November 1, 2016 carnegie newsletter

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401 Main Street, Vancouver BC V6A 2T7 604-665-2289 email: carnnews@shaw.ca

Website/catalogu~: carnegien~wsletter.org

DO YOU LIVE IN AN SRO HOTEL? Small posters are around with these words on them. Seems the City of Vancouver is asking people to "Come share your thoughts & concerns."

This cartoon (-) may give some ideas, but let's be clear: unless & until the City steps up with real enforcement of its Standards of Maintenance Bylaw, the slumlords & the people they pay to run roughshod over tenants will keep getting away with every trick in the book.

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 7 10am-Noon Carnegie Centre, 401 Main [From Issue #6 of The Volcano. Available now.]

Offtee of the Mayor

CITY OF VANCOUVER ]lRlfl$H

CO).HM)HA

~rorlalnation "DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE HEART OF THE CITY FESTIVAL DAY" P}'

WHERt;A~

The 1311, Annual Downtown ~~~stslde Heart Qf (~IC Ci~yICStiv4~i$presented Jt:'"tcouver.

Moving Theatre in association wtth "the C'a.n'ieglt ConuutuiilY,.:t:-entreauQ fhe~S50d;)don of United Ukrainian Canadians'witb .1 host (.f conununify partners ...and bring$1.9g~ther.ll.5 events ~"It ever 5(l venues throughout the Downtown I!.3sbidc; .

ANDWHI:;REAS

The City of Vau<.otJwr's Cultural Services Department has supported the Heart of the City Festival foe the past thirteen ye,ars .. md the City of Vancouver is walking with The Survivors Pole Raisiug and Ceremony taking place during the Pesttvaf

A]'ID WH[I(EAS

The Pustival is a wonderful f13.gship event which gives voice to the residents of the and celebrates and promote" the diverse arts, \.~u.JltJ.re.utdJlcrjtagc of the Downtown Eastsider --: -

Downtown Iastside, AND WJ IEl(EAS

The F<:s'tiv-al'acknowledge!; a~~hf?nt~un that 'we live and' of Musqueam, Squamish and Tslcil-\\fauhlt!l; -;,r;~

AND WHEREAS

The Festival theme for 2016, lhrlng on Shared Territory. pays tribute to the Downtown Easrstde's founding peoples, (,'ultul'e;S and diverse neighbourhood. s; as we live •. learn artd create together under the Jung-shadow of colooja.liz.1Jion;

Al'O

Arts and culture bring. s life to O'UT ncighbourhocdt s; strengthens fif-s with the commun.itv. provides employment tor local erttsts and reaidents, aud provides intcrnshtp OPPOrtuniU;5 and training for 'neighbcurlumd .nti~t-s and rer••i~,cnt5;

;.,

W.HF-RfAS

---

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The h:stiv.al,4cnlnnstratc!i tb~J'OWCT of ~OI:nbll.J __ pit)r~en& {~~,()nomk well-being in the Downtown Ea~t!>h;i_~{~'~ " , . ;/ 1'01\', THEI{H01,F "l

"DUWNTOWN EASTSIDE HEART OF THE CITY FESm' AL DAY· in the City 'of

VO'ttlCO(1Vet'.

-

is" Annual

Downtown Eastside Heart of the City Festival

3

SECOND WEEK - So much more to do! Most is free; check it out!

Tuesday November 1 to Sunday November 6, 2016

Barria skunenco: Flamenco jar the People, photo Mark Montgomery

TUESDAY November • lpm-2:30pm.

• 4pm-6pm.

1

INVISIBLE HEROES: Writing From Your Heart. Carnegie Learning Centre. Free rd

WE CAN'T AFFORD POVERTY PRINT SHOW. Carnegie 3 floor Gallery. Free

• 7pm-8:30pm. ALL OUR FATHER'S RElATIONS: Stories of Shared Chinese and First Nations Heritage. Dr. S n Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, 578 Carrall. Free • 7pm-9pm. HOME: OUR WAY Women's Writing & Movement E. Cordova. Free

nd

Circle. Firehall 2

floor Studio, 280

WEDNESDAY November 2 • llam-3pm

BIG PRINT PROJECTCHINATOWN. Raven's Eye Studio, 456 E. Hastings. Free

• lpm-4pm.

