD in addition to books on tape. Lots of new mysteries and crime novels. Ask the library staff to show you where they are.

New Books In Salt (553.63) Mark Kurlansky tells the story of the only rock we eat, including its origin, the other discoveries made because of it, and tales of salt and the people who have been involved with it through the ages.

Identity Theft Toolkit (364.16) explains how thieves steal your identity, how you can prevent it from happening to you, and for victims of identity theft, the steps necessary to restore your name and good credit rating.

125 Best Toaster Oven Recipes (641.58) and 125 Best Microwave Oven Recipes (641.58) Two new great additions to our cookbook collection for all you S.R.O. chefs out there.

Organized Crime: An Inside Guide to the World's Most Successful Industry (364.1 ) by Paul Lunde. discuses crime groups by geographic or cultural origin, starting with the Sicilian Mafia and including those that operate in Britain, Russia, Japan, China, the U.S., Mexico and South America.

The 500 greatest albums ofall time (789.91) Com piled by the editors of Rolling Stone These books are currently in the third floor bookcase. Ask at the front desk of the library if you want to reserve one (or more) of them.

Mark the Librarian .

The Horrors of Homelessness My dreams and goals were once filled with glory But life was cruel so I'll tell you my story When I was young I thought I was a big wheel But, truth be told, I was only a drunk heel God only knows what fate tomorrow I will meet You see I am homeless; my home is the streets.

Daily life on the street is always helter-skelter I wonder if this night they'll have room at the shelter How life turned out is a damn, dirty shame But, with a few more drinks or hits, I'll forget who is to blame.

Brother Addict

By Little Eagle

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3258 The Heart of the Community: The Best of the Carnegie Newsletter. Edited by Paul Taylor.

Vancouver: New Star Books, 2003. 238p. $24.00pa.

The Carnegie Centre, housed in the grand old Carnegie Library building located in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, B.C., is the heart of its community in several senses of the word. Its location is central and convenient for the resident and transient population, a distinctive landmark and gathering place in the area. Its services and programs address the social, educational, and cultural needs of the community respectfully and on its own tenns.

One of those services is the Carnegie Newsletter.

Begun in Vancouver's Expo year, 1986, it has been written, illustrated, and edited entirely by volunteers throughout its more than 20 years. Its content goes to the heart of matters in the community.

The pain, anger, and despair of poverty, the drug and sex trades, and political threats to the community's very existence are balanced by the joy of having family and friends there, the sense of belonging to a community that pulls together to fight adversity, and the hope and pride that successful community projects bring.

The articles, poems, and artwork selected for this volume are among the best that have appeared in the newsletter. They speak from the heart, and many are very good by any standards. The pieces are arranged in chapters by year of appearance, and a brief synopsis of the political and other external happenings in each year gives them context. There is no index, but a detailed table of contents lists the items in each chapter by title.

Ann Turner Canadian Book Review Annual

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VOLUNTEERS THE HEART OF THIS COMMUNITY - Another day

goes by in the DownTown EastSide (DTES) and again I'm astounded at the heart in this place. Last week, I put out a call for help to do some food prep for an upcoming event. We were going to put on an info session for people to sign up to talk at city hall next Thursday. We want the government and the public in general to realize that there are 19 government owned properties in the Vancouver area that can be utilized to build Social Housing. They have Billions ofDollar$$$ and it would only take a few million to build with. They already have the land and the rents later would take care of any upkeep the properties would need. This would lessen the number of people who now sleep on the street each and every night because they can't afford a room. Even the worst housing is presently overpriced and getting costlier by the minute. We don't need rent assistance we need more affordable housing in the area We wanted to show the three levels of government that they have to do something. That something can and must be done about the horrendous housing shortage and the further displacement of people who already live in the most despicable housing there is, and that is the Single Room Accommodations in the area. And even this deplorable housing is being taken away from us in order to make a few extra dollars with the upcoming Olympics. Worse is the fact that this might not even have anything to do with those Olympic events. It is a simple case of Gentrification.

From my understanding Gentrification is the displacement of poor people in order to better serve the richer crowd .. or something like that. They don 't care what happens to the displaced persons as long as "Hey get your dollars worth of whatever." Again make the wealthy richer on the backs of the poor.

It's another class struggle where the so-called upper class doesn't seem to have any class whatsoever.

But I 'm getting off topic again as usual. I wanted to write about the heart and soul of this poorest postal region of Canada Although not everyone who was asked showed up, those who did were worth their weight in gold. I had heard how hard it was to make sandwiches and how long it would take. Everyone was saying at least 5 or 6 hours at a minimum to make l 000 sandwiches. We did it in approximately 2 hours. We could have made another thou-

9

sand if we had the ingredients.

We didn't have any organizers or whatever they're called, everyone just started to work and the thing sorta organized itself. Most of the stuff was donated and even the utensils were borrowed. There were about 10 people who actually made the things and they were singing and maybe even dancing a bit as they worked. People were taking - what else?? sandwich breaks to have with their coffee. Even the little 8-month-old baby who came was having a good time. I would have had a picture or 2 but I couldn't borrow a camera. Everyone was in a good mood, the work went quickly and it was just a matter of time before we were left with nothing to do but clean up the little mess that was made. From start to finish it was actually 3 hours.

I want to personally thank all those who showed up and I look forward to worlcing with you in the future should you need me to help in any of your projects. I want everyone to know THE HEART OF THE COMMUNITY is alive and well in the DTES. hal

I never learned to ride a bike To drive a car, to type or write Now that I am getting old I start to wear my trousers rolled But I still eat peaches.

Young I dreamed of castles Knights on steeds; A land where they rewarded mighty noble deeds.

The knights, they came and went, Proving ignobility and their fear of responsibility But not their forgetability; They haunt me sti11.

Causes I espoused, giving purpose or pretense To keep the boogeyman away Now here am I on this darkling plain, Serene, alone, unchained by society other than my own Contemplating pain and Plato ...

Still, wouldn't it be nice to ride a bike?

Wilhelmina Miles

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One pres entation to Council .

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In the mid 1980's when women's housing in the Downtown Eastside first began to be focused on, there was no women's housing in the entire community. In February, 1988, Mavis McMullen Place became home to many women from the Downtown Eastside. Mavis was a woman living in one of the horrid hotel situations and sadly did not make it. She died before we moved in. McMullen was a woman on the Board of Directors and it is the names of these two women together that make up the name Mavis McMullen.

