November 15, 2021 Carnegie Newsletter

401 Main Street Vancouver Canada V6A 2T7

(604) 665-2289

A huge Heartfelt THANK YOU to Everyone involved in the ra" Annual DTES Heart of the City Festival!

This year's Heart of the City Festival was amazing! With the theme Stories We Need to Hear, the Festival featured over 200 residents and artists from the Downtown Eastside and across Canada. We heard stories of wisdom and creativity; of diverse and rich traditions; of hopes and dreams; of " . "", knowledge systems, cultural roots and languages; and about issues alive in our community.

The Festival is strong because of the relationships, collaborations and partnerships we create together. It is an honour

to

work with all of you to present a successful Festival in face of the many challenges of the COVID pandemic. We learned a lot about how to reach the many members of the community and to find ways we can gather together online and in person.

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With huge THANKS to the artists, participants, audience members, community partners, funding partners, supporters, staff, volunteers, work teams, and friends for participating in an extraordinary Festival.

We are planning for next year - the 19th Annual DTES Heart of the City Festival, with the theme Community as Mentor, to take place Wednesday October 26 to Sunday November 6, 2022. We look forward to developing the Festival with our long time producing partners, the Association of United Ukrainian Canadians and the Carnegie Community Centre.

If you have a project or a program idea to contribute or suggest for next year's Festival, give Terry Hunter a call: 604-628-5672. www.heartofthecityfestival.com Photo above - Step hen Lytton & Wendy Pedersen, Survivors Totem Pale Ceremony in Pigeon Park, photo: left Wllson

14th Annual Oppenheimer Park Community Art Show The theme for this year's exhibition is grounded by last year's publication which centered place, asking us to consider who makes a place? This year we see the park being reshaped, reopened and the conversation continues. Oppenheimer park continues to be a place where many communities come to gather, build a sense of resilience, activation and community. The park's history, relational systems, and matter of being is complex and nuanced taking various forms, and ebbs and flows like a river with channels of communities branching off into other directions and cycles. As we move forward through these metaphorical interlocking waters we welcome artwork that addresses topics, including but not limited to: taking shape looking ahead where are we now? Where have we been? where are we going? place-makin~ as cultural resilience connection to Indigenous lands Diaspora place, survival and healing home Gallery Gachet and The Oppenheimer Park will be accepting works in all mediums, depending on the size of the works we will be accepting 1-3 works. Artworks should be dropped off at gallery gachet at 9w Hastings November 25th, 26th, and 27th from 1pm- 4pm. lfpossible, include a title of the work and the mediums used, and an artist's statement about yourself and the artwork and how we can reach you.

If interested, there are several ways to send us your ideas or questions for your contribution to this show: stop by the activity tent at Oppenheimer Park afternoons from 1-3pm (weather permitting) or Email orphoneMannygachetassociate@gmail.com 778-389-8602 Lily Lily.Cheung@vancouver.ca 604-830-2544

DYES SRO Collaborative Press Release Tenants and advocates of the Downtown Eastside are supporting the City of Vancouver's proposed "Vacancy Control Regulations in Single Room Accommodation (SRA) Designated Properties", to be presented to City Council for deliberation on November 17th, 202l.

Richard Schwab is a tenant researcher with the Right to Remain research collective and a board member of the Downtown Eastside SRO Collaborative. He is currently a tenant of an SRO. His rent is currently $375 but other rooms in the building are now renting for up to $575.

"Until recently, SRO's were affordable for people with low incomes," said Schwab. "Right now my rent is $375, which is equal to the shelter component of social assistance. But if I lose my housing, the landlord can raise the rent as much as he wants. New people moving into my building are already paying $575 per month. Once the landlord gets a bunch of rooms to rent at $600 per month he could sell the hotel to the next guy who will try to get rents to $1,000. I've seen this happen in other buildings. The vacancy control policy will help remove the incentive to evict vulnerable SRO tenants."

Wendy Pedersen is Executive Director of the Downtown Eastside SRO Collaborative Society. The DTES SRO Collaborative works to improve living conditions and sense of community for the 4,000 tenants living in 100 privately-owned Single Room Occupancy (SRO) hotels in Vancouver.

"SRO's are a last resort before homelessness. If rents continue to skyrocket in this housing stock, more tenants will be forced into homelessness," said Pedersen.

"It's essential for the City to take action to protect SRO tenants. The City took a crucial first step in.

2005 when they created the SRA Bylaw to slow conversion of SRO hotels into condos, offices and hotels for tourists. Vacancy control for SRO's is a desperately needed next step to stop rooms from being lost to rising rents and to speculative investment."