DAY OF THE DEAD FIESTA. Oppenheimer

Park, 488 Powel!. Free

• 2pm-4pm. UNDERWATER CHINATOWN: Digital Stories. Chinese Cultural Centre Museum, 555 Columbia. Free • 7pm-9:30pm

BARRIO flAMENCO:

Flamenco for the People Carnegie Theatre. Free

THURSDAY November • 1pm-3pm.

3

LEARNING CENTRE LIVE. Carnegie Learning Centre. Free

• 5:30pm-7:30pm.

OPEN MIC: THE REMIX. UBC Learning Exchange, 612 Main. Free

• 7pm-9pm SHARING THEATRE, SHARING CULTURE. DTES Neighbourhood Free • 7:30pm-9pm

House, 573 E. Hastings.

WOMEN IN THE ROUND. InterUrban Gallery, 1 E. Hastings. By donation

FRIDAY November 4 nd

• 10am-Spm. VANCOUVER POLICE MUSEUM Open House. 240 E. Cordova, 2 • 1:30pm-3pm.

• 4pm-Spm.

floor. Free

ABORIGINAL VOICES Lee Maracle and Bev Sellars. Carnegie Theatre. Free

CELEBRATION OF CARNEGIE NEWSLETTER. Carnegie Theatre. Free

• 7pm-9:30pm

DTES FRONT & CENTRE: Scary Genius!. Carnegie Theatre. Free

• 7:30pm-9pm.

SONGS OF LOVE. InterUrban Gallery, 1 E. Hastings. By donation

SATURDAY November

5 nd

• 10am-Spm. VANCOUVER POLICE MUSEUM Open House. 240 E. Cord ova, 2

floor. Free

• SURVIVORS TOTEM POLE. Main & Hastings to Pigeon Park. Free 11:30am Main & Hastings 12noon procession to Pigeon "ark 12:20pm Pole Raising and Ceremony

•

3pm Entertainment • lpm-4pm SOIL TO SKY: Final Celebration Malkin & Thornton. Free • 6:30pm-9:30pm • 7pm-9:4Spm.

and Refreshments

and Flight Day. Trillium North Park, False Creek East, rd

CARNEGIE SING ALONG CHOIR. Carnegie 3 floor Gallery. Free DTES POETS CABARET & OPEN MIC. Carnegie Theatre. Free

SUNDAY November

6

• llam-lpm.

WHAZZAT? A walking tour of Chinatown. you can for local residents

Meet courtyard

50 E. Pender. Pay what

• 3pm UKRAINIAN HALL COMMUNITY CONCERT & SUPPER. Ukrainian Hall, 805 E. Pender. $25; tickets 604-254-3436.

Many more FREEexciting events during the upcoming For complete Strathcona

event details,

and Raycam Community

pick up the Festival Program

Centres; VPl Branches Britannia,

days of the Festival!

Guide at Carnegie Front Desk; Hastings,

Mount

Pleasant and Strathcona;

or, visit www.heartofthecityfestival.com.

• Produced by Vancouver Moving Theatre w/Carnegie Community Centre & Association of United Ukrainian Canadians and over fifty community partners.

Heart Of the City FeStival Opening Celebrations In the heart of the community Carnegie Hall (the theatre) was standing room only. Phoenix Winter greeted those present as president of the Carnegie Community Centre Association, then chided Terry Hunter's hand signals as he tried to silently convey his wish to be introduced. Great icebreaker. Everyone laughed.

Les Nelson, Elder in Residence, acknowledged our presence on the unceded Coast Salish lands, thanking the three nations whose land this is. His song warmed the room.