Women and their families, many who were volunteers working for the community in are~ moved into our new home. Mavis McMullen Place was the first women's housing to be built in the Downtown Eastside. I remember the feeling I got when we first moved in. The dinners in the common room. The excitement of meeting new neighbours that was happening. Those were very happy days. My son and I were moving from a condemned house that was literally falling apart into a beautiful two bedroom townhouse.

In the report back on SRO's it was stated that fewer and fewer rooms are open and available fo r rent, a disproportionate number of SRO residents suffer HI VI A IDS, hepatitis, mental illness and/or drug addictions. In a survey of residents done in 2000 ' over half self-identified as having specific or multiple health concerns. Nonetheless, SRO's are key components of our housing spectrum. As there are no alternatives for low-income singles, SRO's need to remain open and liveable until they can be replaced with new social housing for low income singles as well as housing for families.

Between 1997 and 2003, 1,020 SRO's have been lost and there has been a net gain of 384. I am asking for a moratorium to be put in place to ensure no more loss of SRO's. Where do the impoverished go when they lose their housing and there is no more?

They go where they can find food, washrooms and somewhere to s leep. They go to live on the streets in an area where there are some social safety nets.

These streets are systematically spread with garbage ~eachate and flushed. It has been brought to my attention that the flushing of the lanes has created a whole new problem for the people who are being

forced to live on the streets. Simply flushjng garbage leachate with water only mixes such and sloshes the mixture around the lanes leaving puddles. Homeless people walk through this mess and they get covered with it. This is putting people even more at risk.

Garbage leachate needs to be totally addressed and cleaned up, not just flushed. lf more people are made homeless by the closure of SRO's then more people living on the streets are put at risk.

I have one further question. Who decides what human being is entitled to live in a nice warm comfortable home and what human being should be left to live on the garbage leachate-covered lanes of the City of Vancouver? The person who decides this is an appropriate thing to do and subjects these human beings to live in these lanes is committing a crime against humanity.

If we can care enough to save Stanley Park trees we must also care enough to be able to save these humans from being harmed any more than they have been harmed already.

I have slept in large piles of cardboard boxes in behind the shopping plazas. I have slept in people's cars and in people's garages. I have broken into hallways when the door had a glass window, in order to sleep in the top of a stairwell and keep from freezing to death. These were the easiest things I did to survive when l was homeless.

By Bharb Gudmundson

To whom this may concern, My Name is Nicole and I am a student at the Vancouver College of Dental Hygiene. I am currently looking for patients to help me achieve my graduation requirements.

This is a great opportunity for individuals who can't afford or do not have a dental plan. Patients will receive a full mouth assessment and a complete cleaning with polish and fluoride.

The facility is clean and professional, and all treatment is done under strict supervision. Bleaching, Xrays, Mouth guards, Whitening Trays, and Sealants are also available.

To help me break even there will be a $25 .00 fee for Dental Cleaning.

Phone: (604) 512-9417 Nicole Carchesio Email: nicknac@shaw.ca Fax: (604) 581-5197

Carnegie Community Action Project (CCAP)

Newsletter Written by Jean, Wendy and Harold

January 15, 2007

Likely 25 DTES Hotels sold in 2006 Look on page 2 of this insert for a list of some Downtown Eastside hotels that have been sold in the last year. In addition, city staff confirmed to the Carnegie .

Community Action Project that the owner of the Pender Hotel, Robert ..,.. , ......

Wilson, bought about 8 more buildings.

CCAP doesn't . ' .. . have those on . '. the list yet. ~ ~ :· .._, P~ ·~

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Gray, director of the City's Housing Centre, told City Council on Jan. 25th that the owner of the Pender Hotel told the city he plans to operate his new buildings in the short tenn and "re-develop" them in the long tenn.

According to the DTES Housing Plan Report Back on SRO Stock, Woodward's condo sales and the Heritage Incentive ('

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Program (HIP) are the causes of hotel speculation. The HIP is a subsidy given

by City taxpayers to wealthy developers to protect the some parts of the heritage buildings. In exchange they can build higher (get more density) or sell that height to another developer elsewhere in ' I the city. City • Hall started the HIP in order to . encourage developers to buy properties in the DTES and preserve heritage.

To be equal partners in the City's DTES "revitalization" plan, low-income people need better incomes and secure housing. Without that, all efforts to "revitalize" this neighbourhood for middle class people should be opposed.

Written by Wendy Pedersen Ash ley Osborn

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City could enforce Standards of Maintenance says Pivot Dave Eby of Pivot Legal Society gave the city a free legal opinion at the city 1 council meeting on Jan. 25 h. And it wasn't one that they wanted to hear.

Eby said the city could use section 23 of the Standards of Maintenance Bylaw to fix up hotels and rooming houses when landlords refuse, and bill the cost of the repairs to the owner.

But the city hasn't used this part of the bylaw for over 15 years. Instead they try to get the owner to fix up the building and if he won't, they can close it down.

This tactic isn't working because the rooms are desperately needed and because some landlords want to get their buildings empty so they can convert them to more expensive places.

City planners claim their legal department says they can't use this section of the law to fix "structural" problems. Eby says that's not true. But the city won't provide a written legal opinion to people in the community.

Instead, when some councilors asked at the council meeting for a city lawyer to come and explain the city's position, city manager Judy Rogers said that would be inappropriate and she would advise strongly against it.

One reason the city doesn't want to use section 23 is that they fear being sued by hotel owners if they do too much repair work. But Eby pointed out that the city is already being sued for not enforcing the bylaw. Written by Jean Swanson

HOTELS SOLD in 2006 Beacon Hotel $1.7 mil Chelsea Inn $1.25 mil Creekside Residences $3.3 mil $2.19 mil Dunsmuir $3.3 mil Gastown Hotel Kenworth Rooms $200,000 Jay Rooms $680,000 Pacific Hotel $1.375 mil Pender Hotel $1.25 mil Powell Rooms $593,000 Rainier Hotel $2.35 mil Star Beach Haven $510,000 Strathcona Hotel $1.425 mil West Hotel $3.725 mil $800,000 Wonder Rooms Woodbine Hotel $787,500 York Rooms $1.825 mil 2

1 005 Station Street

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Do you recognize this address?

This fenced off mud hole near the American Hotel is one of 19 properties owned or optioned by the City of Vancouver for social housing. The housing on these sites has been stalled.

That's why last Tuesday, the Carnegie Action Project held an Infonnation Fair at that site.

Fred from Oppenheimer built a 12 foot high mock hotel and carried it down on Elaine's car. The hotel symbolized our determination to show all three levels of government what should be happening at that site if only politicians would develop political will to end . homelessness and provide decent housing for people living in decrepit SRO's.

