July 1, 2020 Carnegie Newsletter

401 Main Street Vancouver Canada V6A 2T7 (604) 665-2289

Without a home, there is no rent, or mortgage payments to sweat over each month.

Home, a place where one lives permanently, indefinitely until neighbors raise a stink and shopkeepers badger city hall for relief.

There is no rent on a tent, just a one-time investment, and a patch of ground under bridge or crab park.

A silver lining sleeping bag to last the months until winter comes to bark. (c)2020 Garry Gust

Remember Woodstock? It was the first rock n roll weekend concert/festival/gathering that became international in fame. The legend holds that xOO,OOO kids had a blissful 3 days of peace, love and joy.

The other legend holds that the planning and on-site realities had little food, bad dope, traffic nightmares, overflowing washrooms and very brittle connections as people failed to get out.

Remember Oppenheimer Park. There are more stories and many more opinions, but analysis brings us to the same end - housing solutions are not magical and meeting the desires of every individual is not a short-term possibility .

The numbers certainly fall short. Homeless counts have over 2,200 people living in public space, with the best count of those housed at the decampment ofOppenheimer around 600. Who is paying for those rooms is usually answered with 'government.' Those people who weren't housed, whether because of being too late or not wanting what was on offer, left unwanted stuff in Oppenheimer and relocated to a parking lot at Crab Park.

The numbers of tents at Crab parking lot wentfrom maybe 20 to over 60 in a few days. The reasoning is not academic - it is not a lifestyle choice to be homeless though residents in nearby rooms/apartments/ condos almost immediately began complaining about the mess, the noise, the unsanitary conditions, and the lack of order.

Fast forward to the dismantling of this encampment, with police arresting some 46 people for contempt of court, and the inevitable relocation - this time to Strathcona Park.

There are calls now for a permanent homeless camp, though where this would be is not known or even proposed (except for a large lot near City Hall). There is nO large space' the city's limits that is unused, or that being designated for a whole village ofunhoused people would not immediately raise cries from others having different plans or ideas for said space.

It is time for ideas and plans to be aired. It's naive to expect realistic responses to not disrupt existing parameters, yet homelessness is not limited to Vancouver or the Lower Mainland. A recent report echoing local concerns about the impact of COVID-19 on homeless people included the fact of over 4,000 unhoused individuals in Montreal, 5,000 in Toronto and varying thousands in cities across the country. Whatever actions and accommodations found effective elsewhere should have some scope in assisting us to find reasonable solutions here.

Right now, it seems to be a matter of waiting for the other shoe to drop, with dispersal and authoritative inter-

vention being inevitable. There is a lot of ground between "You cannot stay here!" and "We have nowhere to go." All stakeholders in this dilemma! conundrum/reality have to commit to workable responses. Simply condemning others just builds walls.

By PAULR TAYLOR

BIG WIN: Internet for low-income people!

Due to all the pressure from BC ACORN and ACORN members across the country, Telus has followed through on a new and improved $10 per month internet package.

PWD recipients now qualify, as well as families who get the child tax benefit. Internet speeds in the program will be 25mbps and a data cap-will be set at 300GB per month.

While this is not perfect, it is the best program in the province for low-income people and it shows our organizing is working.

HOW APPLY: Confirm that you are eligible and apply by sending your approved documentation. Send it by email to internetforgood@telus.com or by mail to "Attention: Internet for Good Program, 510 West Georgia Street - Floor 23, Vancouver, BC V6B OM3". Include your full name, return address, email address (if applicable) and contact phone number so they can contact you about your application.

Receive program approval, along with a unique TELUS Internet for Good redemption code.

Call TELUS to redeem your code to set up your internet service and schedule an installation.

Please note: Documentation will be used for eligibility validation and then deleted or shredded. TELUS will be recording your name, mailing address, email (if applicable) and last four digits of a unique identifier.

Individuals are encouraged to enlist the help of a friend, family member or case worker to apply on their behalf if necessary.

[Google BC ACORN for more information & aid.]

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My' life began with little rooms, ana, as I had been paying attention, as we danced that merrJ' chase through England's eons rust-Dent search for space that stole the show, at such a pace, that, I, timelessly, noticed each everything I'd touched, from dawn to dust, was heaving through as I neared the cusp.

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To live like a rock, as we did, while encircling the sun with shiny cinderblocks, who bounced back everything you didn't need to know ana everything you could never let yourself forget.

I found my mirror! my looking glass, In the dark: hopefi led days that taught me, where if all would end.

'We will meet again'.

DilIan Yuras

5th Annual.,sANDY CAMERON MEMORIAL WRITING CONTEST The talents and resourcefulness of Downtown Eastside writers and poets, regardless of where you reside, are extraordinary. Please consider sharing your work with others through this event.

Categories of poetry and non-fiction essay will have cash prizes, given at a special event during the Heart of the City Festival in November.

For contest guidelines and entry form, either pick up an envelope at the Food Service window on Camegie's 1st floor or email camnews@shaw.ca for a virtual copy. Deadline for entry is noon, September 15,2020

On Sunday June 21, Carnegie Centre hosted a full afternoon of virtual celebrations and performances in honour of National Indigenous Peoples Day. The event was opened by Elder Carleen Thomas from Tsleil-Waututh Nation, and featured an afternoon ofpre-recorded and live streamed digital cultural content and performances, delivered digitally in partnership with the UBC Learning Exchange. Craft kits and cultural learning packages prepared by the Cultural Sharing Program and the Learning Centre were distributed to community members, and the Carnegie Community Centre Association sponsored a lunch of smoked salmon salad and baked bannock. Check out the photos for some highlights, and thank you to everyone that tuned in or dropped by!

Missed the live stream? Many of the performance are available to view on the Camegie Centre Facebook page at facebook.comlCarnegieCommunityCentre!