Terry Hunter and partner Savannah Walling and eoconspirator Teresa Vandertuin are (perhaps) equally guilty for foisting the Heart of the City Festival on the world for the last 13 years. The sheer amount of work would be daunting ifnot for the expected & welcome trials of 25 hour days, running through meetings, eating (~ho gets time to eat: come on!!) while working, working while sleeping (yeah, whine whine whine ... ) Terry acted as master of ceremonies, starting with insight into the theme of this year's festival of Living on ~~a:ed Territory. A pre-festival "evolving gallery" initiative called Realms of Refuge is ongoing, inspired by the words of Sandy Cameron. He'd noted that the Downtown Eastside was a refuge, a place of safety &' comm~nity for those on the margins to regroup, to find friends and to call home. To this end local artist (internationally-known & award-winning) Richard Terault came forward to provide commentary and depictions of the 11 'xI8' mural gracing the wall in the theatre and the cover of the HOTCF books. Richard has had a mural "on loan" to Carnegie Centre for over 3 decades - it's on the first floor behind glass (7'x24') The next person to be honoured was Bud Osborn as Kedrick James performed the poem Bud wrote for the opening of the Festival in 2012 "In the Heart of my heart." Performed poetry is amazing, as the line describing us as an indomitable community sank home.

Terry acknowledged the photographic prowess of David Cooper, who has been the source of images for all 13 years of the Festival, and John Endo Greenaway for his consistence in excellent design. The history of the Festival intertwined with Jill ? being instrumental in a community play in Enderby BC that blew the doors off area residents' perceptions. It was called

"That's not the way I heard it!" From that came the' idea to create a community play in the DTES and the Heart of the City Festival was born. Renae Morriseau ~poke ~ollowing this and then brightened the proceedIl1g~wl~h i?credibl.e singing .. (,just something we sing while picking bernes'(!! Right !!)

Terry had small copies of the Festival poster framed under glass for a number of selected individuals to recognise and commemorate their contributions'to the Festival over the last dozen years: -Th.e .Georgia Strai?ht, for its support in providing advertising & promotions for both the Festival and Vanco~ver Moving Theatre (defrayed cost avg $25K1yr); -Sid Chow Tan and his work (ACCESS TV et aT) in "s~amelessl~ promoting our friends & neighbours" in & involved 111the Downtown Eastside: -Elee. ~raljii Gardiner, for 8 ~ years ~s the spark & orgamsmg force of the Thursday Writers Collective; - Ron Suzuki, for his indefatigable persistence in community programs and innovative contributions to the lives of girls & boys through the Strathcona Community Centre. Ron had to let Dmi Harris, who spoke to the influence Ron had had on his life, pose on one knee for the photo so no one in the photo (with Terry crouching) would be taller than him ...

-Ethel Whitty, Director of the Carnegie Centre, who ~s moving on come-January. Ethel has been in the top Job here for 12 years.almost from the beginning of the Festival. Michael Clague (also in attendance but not lurking(!Âť was director in the first year. Ethel spoke of how much it means to her to be considered a member of the DTES community.

Dalannah Gail Bowen came to the stage to speak of her honour to be included in Richard's mural, to have gotten the support of great people in getting through her addiction and getting back to singing as part of her healing journey. The 'song she sang was "Your Heart Knows Where You've Been."

Terry introduced Councillors Andrea Reimer & Elizabeth Ball. Andrea spoke in thee Squamish language (with apologies to any Native speakers) and reflected on the anguish revealed in the Truth & Reconciliation process. "Being made to feel invisible on your own territory," was emotionally piercing in her words. She spoke of recent & current disturbances that prey continuously on Indigenous Peoples: "The Vancouver Agreement, colonialization, Picton's crimes, fentanyl, the ongoing need for decent housing & incomes ... " Cclrs Reimer & Ball then jointly read out the words

forming the Proclamation of Heart of the City Festival Day in the City of Vancouver.