Much preparation went into this event.

About 15 people made 1000 sandwiches in 2.5 hours in the common room of27 West Pender at the Native Housing thanks to Hal's recruitment and organization. Pann and Paul helped find food to use for the sandwiches, April made great cardboard painted signs with the addresses of the 19 sites for the fence, Karenza painted a banner and Ashley

made picket signs and handed out flyers.

Bill and Phillip were stalwart to the end, cutting bailing wire to secure signs and carrying everything back afterwards.

At the event, CBC 6'oclock news covered the story, as did the Metro and

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Channel M. We told the media that people should care as much about people as they do the trees at Stanley Park.

CKNW picked this story up in the morning and both Councilor Kim Capri and us were interviewed about our story on the Bill Good Show on January 24th at 8:30 a.m. You can listen to it on CKNW' s website or come by and listen to it in the CCAP office - written by Wendy Pedersen 3

heads.

Mainly Jill Davidson and Cameron Gray did the

CITY HALL Again!!!!- written 路by Harold Asham Well we did it again. We went to city hall. It was mostly the same as last tirn'e.

First our great and fantastic council sat and argued for about ~ hour on whether or not they were gonna take a ~ hour break. at 12:30 and 5:30 or follow their original agreement and take an hour break at 1PM and another at 6PM. The different council members were arguing that they had a big crowd and they were interested in keeping us infom1ed as much as possible. Personally, I think it was an NPA stalling tactic and the other members fell for it by arguing for a point of order while we sat and watched the debacle. The important business that day wasn't even started. The morning was already over half over and i knew it was probably gonna be a long day.

The two things up for review: 1a. Downtown Eastside (DTES) Housing Plan - Report back on SRO stock b. Single Room Accommodation (SRA) Status by-law report.

So it took about% of an hour just to set the rules and they didn't even get that right. There had a preset rule at the beginning and all they had to do was just start the meeting. But if you read my last article you know that these people's main job is to slow everything down and attend to their own agenda. They finally got started and there came about 1-Y2 hours of reporting from various city department

Bharb waiting to speak

reporting with help from about 2 or 3 others who sat with them. It sounded like they were well infonned and on the ball but, this later proved to be wrong.

Jill Davidson did a plausible job on the Standards and Maintenance by-law. Then Cameron Gray did a more business like presentation on the SRA by-law. As I said both seemed very well informed and outstanding in their performances for the city.

Councilors, '. especially Anton and Cadman asked for and got ..., clarification Ayisha and Emmanuel in for the long haul on various points. Its kinda boring as it's just the usual run of business so although I paid attention I wasn't really 100% interested. I was looking forward to what the different people had to say. I figured that that's where the story if any would 4

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be. Silly me, I should have paid more attention to detail. Well you live and learn, eh? After the city business was done they began to start hearing submissions from the public. I forget but I think it was shortly after noon and it was about time. First Kim from DERA We have a right to know which hotels were sold" up was Susan Henry, advocate from First United. She did an excellent job. Now I'm not gonna name everyone who went up and spoke because if you were really interested you could've come to city hall or watched it on TV I think. I am gonna mention a few names because they are public personalities, at least I think they are.

Most people did a very good job and a few people did an excellent job.

Many different councilors asked a variety of tough and probing questions both of the public and of the city managers. I was glad to see such a diversity and almost shock on the faces of the counselors, as well as the city managers, although mostly their backs were to us in the public gallery. We could only get profile views. If I was the mayor or a councilor and I had any sense, not that some of

them don't mind you, I would try to get some of these people onto staff or at least in an advisory position or board or something just to help me better get a grasp of situations. I mean its a big city and as a councilor I should be informed on everything that is gonna come up in council. What better way to do that than get people from both sides of the equation to inform me? Off topic again, damn it, it's so easy to get off topic when you write these stories. I guess it's because of the feelings that a story generates. Damn, getting off topic again.

See how easy it is? Now back to the main topic, today's city hall business and all its facades.

That Kim Kerr is an excellent speaker.

He knows what to say and how to say it. I think the NPA is genuinely afraid of him.

They were also very rudely awakened

by David Eby, a Pivot lawyer, who knows and shows a lot of sense. He made the councilors sit up and notice. They were all interested in his dialogue. The city managers where sorta caught kinda red-faced as Mr. Eby spoke. Some of the councilors where flabbergasted by his comments. One of them, Stevenson, I think, suggested he run for council.

I think it was Martha from Tenants Rights (TRAC) who brought up the tsunami warning. She said raising rents in one area of the city causes a cascading affect down to the lowest form of housing. If they raise rents in Kerrisdale or Kits then those people have to n1ove to

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a less expensive place and those people in the less expensive place have to move somewhere cheaper and so on and so on until you reach the bottom of the list, the SRO's. And where do they go when there is not enough SRO's? Answer: Onto the street or in the back alleys or maybe Stanley Park where they seem to be taking care of the trees with more passion then they are for the people living in amongst those trees. It sure is a cockeyed world when people care more for plants than for human sufferings. I mean what happened in Stanley Park wasn't good but it was natural and nature has a way of taking care of . itself.

Another good speaker was Michael Clauge, a fonner director of Carnegie. He suggested that they fonn a special development zone for the DTES. I think it's a damn good idea.

He also suggested a community development corporation.

I'd like to quote him

but keeping the community the same with better housing so, we, the people, could live a fruitful and satisfying life even though we are mostly poor and living below the poverty line. Well below I might add. His quote "Let's help it be what it can be."

Another fine question was brought up

by May. This was in relation to the fact the city hasn't followed its plan of purchasing an SRO a year and converting it to social housing and also to build 800 units per year of affordable housing. This is in the Homeless Action Plan. So council isn't doing their job, and when people don't do their job they should give back their paychecks or start ' doing

APC performed a play about an eviction. NPA councilors walked out instead of watching.

May is a regular speaker at council meetings for DTES issues

their job. Since the NPA decides what can or can't happen I think this is aimed directly at them, but that's just my opinion. There was an agent for an SRO owner to speak on his behalf and an actual SRO owner there. They both wanted the present fine $5000 per room to stay in place. Most people want it

when questioned by Ladner, who asked why he would want to keep the DTES the way it was. It was like a kid in Kindergarten. Michael had to explain that it wasn't keeping the conditions the same 6

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raised to a minimum of $50,000. Council is looking at $15,000. San Francisco was reported to be $80,000 and that's in US dollars. San Francisco is supposedly succeeding at reducing homelessness.