Norm Leech is Executive Director of the Vancouver Aboriginal Community Policing Centre (V ACPC).

VACPCS is an Indigenous-led non-profit. society that addresses social justice issues and improves safety for

Indigenous residents. While Indigenous residents represent 2% of the Vancouver population citywide, they represent over 30% of SRO tenants and 39% of those counted in the City's 2020 homeless count.

"The vacancy control proposal is the biggest thing this city can do to prevent homelessnes right now.

It's also the most cost-effective action, helping to protect thousands of low-rent rooms at the annual cost of building only one unit of social housing," said Leech. "If this policy is approved, it will buy the community the time, and the peace of mind, it needs to create a truly holistic plan to address the multiple crises we face - deteriorating housing conditions, homelessness, poison drug supply, poverty, and other harms that have come with colonization."

Battered Women Support Services and the Colour of Violence As part of this Colour of Violence work, we have launched an anonymous survey "Colour of Violence Survey: Intersections 0/ Race and Gender for Racialized Survivors Experiencing Gender-Based Violence in British Columbia" The first part of this work is timed to contribute to discussion about proposed provincial anti-racism legislation in December 202 l-January 2022. The survey focuses on issues of accessibility, safety, and the structural barriers of anti-violence services in BC for Black, Indigenous, inunigrantlrefugee, and women and gender-diverse survivors of colour.

A request to all BC based social justice, social service and anti-violence workers and organizations to please encourage survivors who access your services to consider filling out the survey, if appropriate.

This is a completely anonymous survey with no identifying information collected that will take less than 15 minutes to fill out with 11 questions.

Anyone who does the survey can enter a draw for a $50-gift certificates to My Sisters Closet.

We are seeking the participation of those who are: Black, Indigenous, inunigrantlrefugee, racialized Identify as a cisgender or transgender woman or femme, or as a gender diverse person Live in BC Are 19+ Go to BWSS online for the link.

Dear mayor and council,

November 12, 2021

I'm writing this letter on behalf of the Carnegie Community Center Association. We serve the needs of Downtown Eastside residents and the needs of many homeless people in our community. Homelessness is a plague that should not exist in a city and nation that is among the wealthiest in the world.

Many people are homeless because unconscionable landlords have raised rents beyond what's affordable for low-income people. Stable housing is the first step to healing from addiction and mental health issues.

Having a city with housing that's out of reach for so many people borders on criminality. Housing is a human right, and allowing landlords to continue to charge rents that gouge 90% of people's income is unethical.

Vacancy control will prevent creating housing that is out of reach for low-income people. Many of us on the CCCA Board have experienced homelessness and we are passionate about finding solutions. We believe Vacancy Control is one ofthose solutions.

Women on the Board have related to me experiences of homelessness where they were forced into sexual activity in order to have a place to sleep.

Rentier capitalism is some distance removed from promoting general welfare and in Vancouver's DowntOWl1Eastside unconscionable slumlords create homelessness with renovictions, tenant bribery, and other illegal evictions of vulnerable people.

"Economists from Adam Smith to Keynes find no social utility in rentier practice ... Rentierism is almost by definition the appropriation of value which one did not earn. Ground rents are a species of revenue which the owner, in many cases, enjoys without any care or attention of his own. Ground rents are, therefore, perhaps a species of revenue which best bear to have a particular tax imposed upon them. .• As soon as the land of any country has all become private property, the landlords, like all other men, love to reap where they never sowed and demand a rent even for its natural produce. " Council should not feel any sympathy or obligation toward persons whose walk to the yacht is financed by the city's most exploited population.

You have a responsibility as Councillors and as Mayor to protect Vancouver's most vulnerable citizens, to prevent in~eased homelessness and to help Downtown Eastside remain a safe, secure, home for persons in poverty and for people, including many seniors, with low incomes. Many of us are artists who contribute to making Vancouver a creative, vibrant, space. Evictions, designed to gentrify the neighbour. hood for persons wanting to move in to the "cool" areas, are what destroy the neighbourhood and turn it into just another suburb with cookie cutter condos and malls, each succeeding one uglier that the last.

I urge you to implement vacancy control with zero increase in rents following a move. This is the best disincentive to illegal evictions and creates security for tenants.

Thank you Gilles Cyrenne, President Carnegie Community Centre Association.

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Graffiti Trump saved us Jesus is an atheist Wisdom of the damned l.isa David

Against all odds

.