Following the reading Terry recognised Cheryl Masters who is the reviewer and decision-maker for the annual applications for grant money from the Cultural Services Department. Her support has been crucial.

To end the formal(?) part (before coffee & cake) the

work of Sandy Cameron was again shared as Gilles, a member of Camegie's board of directors and past his addictions, read "We Need a New Map" It brought tears to some and ignited inspiration .. kind of like awakening a sleeping dragon.

By PAULR TA YLOR

HE-ART' of THE Crry F£j7,VAL, P-EV£R! I'fII SoR.RY JIM, 0HE'S

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11

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Welfare Challenge takers call for higher welfare rates and the eradication of poverty

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Vancouver City Councillor Andrea Reimer confessed to almost crying when the coffee pot she was using in a hotel to cook some food stopped working. The smallest mishap c.andestroy the budget of people on welfare. , People who want much higher welfare rates took over But Fraser Stuart summed up the feeling of the meetVancouver City Council Chambers on Sunday, Octoing when he noted that people on welfare live about ber 23. They gathered to talk about what it was like to .

10 fewer years than others, and commented, "Governeat on just $18 a week, & what needs to be done about ment is murdering people with its policies." Fraser the dire poverty that the BC government is forcing talked about trying to boil eggs in a coffee pot because people on welfare to endure. However, the takeover you have no cooking facilities in an SRO. Fraser Doke was helped by the city that donated the space &passed talked about asking the Ministry responsible for wela proclamation decl ring last week, Raise the Rates fare for the funds to buy 2 bottles of Ensure per day as week. October 16-22 was the 5th annual Welfare directed by his Doctor for his health needs. "The min- .

Food Challenge. This year over 200 people from all istry workers said they understood I needed the Enparts of BC participated. sure," said Fraser, "but the system won't give it to you.'

Jenny Kwan, the MP for Vancouver East admitted that she cheated on the challenge when she had to buy $17 The comments came at the Town Hall meeting at the worth of medicine for her cough. Irene Lanzinger, end of the week-long Welfare Food Challenge where President of the BC Federation of Labour admitted volunteers who aren't on welfare agree to eat on the stressing out over dropping & bruising an apple. MLA amount of money that a single person on welfare Spencer Chandra Herbert confessed to wanting to eat would have. All provincial MLAs were asked to do all the food for the week at one time so he wouldn't go the challenge but only two accepted, Spencer Chandra . to bed hungry. "Hangry" is a new word that Lillian Herbert from Vancouver West End and Melanie Mark Yin, a dietitian, invented during her time doing the from Vancouver Mt. Pleasant, both from the NDP. Challenge, meaning angry ;nd hungry. Yin said that Chandra Herbert was revealing when talking about current welfare rates are a risk factor for diabetes. what needed to be done and what he would do to

change the situation. "I've got to bring 34 MLAs and the other New Democrats on side." Then Chandra Herbert went on, "In some communities the level of poor bashing is very high. We have to continue this ! level of awareness raising." Chandra-Herbert thanked I Raise the Rates for putting pressure on us "because there are other louder voices."

When asked what needed to be done, Reimer suggested the first step should be to immediately raise welfare shelter rates from $375 a month to $600 and to make it possible to cook in SRO hotel rooms. Next, welfare should be indexed to the cost of housing, she said.

Bill Hopwood of Raise the Rates said welfare rates should increased to the poverty line of $1,500 a month and disability to $1,800, as they have additional health expenses. "Do we want to end something bad or just make it a little better?" he asked. Hopwood pointed out that Vancouver's proclamation called for the eradication of poverty, not just a slight reduction in poverty. Hopwood also pointed out that the "government gives $3 billion every year to the rich and corporations in tax cuts and gave a tax cut of $41,000 a year to each of the richest I %, which is more than the average BC wage."

Katelyn Siggelkow said that taking the Challenge had inspired her to action.