There were a few more speakers but it was about 4 o'clock and I was tired.

Besides I wasn't there to speak, I was there to watch the story unfold as part of my class on Thursday afternoons at Carnegie Learning Centre. As I have said there were some very good speakers and as I doodled between speakers I came up with a plan of sorts. Now pay attention all you councilors who read this newsletter.

This is a 5 part plan and there are a lot of wrinkles to be straightened out.. ' 1. Create a special development Zone or area.

2. Immediate moratorium on conversions. For at least a year, better if it was two.

3. Start building affordable housing on government owned land right now 4. After 2 years, change the demolition or conversion fee to $75,000 per rooni.

5. Any building that is replacing SRO's should have a minimum capacity to replace that housing.

There is money available from the Property Endowment Fund to build housing. The immediate changing of the fine to stop any conversions that are

') presently taking place under your noses.

Why? Somewhere during the questioning City Staff reported that 11 properties, I think, were purchased in 2006 and in the last few months someone bought nine more SRO' s. They need to stop allowing SRO' s to change to student rooming because it is still too costly for us. The cost of replacing present housing is . -~ ..• · ~ 1 ~

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Walking up to city hall for the meeting.

Would you like to come next time? estimated to be somewhere near $200,000 per room. (This was brought by one of the speakers as the result of a question by a councilor.) The next is in regard to the last time we were here and they were discussing the Civil Cities bylaw. If you don't want people sitting or sleeping on the street then give them a viable alternative. Give them homes to sleep in, not shelters. That's my solution, should you need a more refined plan please ask the speakers to come back as I'm sure if i can glean a plan from hearing them speak you are even more capable of doing it. - hal 7

Crab Park, "Tailgate Park?

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new site, again. This time the staff say in their report, without any public detail

For those of you who don' t know this, the Whitecaps are proposing a new location because their first site didn't work out. Unfortunately, they aren't moving it very far. As you can see in the picture below, the new site will jut out onto the water and need lots of landfill.

Nearby residents and vulnerable people on the street will still be affected by crowds, pollution, noise and rowdiness. Gastown will become party central and CRAB Park could be what some are calling a "tailgate" park, which is a place where people who go to events come before or after to play loud boom-box music and drink beer.

Advocates, like Don Larson (CRAB Water for Life) Caryn Duncan (Four Sisters), Sandy Hirshen (condo owner), Colleen Miller (Gastown Shopkeeper) and many others from the Central Waterfront Coalition, continue to voice opposition about this and other aspects of the Whitecaps' plan for a stadium on the Waterfront.

On Feb 1, 2007, City councilors will decide whether to support terms of reference for a study of a small area of Waterfront near the seabus. It is called a hub study. They will also decide whether to give the Whitecaps approval to move forward with a review of their

about the proposal, that the new site looks promising.

Some considerations: A public wholistic plan is needed for the entire Waterfront instead of evaluating major proposals in piece-meal fashion.

Community members representing different sectors should be members of the working group proposed. Kitsilano has their beach, Point Grey has their waterfront, why can't we have ours?

These studies should happen first along with a site study and then if it looks like a stadium is needed on the Waterfront, the Whitecaps could be invited to apply. Without a good process like this, those with the most money and time, get to decide what happens to Vancouver's waterfront.

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Anyone who's been abused in any way needs the crime to be rec ognized and named, and it really hasn't been."

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Unrepentant: Kevin Annett and Canada's Genocide is written by Kevin Annett and Louie Lawless, directed by Louie Lawless, and produced by Kevin Annett, Louie Lawless and Lori O'Rorke. For more information go to: www.hiddenfromhistory.org

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City Hall is the place to go when you'd like to get nothing done Low income people may say their piece but will it be heard or Put the City Councillors on the run?

The Mayor seems bored when We wish to speak or chant His sleepy eyes seem blurred or glazed Corporate gangs lurk in the shadows Or in their closets .. maybe even under rocks, in a foggy disinterested haze.

Even though it must certainly be done, We have to go to City Pity Hall because if we don't the powers that be will totally ignore our desperate pleas

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On Gaining Ground

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Our beck and calls ...

Why be a politician if you could care less to hear both sides of important issues?

Seems to me they should be open-minded with us all - with less studies & commissions.

You don 't ever give up as they pass the buck Keep working to wear them down at staid, Strict City Hall Where we always get the royal runaround Let's make the trek to the limestone palace that belongs to us, Face the elite and well-to-do Gain some ground and tum their ignorant heads around I'm in this fight about wh~t's wrong and what's right Can we count on you?!

Robyn Livingstone

Entrepreneurship 101 is a free, non-credit course offering participants an experience similar to a first-year commerce class -- targeting new immigrants and low-income community members El01 is taught by volunteer faculty and graduate students. It's organized by Sauder School of Business at UBC. Nancy Langton Sauder School of Business Henry Angus Building, UBC Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z2 The application can be mailed, or faxed to 604822-85 17, or emailed to nancy.langton@sauder.ubc.ca .

For questions, call 604-822-8504.

DTES Neighbourhood House

Parent- Tot Drop In free Tuesdays &Wednesdays, 路1Oam - - noon Lore Krill Common Room . .

65 W Cordova (across from Army & Navy) .

Humanities 101 We are pleased to announce the start of our reading groups this weekend, 27th and 28th January 2007.

These are informal sessions open to everyone, covering topics such as Nutrition, Creative Writing, Vancouver Literature and Current Events. There is a small amount of reading for each group, but it is mostly discussion. Groups are run by Graduates from the Humanities IOJ course and UBC Graduate Students.

All reading groups take place on the last weekend of the month, third floor of the Carnegie Centre at Hastings and Main.

Nutrition and healthy eating. Saturday 2 til4pm This course will exam a wide variety of nutrition issues. Many foods can help cleanse our bodies and help up stay healthy; this group will examine patterns of eating in the city and work through informa-

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tion for individuals to better understand their own nutrition habits and potentially change them for the better. There will be readings, nutritional analyses and videos throughout the year Creative Writina:. Saturday 4 til 6pm The course will deal with a selection of American literature ranging from colonial times to the 20th century. Some of the authors included in this course are Emily Dickinson, Ralph W. Emerson, Cormac McCarthy, and Charles Bukowski. These and other works will be discussed and creative writing responses will be assigned.