This is definitely a story that needs to be told, and one that needs to be heard. Why? I want to give hope to those suffering from being separated from their family and friends, drug addiction, divorce, and living problems in general. It is a story of Recovery, a tale of beating the odds.

This story covers a period of ten years or so, one that begins in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, continues in China and on to Winnipeg and finishes in the DTES. I am an addict in Recovery, free from all substances since 1982, until a relapse last year. My daughter is also an addict, clean for the last 12 years. We lived together in East Vancouver in the mid 90's. She did not make rent for 2 months in a row, with her money going to drugs. I had to ask her to leave and I eventually left for the Peoples.Republic of China to work. I was pained greatly from having to show some tough love to my daughter, but my Recovery depended on an honest way of living and she had been lying to me. You cannot con a con and that is why addicts can best help other addicts. She was missing for ten years, with no contact with any family. We finally met again, and this is the part that you must hear.

I was teaching in the South of China, staying drug free, and by chance, so it seemed, met another guy from Vancouver who also came to teach at my school. We were two of four white people living in a city of 5-6 million. He decided.after a year to return to Vancouver and we parted company. He phoned me one day from Canada and told me he was walking down Main St. and at Pender, he met a girl who asked 'where he had been as she hadn't seen him for a long time. He told her he was in China, and she said that her Dad was in China. That was me, and that is how we got in touch with each other. When I returned to Winnipeg, I called my daughter and she was in a bad way. Hopelessly addicted to Chasing the Dragon and dying slowly. I met her at the airport in Winnipeg and she as all of 80 Ibs, and losing her hair and teeth. She got clean.

I am so proud of my daughter. She went back to school and became a Counsellor with Metis Youth at Risk. She got healthy, found peace in her Grandmother's culture and remains clean today. She has a new job working with Indigenous people and researching Aids and STDs in that community. I returned to Vancouver two years ago and live in the DTES. I have found Recovery again, inspired by my daughter.

Finally, it is important to realize that two Canadian strangers met by chance in a strange country of 1.6 billion people, China, and that led to family being reunited in a country of35 million, Canada. What are the odds of that happening? The chances of winning a Lottery are probably better. Against all odds and a spiritual happening, our family is back together, climbing out of the depths of addiction and becoming useful people in Society. I am grateful. She is grateful. Hugs.

Lawrence Morris

3rd Place ESSAY Writing Contest

"Charity" I don't need to be saved, I just need to be seen One size solutions do not fit all beings I'm tired of watching people pat themselves on the back Meanwhile I continue to fall through the cracks Thanks for the breadcrumbs, now where's the beef?

Empty promises and false hopes lead to grief You talk a big game and say all the right things But when push comes to shove you've got me on a string I jumped through your hoops and ran your obstacle course But there was no prize at the end, just remorse Impossible deadlines that I couldn't meet Internalized shame, failure, defeat Neurotypical standards of conformity Unrealized dreams of autonomy "A helping hand up over a hand out" Turning my words into hashtags for clout Don't I get credit for my free labour?

Just another disenfranchised Downtown East Side neighbour , Help isn't helpful ifit only deceives There's a difference between equality and equity Rage against the broken system that only sees me As either a burden or a commodity Kerry Hopkins

2nd Place POETRY

Oh Where Did the Love Go Oh once I met an old man He seemed so very wise It reflected in his demeanor And his soft grey eyes I said, "Could you tell me mister . Where does the love go When your baby leaves you With your head hanging low?"

He said, "Please sit you down And 1'11answer the best I can For I too had this question When I was a young man Maybe it goes way way up And lives among the stars Or it could be in a juke box That you hear in lonely bars Perhaps it's in an echo From far off in the hills Or it lives in a haunted place That gives you willies and chills It may be in a poem In an old dusty book That is where love goes When your heart is forsook It could be in the song of a little bird That no one ever sees Or it could be in the whisper Of a passing summer breeze It might be in a letter That you have kept for years But if you ever look It brings a flood oftears Well, I thanked that man most graciously And soon was on my way But I will remember what He said to me that day Oh where does love go When you finally say good-bye The answer that he gave to me You can't say was a lie Patrick Foley

This applies to all Active volunteers, with current onsite shift at Carnegie Community Centre.

Action 1: Prepare for your vaccination verification conversation • Between Nov 8 and December 6,2021, the volunteer coordinators will ask to review and verify your vaccination status in a private 1:1 conversation with you during your onsite volunteer shift.