Hopwood urged people who want to help make poverty and raising welfare rates an issue in the provincial election to check out Raise the Rates new We Can't Afford Poverty Campaign at nopoveltybc.ca. Posters and buttons are available now and soon the website will have more information about how you can help pressure BC politicians to end poverty.

-

Explanation of Why $18 for food for a week - -Total welfare $610 Rent (realistic rent for an SRO)*

$479

Room damage deposit

$20

No bus tickets - walk everywhere

$0

Cell phone (to look for work)

$25

Personal hygiene/laundry

$10

Total of all non-food expenditures

$534

What's left for food

$ 76

$76 x 12 months $912 for a year a day $912 a yr/365 days $2.50 $2.50 x 7 days $17.50 a week Allow $18 for a week's food No money for clothes, transit, a coffee, haircuts, or any social life or treats.

* Note on SRO rent: SROs are the cheapest accommodation in Vancouver. [Average size lO'xlO'] The City of Vancouver found that the average rent of an SRO is now $479 a month. This contrasts with the Provincial government's shelter allowance portion of welfare of$375 a month.

Can you Live on $610 a month?

Justice not Charity Contact Raise the Rates: Bill Hopwood: 604738-1653778686-5293 (cell) bill50@vcn.bc.ca ..www.raisetherates.org

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6th, 1:00 - 3:00 PM

Carnegie Community

Centre Theatre

Carnegie

Community

November

Action

Project

2016

Our Homes Can't Wait coalition rally outside the Ci!y's Re:Address Housing summit

On Thursday, October 27th, the City of Vancouver hosted a housing affordability summit with experts and so-called "thought leaders" from across the world. With an entrance fee set at $370, which Victoria Bull, from the Raise the Rates Coalition pointed out is the same as the shelter component of welfare, the summit excluded low-income residents who are experiencing the brunt of the housing crisis and who are at the front lines of the struggle for housing justice.

Our Homes Can't Wait coalition rally outside the City's Re:Address Housing summit Downtown Eastside Our Homes Can't Wait, the same group that was part of pressuring Mayor Robertson to agree to lOO% welfare/pension rate social housing at 58 W Hastings, held a press conference outside the Re-Address summit.

Lama Mugabo with the Carnegie Community Action Project (CCAP) explained, "Our group is called "Our Homes Can't Wait" because action is needed now; the time for talking and waiting is over. In Vancouver there are more than twice as many homeless people as there are vacant market rental units for the city's entire population, and most of those units are not affordable to low-income people."

"The City is making a big fuss about 58 W Hastings, but one site is not enough," Karen Ward with VANDU elaborated.

"Over a thousand people are homeless in the DTES, ten thousand people are homeless in the province, and over a hundred thousand are at immediate risk of homelessness. We need 10,000 units of social housing to be built every year in BC."

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"I remember when we didn't have a homeless crisis because we had social housing and people on welfare could afford to pay rent. There are two things you have to understand about homelessness: one, a homeless person today has half the life expectancy as an average British

Columbian. And two, it's cheaper to house a homeless person than to manage their homelessness," Jean Swanson with CCAP explained. "What unites us as Our Homes Can't Wait is a shared belief that the market-driven solutions used in the past (whether tax cuts or financial incentives for market development) have not worked. We need to tax the rich, and house the poor!

And we need redistribution not innovation!"

Letizia Waddington also read the Alliance against Displacement statement on why the group disrupted the summit earlier that morning. "We demand every level of government make ending homelessness and evicfions the highest priority of housing policies," Waddington explained.

The market works for developers and banks, not for our people. Raise taxes on the rich and corporations to whatever level necessary in order to build 77,000 units of social housing every year across Canada."

Mrs. Kong from the Chinatown Concern Group has lived in Chinatown for 20 years. "Now there's lots of coffee shops," she said. "It's more like coffee town than Chinatown and we can't afford their coffee. There's nothing left in Chinatown for low-income Chinese seniors. VVeneed housing that seniors on pensions can afford, not condos and coffee shops."