Vancouver Literature. Sunday 12 til 2pm This reading group will examine the role literature plays in creating Vancouver's identity and that of its citizens. The group will read and discuss recent novels, short stories and poems by a range of Vancouver authors, with the aim of beginning to piece together a picture of lived experience in the city from different points of view. We will cover issues including urb~ development and gentrification, poverty and class difference, mobility in city spaces, appropriation of aboriginal land, local history, ecology and sustainable living and more. In our discussions we will consider how each text creates the urban community, and reflect on barriers to creating a community in the city. In other words, we will ask Who is representing whom? How? Why? Current Affairs. Sunday 2 til 4pm ...

This group will look at a range of different issues that are currently making headlines. Classes will consist of reading material from a variety of different sources and discuss our views to explore current events from around the world as well as events close to home. We will consider how each event affects us personally, the ramifications it has on the world stage and the role that media plays in shaping our views on a given story. Participants will practice articulating their own thoughts verbally during the group discussions and in written form by essay writing. Each class will be steered by the participants and class discussion will enable them to express their thoughts on an event and develop well rounded views on the subject matter.

These groups are free and open to all, but we do encourage people to attend regularly to get the most out of the experience. Please feel free to come along and try them at any time. Everyone Welcome

Dear Letters Editor,

The Vancouver Sun 路

I take exception to a statement in the January 19 editorial, "We have to be nimble to succeed in new world economy."

The Conference Board of Canada released a report called, "The Canada Project," which contains the statement that "Many poor people do not work because they are better off on social assistance."

Even a cursory examination of the facts proves that this is blatantly false. A single person on income assistance in BC receives $510 per month. $325 (often not enough) is intended for shelter, leaving $185 to live on for the month. That works out to $6 per day. Obviously, any kind of work would be a better proposition than trying to survive on this inadequate amount.

The Conference Board of Canada is only perpetuating a poor-bashing myth that income assistance is a better deal than working. The credibility of the rest of its report is in question after a blunder like this.

Yours sincerely, Rolf Auer I

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[Editor's note: Rolfs use of the word blunder is civil, given that this Conference Board is a little sister to the Council of Chief Executives which calls for the rolling back of all forms of public assistance, privatization of virtually everything including health care and elimination of any law or regulation that in any way restricts their goal to make as much money as possible -in any way possible- and damn the ians!]

Homeless Barrier by the Government This is so sad. I'm disgusted with the way Mayor Sam Sullivan & Premier Gordon Campbell are.

Whatever happened to the four pillars? They seem to have just crumbled with all the broken promises.

Politicians are so full of ideas on how they will change the issues ... Instead of putting all your efforts in your image, start working for the Poor People. We're like a third world country; Canada is so good about giving money to everybody but not to help our own.

Getting rid of the old hotels is not going to solve your problems. It will just tum into a big disaster.

It's like everything the government touches or makes promises about never turns into anything.

At City Hall, waiting to speak on the Real Estate corruption happening.: Re: Hotels sold for condos.

Columbia Hotel This Preppie woman got up and said her parents had bought the Hotel and "it really isn' t suitable for people to live in."

Then she said, "We have not bought the hotel to provide social housing. That's not our job and we won't do that."

She obviously wanted the current tenants out.

Wendy Pedersen and I were sitting behind her.

When she spoke I said something to Wendy and this woman yelled at me and told me not to talk while she was speaking. She actmilly yelled at us [with the clear indication that we were beneath her dignity to speak to with any kind of respect].

If you know this hotel (Columbia & Cordova) and its new owners, beware- danger: Profit-mongers in action.

Sheila Baxter PS: Why did they buy it if not to house people?

(One of several proposals sent to the City is asking for rezoning ss they can have a Chinese school and/or housing exclusively for Chinese seniors. The housing issue - the lack thereof for all low-income people cannot be allowed to degenerate into a race-based struggle. That's a sure way to let those promoting the gentrification of the Downtown Eastside to avoid exposure and label anyone protesting this proposal as antiChinese. This is poor-bashing and highlights how, while no one can discriminate on the basis of race, creed. colour, national origin, religion, sexual orientation or citizenship, it's still okay to treat poor people like trash with impunity. Editor]

Rich and poor, put a lot of thought into it before voting. A prime example for why is how they lose or gloss over stuff in the Income Tax office in Ottawa.and then expect the people who aren" rich to pay for everything. How can we trust a government that does that?

We as Canadians should be proud, but not when we're kept in the Poor House or have no housing.

All my relations, Bonnie E Stevens

The day after

22 may 1991 forget the children forget the seeds.

Rajeev assassinated, A nation bleeds But only until tomorrow.

What's next?

North is old hat NixQn forgotten Bundy, Gacy and Cliffy Olsen.

Slaves To fear, To anger, Faceless slum lords To greed.

Quickly feed Children of Adam On poverty, grief and miz-zerr-ri.

Children of Eve. Hungry children cradled by Siva dances, and cries Rat bitten mamas As he leaps.

Bugs abound, bugs and fleez.

Yahweh moans, Great, big, beautiful, wonderful world? Allah Weeps It is, it is a wonderful world.

Buddha smiles en-ig-mat-ic-al-lee Look at the grass, the flowers .......... . And the rest of us sigh, Watch the backhoe digging up trees.

Please, please.

Karenza t Wall -

The Forest That Disappeared I wanted to show Jean a beautiful place where I' d 路 camped fifteen years ago. It was at the entrance of an ancient forest in a distant valley. Majestic trees cast a green shade there, and a stream carried water from a cool spring. Moss lay thick upon the ground, and the silence of the forest was broken from time to time by the singing of birds and the gentle sighing of the wind.

There were more logging roads in that part of the country than there had been fifteen years earlier, and I wasn't sure which one to take. "Try one road, and if that doesn't work, try another," Jean said. That's what we did, and drove for another ten miles. "The land doesn't look the way I remember it," I said.

"It never does," Jean said.

Then I recognized a group of aspens. We stopped the car and walked towards them. My old campsite had been on the other side of these trees, and as we walked through the aspen grove, I remembered how beautiful the campsite was. Instead of my campsite,

however, we found a wasteland. Where my tent had stood was an abandoned landing for a logging operation. The grass-covered clearing was gone. Trees that had given me shade were gone and the spring that had given me water was a muddy pool, buried under ten feet of debris. The ancient forest was gone. Not one tree left.

I rushed this way and that way, looking for a forest that had disappeared. Jean, struggling to keep up with my furious pace, shouted, "Sandy, what's wrong?"

I turned to her, not answering. An entire forest couldn't disappear like that. Maybe I was in the wrong place. "If I can find my bearings, everything will be as it was before," I said to myself.