• This conversation can be done in person (WebexJ Zoom can be arranged depending on what works best for your specific work situation) The purpose of the conversation is to: Answer any questions you might have about the City's: ··COVID-19 Mandatory Vaccination Policy; ··Vaccination status review, verification and recording process; ··Accommodation application process; ··Consequences of non-compliance; and, ··Any other related matters. o • o o

Verify your COVID-19 vaccination status Before your conversation with your manager/supervisor, take time to: Make note of any questions you have; and, Ensure you have the information you need to verify your vaccination status.

• Please make every effort to be available for a vaccination status verification conversation the volunteer coordinators Nov 8 and December 6, 2021 so that you are not unintentionally subject to any non-compliance consequences Action 2: Confirm your COVID-19 vaccination status with your Volunteer Coordinators • The City will accept the following form of proof of COVID-19 vaccination: o For fully vaccinated volunteers: BC Vaccine Card (also known as the Vaccine Passport), in digital or print copy o For partially vaccinated volunteers: An immunization record provided by the COVID-19 vaccine clinic/pharmacy at the time of vaccination with the person's full name and date of vaccination. .

• For fully vaccinated volunteers, the BC Vaccine Card will be the primary form of proof of vaccination. In rare circumstances, if you are fully vaccinated and unable to upload or print the BC Vaccine Card, an immunization record provided by the COVID vaccine clinic/pharmacy at the time of vaccination with your full name and date of vaccination may be accepted.

• The digital card will state 'Vaccinated' if you are fully vaccinated and the print copy will state 'Fully Vaccinated'.

Thank you for your continued support and commitment to volunteering at the Carnegie Community Centre.

Huyanne Le & Luke Vasac, Volunteer Programmers

We'll Rise Again

From the Library

This is a time when we have to be smart Socially distancing, and being apart With many people working right now We must keep safe distances, regardless of how It may feel like the world has changed forever Keep telling yourself, 'It will get better' We will bounce back, but not too soon All the time we've isolated, we don't want to ruin We are resilient and we have survived Showing compassion, respecting all lives Everybody deserves to have a safe place No matter their color or look on their face Whether the person is rich or are poor Give them opportunities to open new doors Try not to judge, or criticize Instead Ilook from another one's eyes Maybe they're not perfect, and that's okay Many of the people have important things to say To finish this poem I would like to say We are going to see much better days The End

This month we have a lot to offer beyond the regular business of books and dvds. On Saturday, November zo" the City of Vancouver Book Awards will be streaming online. The City will announce the winners ofthe $3,000 prize as well as the new City ofVancou ver Poet Laureate. The finalists are as follows: .

• Catherine B. Clement for Chinatown Through A Wide Lens (Chinese Canadian Historical Society BC) • Francine Cunningham for on/me (Caitlin Press) • Joseph Dandurand for The East Side of It All (Nightwood Editions) • Michelle Good for Five Little Indians (Harper Collins) • Alex Leslie for Vancouver for Beginners (Book*hu 3rd Place POETRY Julie Chapman Press) .

• Danny Ramadan & Anna Bron for Salma the SyriNOTE: Th'eFirewriters are now meeting at lpm an Chef(Annick Press) on Tuesdays in the Learning Centre!

Want to read any ofthese titles? We've got them on our shelves so come by and chat with us if you're interested in picking up a copy.

In other library news, the Inspiration lab is offering some cool courses. Let's Talk Podcastingl01: What is a Podca t and How to Get Started is being offered online on Tuesday, November 16th to those interested in exploring the wonderful world of podcasts. Let's Talk Self-Publishing 101: Introduction to Ebooks is also being offered online on Saturday, November 13th to highlight the steps one can take towards publishing an independent ebook. Registration for both can be done at vpl.ca.

And lastly, the lovely staff here have composed a zine honouring our beloved mascot Kazoo! Kazoo's Corner: Tales from Outer Space has fan-submitted . short stories, madlibs, and intergalactic imagery.

Come by the desk to get a copy of the limited edition zine.

Warm well wishes,

"Capitalism is an organized system to guarantee that greed becomes the primary force of our economic system and allows the few at the top to get very wealthy and has the rest of us riding around thinking we can be that way, too - if we just work hard enough, sell enough Tupperware and Amway products, we can get a pink Cad iliac: - Michael Moore

- The Human Mode We who are attracted

by a good fight,

from Kabul to election

campaigns,

who wait for results to titillate the war going on in our brains.

While in our eager daydreams, we bashfully

wish for peace,

as long as we're on the winning

side,

and thus, the battles increase.

Humankind

craves conflict,

competition,

and other nasty weeds,

to prove the unworthy

worthy

of

brave heroic deeds.