City displaces 58 W Hastings Tent City "Most of us don't live very long. 1am 50 now and only 3 of my 10 best friends from my youth are still alive. 1feel lucky to still be alive. 1am terrified of getting old and defenceless, and 1have no trust for the cops. They look at people like me like we are human garbage that don't deserve a life."

On Tuesday, October 25th, the city issued a notice of trespass to the residents remaining at the 58 W Hastings Tent City.

The statement posted to the tents notified the residents that "the City requires that the property is vacated and all belongings and tents removed no later than noon on October 25,2016." Since then, city workers, cops and outreach workers have been on the site every day encouraging people to pack up and leave the site.

The statement also declared that the "City is increasingly concerned about the conditions within the encampment and the safety of the individuals on the property."

However, most people at the tent city says they will be less safe when they are displaced from the site. Robert, a Cree man from Saskatchewan and a survivor of the 60's scoop, explains that being poor and homeless is always unsafe, especially when you are indigenous.

"I started doing dope because 1had nowhere to sleep," Robert went on to explain.

"Speed makes me forget about my hunger and about being cold and wet. And before 1moved into the tent city 1would stay up for 5-6 days in a row until 1passed out from exhaustion. 1didn't want to stay at a shelter and be packed like sardines with 50 other men."

At the tent city people looked out for eachother, and Robert explains how the very same morning he woke up early and found a man having an overdose in the back alley. Robert didn't have narcan or a cellphone, so he woke up the remaining people in the tent city and everyone came to his assistance. The man survived, and only because there was a tent city community right there. Robert concludes that "he would been have been dead if no one was there."

The City says they are connecting people with shelters. Yet most of the people that CCAP talked to were staying at the tent city precisely because they do not want to

3

stay at shelters. Robert says, "I would rather live in a tent in Alberta, in 20 below, than at a shelter or at a SRO like Regent or Balmoral. " "Living is not just being thrown in a lump sum of people - that not many care about - and expected to be surviving and doing as well as others," said another tent city resident Tazz Cummings , a resident who has been at the tent city since its creation in July. ''At least when I'm in my own tent, I can actually close my tent door and as thin as the walls are, I'm still private from the rest of the world."

There are also many couples staying at the tent city, many of whom are staying there because they do not want to be separated in the shelter system. Joyce and Cory is one of those couples and they have been there

for over one month now.Joyce explains, "In Surrey, we slept on the floor in a shelter and we were separated. That's why we don't want to go back into shelters. Also, the shelter isn't open until 9.30pm tonight so we have to walk around and be wet and then we have to leave at 7.30am in the morning." Cory adds, "The tent city is a place that we can be together and when we're tired we can go to sleep."

Joyce and Cory don't know where they will go next. A friend has offered the couch for a few nights, and after that they have to return to the street. The City has not offered housing for anyone on the site. When asked about where he was going next, Robert said "Not sure where I am going to go. I try not to think about it. I am Indigenous, but I live like a third world refugee in Canada."

Battle of Hastings Heats up, SRO Tenants rally for their home Actions against slumlords on East Hastings heated up on Oct. 20th as tenants and community supporters led a picket line in front of the Brandiz Hotel (122 E Hastings). This is the latest in a series of escalating actions against "the Sahotas" owners of several notorious Downtown Eastside slum hotels including the Regent, Balmoral, Cobalt and Astoria hotels.

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Last month, tenants of the Regent launched a class action lawsuit against the

Sahota's and the City of Vancouver for failing to make critical liveability and safety repairs. The focus of the picket line was directed at a landlord next door, Anna and Mario Ludicio, owners of the Brandiz Hotel, who are according to reliable sources attempting to lease the Regent from the Sahotas.