Rushing up a steep hill, I reached a place where I could see more clearly. Fifteen years ago, I had climbed up here at night with the moon full and the night so bright I could walk through the forest without danger. From the crest of this hill I had seen the moon shining on the valley, the ancient forest, and the snow-peaked mountains. Fifteen years later all I could see was a catastrophe of stumps and broken limbs. "I wanted to show you a sacred place but there's no restraint here, no respect," I said, and I thought of the gigantic corporations that will not rest until they have cut down every tree on earth, or sold every cupful of pure water. "Such utter destruction, and for what moral purpose?" I continued. "They don't know what they're doing. It's themselves they murder."

"And us," Jean said.

By Sandy Cameron

From Joseph J Cvetkovich B.Com, LL.B .

To Ethel Whitty, Director, Carnegie Centre

PUBLIC MASTER CLASS ON SHADOW THEATRE with Larry Reed & ntenzbers of tile Shadows Project creative team

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 7-9 PM Atlntission is by donation! All Welcon1e

Russian Hall, 600 Campbell Street Look behind the screen into theatre's cheapest special effect )> Learn about tricks of the trade for shadow theatre production . )> Take a sneak peak at images in development for the Shadows Project )> Meet the artistic team who is working on the project Vancouver Moving Theatre is bringing Larry Reed to the Downtown Eastside to workshop images for The Shadows Project: a two year project to create an original shadow theatre play for the Downtown E.as!side that sheds light on issues surrounding addictiOn and recovery. The workshop will involve the artistic team and a small group of community members involved in the project. : Produced by Vancouver Moving Theatre working m cooperation with the Carnegie Community Centre, the play will premiere at the Russian Hall April 19-29, 2007. );;>

Further to our telephone conversation oftoday' s date, please find my personal cheque in the amount of $51.00; the $50 is a donation to said Carnegie being made by "Big Joe" as in the past. The additional $1.00 is for senior membership as I am suffering from acute renal difficulty and am taking dialysis four times a week and suffer from a bad case of Parkinson's. I am unable to get to the Centre where I took my first Library card in 1939 while in Grade One at what we called "Seymour School". I recently attended its one hundredth birthday.

I am only 73, and froll} 1945-50 used to shine shoes at the Broadway Hotel, just down the street at Columbia and Hastings.

Please see that l am put on your bulletin mailing list. Regards, Joe C. Ethel brought this in, equating "bulletin" with the Newsletter. It's decent to see someone loyal to this neighbourhood who won't permit his history to be replaced with an answering service. Ed.

PM in the THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 1: West Vancouver Adult Pops Band

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21: Metropolitan Concert Band

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shadow pla_y for the Downtown Eastside

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 4: Ambleside Orchestra

Peak House Poetry Myself Destruction of the self I Turning, falling ...

On my way down.

I can't . . .

Grasp the ground beneath my feetIt's gone, The foundation crumbled years ago.

1' ve stood on air Trying to create something out of nothingness My body is tired My mind has gone to dust Darkness surrounds my shell ...

Creeping closer â&#x20AC;˘ Minutes pass, Then hours, days, and years

SATURDAY AFTERNOON MATINEES. SHADOW THEATRE FILMS Feb. lO,Feb.l7, Feb.24andMarch3 2 pm Carnegie Theatre, 40 1 Main Street ADMISSION IS FREE - ALL WELCOME! Sat. Feb. 10 Shadow Master A dramatic documentary about a family of puppeteers in Bali directed by Larry Reed and co-created with the family.

Sat. Feb. 17 In Xanadu An epic love story about Kublai Khan and his wife Chabui; set amid the chaes of war. Sung by Tibetan and Chinese opera singers.

Mayadanawa The story of a horrible beast, roaring and creating chaos who demands to be worshipped until Indra descends to battle it and restore peace and order.

Sat. Feb. 24 Coyote's Journey A traditional Aboriginal tale of Coyote's adventures and misadventures narrated by Charlie "Red Hawk" Thorn, a California Karuk elder The Wild Party and March 3 T"he Seven Visions ofEncarnacion

The Shadows Project premieres April 19-29, 2007

Nothing changes outside, But within the turmoil builds Growing into something new and unwanted.

Thoughts destroy .. .

More than their words.

No one really cares.

The truth is hidden away , Kept far from reality Kept far from the self.

Now what has the self become?

Is it our true perception Or society's twisted ideal?

We don't want to deal ...

With the downfalls Of ourselves and others It's not the praised part, Rather, it's looked down upon No one really wants to hear How you feel They only want .. .

The superficial front ... . .. that's put on.

Amanda White

Amanda She struggles day after day Waging war with all this pain inside her Depression is not a battle for the faint of heart But she will make it because she is strong She will make it because she is courageous She will make it because she is determined.

Determined to fight her addiction.

She's changing and she doesn't even realize She doesn't realize all she has achieved This young woman can be anything she wants This is most definitely the hardest battle She could ever have to face, But also the most rewarding.

She has all this amazing character inside her if she would just allow herself to see it within If she just had the same loving and caring attitude towards herself as she does for others If she were only as gentle and kind to herself as she is to others.

She has to give herself a break Give herself a chance She has to open up and let love in.

Geneva McCall

·POWNTOWN EASTSIDE YOUTH ACTIVITIES SOCIETY 612 Main Street

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604-251-3310

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NEEDLE EXCHANGE VAN- 3 Routes: 604-685-6561 City- 5:45pm -11:45pm Overnight - 12:30am - 8:30am Downtown Eastside - 5:30pm - 1:30am

CCIFffi((J)

NEWSLETTER

Editor: PauiR Taylor

THIS NEWSLETTER IS A PUBLICATION OF THE CARNEGIE COMMUNITY CENTRE ASSOCIATION

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2007 DONATIONS Libby D.-$100 Rolf A.-$75 Barry for Dave McC-$125 Christopher R .-$30 Margaret D.-$40 Penny G.-$50 Janice P.-$30 Wes K.-$50 Gram-$400 John S.-$60 Leslie S.-$20 Michael C.-$80 Sheila B.-$20 Wilhelmina M .-$ 15 CEEDS -$50 Saman -$20 Phyllis L.-$200 Paddy -$1 25 Bob S.-$100 Barry M.-$125 Winnie T.-$5,000

WHO DO YOU LOVE? The

Submission deadline for next issue: .

Mond~y,

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12 February

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

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"The job ofthe newspaper is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. " The famous quote is about a hundred years old and can be traced to the work of Finley Peter Dunne, one of the great journalists of the day

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get us in the mood for Valentine's Day

Carnegie .