Two men on a busy street argue who went through the red light? . Their fists go up in rage and they pound each other as passersby begin to gather, for they're

attracted

by a good fight. ©2021G.Gust

SURVIVING I feel the wind. It tells our stories .. it knows them well - of despair and glories. I know some well because I survived to share them; I would not quit - I grit my teeth and clenched my fists - I had a fierce resolve. I still have my nightmares and trials of daring-do. What are my options? I will never remain silent, that's what some want, to bury the truth of the dead, lost and forgotten. Who will pay the price when all the horror is exposed, revealed? Our people aren't interested in cutting any deals. The truth will out!

People and institutions must pay a severe price, as certain as day and night.

I burst out crying. My tears well up and I'm not sure where in this hell I'm supposed to turn, although brothers and sisters must band together \0 survive these crimes. I never knew my father, mother, nor any siblings - they were captured and interned. I was wrenched away by government and police authorities ... thoughts and memories never end - they will never go away for the vast majority of us.

It's way overdue - to sit down, to deeply discuss, to make expansive plans. We're sick and tired of hollow promises and kicking the can down the road. Our childhoods were stolen; there are unmarked graves and just pits were the light needs to shine. Ancestral land is home but so many never came home. Their spirits, their souls deserve peace.

I never got to know my relations but I've bonded with others in the worldly realm and can tell them. It is so important to share our pain and despair. I see a rainbow in the distant sky. It gives me hope and strength when I see eagles soar and fly.

By ROBYNLnnNGSTONE

The power of peers in the esta blishment of supervised injection sites In 2002, the Dr. Peter Centre (DPC) was the first established supervised injection site (SIS) in Canada.

Since then, there have been 15,000 injections at the site and no deaths.

Vancouver Coastal Health statistics state that in British Columbia, there were 1,716 deaths from opioids in 2020. From January 1st to December 31st 2019, there were 170,731 injections by 5,111 unique individuals in supervised injection sites and no deaths.

Starting in 2018, the knowledge translation team at the DPC, headed by Patrick McDougall, held monthly teleconferences for service agencies across the country. These agencies provide life-saving supervised consumption services and overdose prevention sites (OPS) for people who use drugs.

As members of the DPC, a few of us as peers were asked to sit on the Community Advisory Committee (CAC). We met every 2 months or sometimes monthly, and we convened in a meeting room with organizations across the country. The organization's personnel varied from nurses to people with lived experience, all with a fervour to make a difference and save lives.

At one meeting, there were police officers from the Prairies that had learned of our purpose, who then met with Vancouver Police officers. When organizations from across the country would come to Vancouver, they were escorted by the DPC staff to other supervised injection sites.

"At our board meeting when we had no visitors, we brainstormed on the aesthetics ofthe DPC site. We came up with a colour scheme of pastels for painting the room, wrap aroundpictures, and a relaxation room." .

Since the DPC is next to St. Paul's Hospital, which has a rapid access site, they put up a trailer next to it to serve as a supervised injection site - Kitty corner from this site is a park, and I live overlooking that same - park.

Most of the city's supervised injection sites on Hastings Street in Vancouver's infamous Downtown Eastside (DTES) are in' "the zone", an area that is not accepted by the general public. In contrast, Dr. Peter Centre and St. Paul's Hospital are in the city's coveted West End neighbourhood.

The Dr. Peter Centre' supervised injection site is used by its members and even other members who do not inject drugs do not notice any problems. There is no violence, intimidation, or threats at the DPC, but it is not the same for the mobile trailer.

As I live next to the park, I have sat out there on a summer day and observed children playing, elders sitting, and open drug use - there has been a murder, intimidation, and break-ins.

Therefore, for supervised injection sites, location is, and should be, a priority. Supervised injection sites are necessary to fight the opioid epidemic.

"With marijuana dispensaries operating so effectively now, I feel it should be the same for opioid dispensaries." 'ff .

This would take toxic drugs off the street. Instead of criminal gangs reaping the profits of the Government, we could try and redeem the great financial cost to the public.

There are a lot of front line workers, especially today with COVID-19, that are working tirelessly to respond to these dual health crises. In regard to the DPC, a shout-out should be given to the knowledge translation team for their leadership over the years, and their involvement with the DPC supervised injection site.

Sadly, on the Board of the CAC, we have lost one of our members to opioid overdose. The gentleman who passed was well aware ofthe risks, and yet he did not use a SIS. This tragedy emphasizes the importance of continuing to support harm reduction services withthe voices and ideas of people with lived and living experience.

By Dan Wilson

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