The Brandiz is listed on the City's Rental Standards Database as having 27 unresolved "issues". A recent inspection of the

The Brandiz is listed on the City's Rental Standards Database as having 27 unresolved "issues". A recent inspection of the hotel found that it is infested with bedbugs, cockroaches, mice and rats. The fire escape is not safe and there are holes in the facade. Tenants also report that the elevator breaks down frequently and they fear they could be evicted if they complain.

Rents at the Brandiz are overpriced and tenants have to pay $125 more than welfare shelter rate of $375, leaving virtually no money for food and other basic needs.

"We don't want one slumlord trading off to another slumlord," says Regent tenantJack Gates. "It could make things worse here.

Swapping slumlords is not going to do us any favours. The Brandiz Hotel has big problems like an elevator that breaks down all the time, holes in the wall, rats, mice, roaches and bedbugs. They charge $10$20 for guest fees and too much for rent."

Jay Slaunwhite who lives at the Balmoral across the street from the Regent and Brandiz, doesn't want Brandiz management to take over the Regent either.

"Ultimately I'm afraid the Brandiz owners might take over the Balmoral too. We are also putting pressure on the Sahotas and we don't want them to think they can escape their responsibilities by leasing to another slumlord."

"We can't afford to lose any more hotels," said Lama Mugabo from the Carnegie Community Action Project. "The homeless situation is already obscene. Our community is sick of slumlords. We want the City and Province needs to step up and do their jobs. The City could do the repairs and bill the owners and force them to hire professional qualified non profit management to take over these buildings."

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CCAP evaluates the new Downtown Eastside Community Economic Development Strategy The City's Community Economic Development (CED) Strategy is going to council on ovember 29th. The strategy is a follow up to the Downtown Eastside Local Area Plan, and was called for by Local Area Planning Committee members who believed a more comprehensive Local Economy chapter in the DTES Plan was needed to address issues of poverty, income inequality and the health of local serving businesses."

A committee, the Community Economic Development Strategic Action Committee (CEDSAC), was established earlier this year to gather input from the community and to draft the strategy. Apart from CCAP members and some low-income people from The Binner's project, there was a glaring underrepresentation of low-income community members at the meetings. The rest of the committee was made up of representatives of large non-profits, social enterprises, as well as business and residents associations.

In the face of the highest homelessness count ever recorded in Vancouver's history, with about 1000 people just homeless in the Downtown Eastside and thousands others living in inadequate, cockroach and bedbug infested SRO rooms in the same area these measures to address poverty fall drastically short of what is needed.

Our community needs care, support, hous6 ing, and a raise to the rates. Having more

jobs, especially jobs which are poorly paid or that are part of projects that destroy our community, will not solve the poverty crisis in our neighbourhood. Below is a summary of some of CCAP's recommendations to the City regarding the community economic development strategy: Address the root causes of poverty and ho.melesaness. An inclusive community economic development plan needs to put housing and social assistance rates front and centre, and propose aggressive measures to stop gentrification, implement rent control, to advocate for more social housing and to raise the rates.

â&#x20AC;˘

Iznp'lerrrent rneaaures to stop new zones of exclusion. The city seeks to reduce vacant storefront by 50%, but vacant storefronts are better than zones of exclusions! Zones of exclusion pushes up rents, land values and contribute to the overall gentrification of our neighbourhood. The City needs to take immediate measures to stop more zones of exclusion coming into our neighbourhood.

Use zoning not tax exernp'tions to reverse the loss of shops. Gentrification and uncontrolled investment is pushing up land values, rents and taxes in the neighbourhood, displacing low-income residents from their homes and forcing the closure of small shops. The City needs to push for commer-

cial and residential rent control, and use zoning laws to hinder speculation, increasing land values and new condo developments in our neighbourhood.

Stop the crirninalization of all survival work. Street vending and other survival work is critical to the local economy and provides a crucial source of income for low-income people. The City takes immediate measures to decriminalize all survival work and immediately exempt it from ticketing, harassment and arrest.