Communtty Centre

FEBRUARY3RD AT 7:00P.M. I n the Carnegie Theatre

w.~a,. ,.~r!! .Jenny WaiChing Kwan MLA

Working for You 1070-1641 Commercial Dr VSL 3Y3 Phone:775-0790 Fax:775-0881

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Free Admission

THIS SATURDAY

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l.tw• Is llll.• a.~.

Love is like oranges, The Sun in a circle of taste, Good for what ails you Physical, mental and spiritual.

Biting the bursting fruit Smelling the sharp-sweet tang Juices consuming sense To your friends give orangesTo your gods give oranges.

Mother's remedy for everything was oranges Squeezed fresh- seeds removed Golden in the glass From our small, dark, basement room.

I looked up to the air and the sun, And it tasted like oranges.

Wilhelmina Miles'

There is no clothing allowance As an advocate, I often see people who want their "clothing allowance". I wish I could tell you that such a benefit exists, but it doesn't. There may, in fact, have been a clothing allowance at one point (back ih:the days of the GAIN Act, before 1997), but no longer. If you ask for your "clothing allowance", you probably won't get it: (Occasionally, you will luck into a welfare worker who just issues you some money, but that kind of worker is getting as scare as hen's teeth.)

There is a way to get money for clothing, however.

You need to know what the legislation says. Basically, the only money for clothing in the legislation is under the "crisis supplement" section. So you need a crisis Sl,lpplement - most people actually call them a "crisis grant" - for clothing. (And the most you can get in one year is $I 00 per person, to a maximum of$400 for a family of four or more.)

There are 3 important parts to getting a crisis grant: (I) Your need must be unexpected or unforeseen.

If your clothing simply wears out, that doesn't

count. (You were supposed to have known that the clothing would wear out, and saved from all those pots of money you get on welfare. Pardon my disbelief.) However, if your winter jacket was badly torn when someone grabbed you, that's unexpected. Or if your laundry was stolen at the laundromat, that's unexpected. Or if your room was broken into and someone stole your shoes, that's unexpected. Or if you suddenly lost a lot of weight due to illness, and your pants are falling off you, that's unexpected. Or if your child's jacket had a rip in it, and you didn't notice, and then you put it in the washing machine and the rip tore the jacket apart, that's unexpected.

Or if your doctor gave you a prescription for orthotics and told you to be sure to get some good quality shoes to put them into, and you don't have any good shoes, that's unexpected. You get the idea .... there must be a reason why you could not have foreseen you'd need the clothing.

(2) You must have no resources available to buy this unexpected item ofneed. So, if yesterday was cheque day, or you just got your GST cheque, it's going to be harder to argue you have no funds. (It's better to wait a little while, unless, for example, you spent all your money on food the day after cheque day and two days later, your jacket was stolen.)

However, the Ministry cannot tell you that you must get your clothing at a free clothing place (like our church). They often suggest that, but they can't make you take free clothing.

(3) Your health (or the health ofyour child) will be affected ifyou don't get the clothing. Actually, the words are "imminent danger to physical health", but you don't have to be dying. If, for e~ample, you have hepatitis C and it's the dead of winter, it's obviously bad for your health to be running around without a decent jacket or boots, so that can be a threat to your health. Summer clothing can be more difficult to argue for. However if you've been put on medication that makes your skin extremely sunsensitive, you might have an argument there. If the lack of clothing puts your child at risk of removal by MCFD, that's also a valid argument.

The point is, please don't even mention the words "clothing allowance". Think about why you might need a crisis grant for the clothing, and use the words that work.

Susan Henry, First United Church Mission

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Three- Week Work Search: Do I have to do it?

The Ministry of Employment and Income Assistance usually requires people applying for welfare to complete a 3-week work search before you can receive any benefits.

You do not have to do a 3-week work search if you:

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need food, a place to stay or medical attention right away (if so, you must ask for an "Emergency Needs Assessment" and this assessment should happen within 24 hours); * are 65 or over; * have a severe physical or mental condition that doesn't allow you to search for a job; * are applying for "child in the home of a relative" benefits; are fleeing an abusive spouse or relative; and/or * are not legally allowed to work in Canada.

In all of these cases, the Ministry must decide right away whether or not you are eligible for welfare.

The Ministry is not allowed to make you do any kind of 3-week wait.

If you are made to wait three weeks, or if you

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have to wait longer than 24 hours for your Emergency Needs Assessment, contact the BC Ombudsman at 1-800-567-3247 to make a complaint.

The Ministry is not allowed to tell you to go to a food bank or a shelter instead of giving you benefits.

To find out more about your rights, contact the LawLINE 604-408-2172 (Lower Mainland) OR 1866-577-2525 (Rest of BC) To find an advocate in your area contact: www.povnet.org -look under "Find an Advocate" This fact sheet was prepared by the BC Public Interest Advocacy Centre and the Community Legal Assistance Society in January, 2007.

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to a world beat

CARNEGIE CENTRE. 2ND SUNDAY EVERY MONTH! 11 February 2007 1-SPM 2ND FLOOR GYM

COME AS YOU ARE DANCE AWAY WINTER DREAD

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To Believe or Not to Believe No baby No You don wanna kill yourself Even though God knows It's enough to try the patience of Job Jes getting' by Hang in there The Sun is Coming Hope is Coming Life is Coming For you and me and all the others -the downtroddenclinging to that bottom rung of the ladder Even for the fair-haired child whose beauty did not save her All have become fodder for the system the social machinery Pawns for that great chess game in the sky some say Fate The game God, Jehova, Raven, Coyote play with us, causing us to believe, time after time, failure after failure Bringing hope into our frail human hearts 'tis the season Pushing us to feel- then lurching away again.

Remember, fellows: Beware of Gods Their plans have naught to do with our expectations or understanding ...

We are all we have.

Wilhelmina Miles

-IN LOVING MEMORY OF THE FOLLOWING WOMEN- Alberta Williams, Aleisha Germaine, Alice Hall, Amanda P. Flett (Mandy), Amy McCauley, Ann Wolsey, Angie Williams, Annie Cedar Jr., April Reach, Barb Mills, Barbara Charles, Barbara Gus, Barbara Larocque, Barbara Paul, Basma Rafay, Bernadette Campo, Bernadette Grace Pierce, Bernadine Standing-Ready, Betty Case, Betty Lou Williams, Beverley Ann Desjarlais, Beverley Whitney, Beverly Wilson, Brenda George, Bonnie Catagas, Bonnie Lincoln, Bonnie Peters, Bonnie Pruden, Carol Cardinal, Carol Ann Wadden, Carol Davis, Carrie Ann Starr, Chantal Venne, Chantal Gillade, Charity Cassell, Charlene Kerr, Cheryle Joyce Vicklund, Christina Lorraine Christison, Christine (Chrissie) Billy, Christine Elizabeth McCrae, Cindy Williams, Clorissa Mary Adolph, Connie Chartrand, Connie Rider, Carol Ann Wadden, Corrine Dagnault, Corrine Sherry Upton La Fleur, Dana Draycott, Darlene M. Johnston, Darlene Small-Legs, Darlene Weismiller, Darlinda (Dawn) Ritchie, Dawn Lynn Cooper, Debbie Ann McMath, Debbie Kennedy, Debbie Neaslose, Deborah Chisholm, Debra Foley, Debra Lucas, Delilah Martin, Delores Rivet, Denise Stillwell, Diane Lancaster, Donna Rose Kiss, Dora Joseph Patrick, Edna Shande, Elizabeth Chalmers, Elsie Sabastian, Elsie Tomma, Enola Evans, Florence Isaac, Fang Min Wong and her 3 week old daughter, Gail Worm, Gerri Ferguson, Geraldine Williams, Gertrude Copegop, Gloria Duneult (Sam), Gloria Baptiste, Haljinder Kniljar, Helena George, Helen Lessardo (Bowers), Holly Cochran, Jacqueline Michelle, Janet Basil, Janet Pelletier, Janice Saul, Jane Hill, Jean McMiJlan, Jeannie Wiebe, Jennie Lea Water, Jennifer Moerike, Jennifer Pete, Josephine Johnson, Joyce Paquette, Julie Mai Smith, June Hill, Kandice Mills, Kanwaljitk Gill, Karen Ann Baker, KatWeen Dale Wattley, Katherine P. August, Kelly Myers, Lana Morin, Laurie Ann Rix, Laurie Scholtz, Lavern Jack, Laverna Avivgan, Leanne Copello, Linda Jean Coombes, Linda Louise Grant, Linda Learning, Linda Nelson, Lisa Leo, Lisa Marie Graveline, Lisa Moosomin, Lois Makie, Lorna Carpenter, Lori Newman, Lorna George (Jones), Lorna Lambert, Lorraine (Ray) Arrance, Lou-Anne Stolarchuck (Bonnie), Margaret Ved~n, Maria Ferguson, Maljorie Mack, Maljorie Susan Prisnen, Martha Gavin, Mary Ann Charlie, Marina George, Mary Ann Jackson, Mary Anne Monroe, Mary James, Mary Johnson, Mavis McMillan, Mathilda Charles, Maureen Riding-At- The-Door, Mavis Hippolyte, Maxine Paul, Melody Newfeld, Meranda Isaac, Mertyl Roy, Michelle Latleshe, Michelle Liza Webster, Michelle Wing, Monika Lillmeier, Marietta Smoker, Naazish Khan, Nadine McMillan, Nancy Jane Bob, Nancy Anne Clark, Nancy McDonald, Nancy Jane Poole, Norma Clarke, Nya Rane Robillard, Olivia Gale William, Patricia Andrew, Patricia Ann Wadhams (Trish), Patricia Thomas, Pauline Johnson, Peggy Favel, Peggy Snow, Peggy Suhner, Rachael Davis, Ramona Wilson, Ranjitk Toor, Rhonda Gaynor, Rhonda MacDonald, Rita Holy-White-Man, Roberta Lincoln, Rose Merasty, Rose Peters, Rose Piapst, Roxanne Thiara, Ruby Williams, Ruth Anderson, Ruth Oliver, Sadie Chartrand, Sally Abou, Sally Jackson, Saltana Rafay, Sandra Amos (George), Sandra Flamond, Sharon Arrance, Sheila Hunt, Shirley Nix, Sonia Mathews, Susan Ball, Susan Jones, Susan Presvich, Swaranjitk Thandi, Tammy Lee Pipe, Tanya Emery, Tanya Marlo, Tanya Wallace, Teresa Brewer, Theresa Humchitt, Tracy Lyn Hope, Terry Lynn, Tracy Olajide, Vanessa Ferguson, Vera Lyons, Vema Missar, Vema Parnell, Veronica Harry, Vicky Buchard, Victoria Joseph (Misty), Victoria Yonkers, Violet Delores Herman, Wendy Grace Lewis, Wendy Poole, Yvonne Stevens *Some names have not been included, to have a narr~ of a woman added, please call Marlene at (604) 665-3005. List is compiled from 2004 & previous files & at the request of some families.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the families whose daughters have been tragically murdered Andrea Borhaven, Andrea Joesbury, Angela Jardine, Brenda Wolfe, Cara Ellis, Cindy Feliks, Dawn Theresa Crey, Debra Jones, Diane Melnick, Dianne Rock, Georgina Papin, Heather Bottomley, Heather Chinnock, Helen Hallmark, fuga Halt, Jacqueline McDonell, Jennifer Funninger, Kerry Koski, Marcella Creison, Mamie Frey, Mona Wilson, Patricia Johnson, Sarah Jean DeVries, Sereena Abottsway, Sherry Irving, Tanya Holyk, Teressa Williams, Tiffany Drew, Wendy Crawford, Yvonne Boon, & 3 unidentified women known only as Jane Doe.

Our prayers remain with the women who are still unaccounted for Angela Arseneault, Cara EIJis, Catherine Gonzalez, Cindy Beck, Danielle Larue, Delphine Nikat, Dorothy Spence, Elaine A I lenbach, Elaine Dumba, Elizabeth Chalmers, Elsie Sebastian, Frances Young, Gloria Fedyshyn, Ingrid Soet, Janet Henry, Jacqueline Murdock, Julie Young, Katherine Knight, Kathleen Wattley, Lana Derrick, Laura Mah, Leigh Miner, Lenora Olding, Lillian O'Dare, Linda Grant, Marilyn Moore, Marie Laliberte, Mary Lands, Michelle Gurney, Nancy Clark, Nicole Hoar, Olivia William, Rebecca Guno, Richard "Kellie" Little, Ruby Hardy, Sharon Abraham, Sharon Goselin, Sharon Ward, Sherry Baker, Sheryl Donohue, Sheila Egan, Sherry Rail, Stephanie Lane, Tammy Fairbairn, Tania Peterson, Teresa Triff, Vema Littlechief, W~ndy Allen, Yvonne Abigosis