Expand and support non-rnanker food services in the Downtown Eastside. As long as welfare and disability rates are insufficient to survive on, we need more places like Carnegie that provide nutritious and affordable food to low-income Downtown Eastside residents. Measures to expand food sources in the Downtown Eastside must be accom-

panied by measures to raise the rates and renovate SRO Hotels so everyone has access to their own kitchen.

Ensure jobs for Iow-Incorne resident.

Create job training programs for anyone who wants them. Adopt hiring policies for low-income residents with barriers, including languages, for jobs in city-owned, city-supported and city-operated services. We don't want jobs associated to projects that contribute to the destruction and displacement of our community.

Take naeasur-es to destigntatize rmernpfoyrrsent. A lot of people in the DTES can't work. The City needs to make immediate measures to de stigmatize unemployment in the Downtown Eastside and recognize the dignity of people who don't have a formal job.

The spirit of Hogan's Alley lives on During one of my rounds conducting a survey on state of SRO Hotels in the Downtown Eastside (DTES), I ran into a friend I hadn't seen for a long time. Our conversation veered to Hogan's Alley. "Did you know that back in the day, there was a Black community right here in Vancouver?" I asked him. "No man, tell me more." He replied with excitement.

"The neighborhood was called Hogan's Alley. It was located to the south of Chinatown, between Union, Main and Gore. The area had the highest concentration of Black

ByLamaMugabo

people in the city. It lasted a good six-decades; from early 1900s, through early 70s.

Because of its proximity with Chinatown, the community also included Chinese, Mexicans, Italians, First Nations and people of African descent. The Black population was made up of folks who ran away from slavery, the Jim Crow laws, draft dodgers who refused to be enlisted in the Vietnam War or simply wanted to get away from racial terrorism."

"What happened to the cOll1ll1unity?", he asked. "Hogan's Alley was bulldozed in

7

1972 wwhen the Non-Partisan Association civic government decided to build the Georgia Viaduct; an urban renewal policy of the time designed to serve as easy access for drivers from Vancouver's bedroom communities to get in and out of the city. There was resistance from an alliance of Strathcona community activists and Chinatown businesspeople. Today, the only sign that Black folks lived there is a City of Vancouver plaque and small building at the corner of Union and Main where Jimi Hendrix grandmother Nora owned a thriving restaurant called Vie's Chicken & Steak Restaurant. Hogan's Alley was a preferred hangout for music giants like: Sammy DavisJr, Duke Ellington, Lou Rawls, Billy Holiday, Lena Horne and of course, Jimi Hendrix in the later years, whenever they visited Vancouver."

The spirit of Hogan's Alley lives on.

Last year, the City of Vancouver decided that after all, building the highway across Hogan's Alley was not a bright idea and they are now removing the viaducts. After the viaducts are removed in 2018, it will create two new blocks between Prior St, Union St and Main

St. This is where the residents of Downtown East Side come in. Come and vision along people of African descent what Hogan's Alley should look like. It's our community.

It's important that the history of what happened to Vancouver's Black community remains in the public memory. We want people to come out and make their voices heard because top-down planning doesn't work. We want a participatory planning process so that those of us who care about making Vancouver livable, take this unique opportunity to design a neighborhood that's culturally diverse, reflects the heritage of folks of African descent that was lost. Simply put: "When the bulldozers came, Black folks left town." We want to bring back the people and revitalize the community. Most importantly, we want to ensure that social housing is the foundation of this new neighborhood.

If you want to know more about Hogan's Alley and or be involved in the planning proeccess, contact Lama with the Carnegie Community Action Project.

About Carnegie Com.tnunity Action Project CCAP fights poverty, works for social housing and demand that politicians in Victoria raise welfare and pension rates to meet the cost of living in the province. We are DTES residents who organize to combat gentrification and the displacement of poor people onto the streets as low-cost housing units are replaced by high-end condos. We meet every Friday ll.5 on the third floor of Carnegie, join us! More info: www.carnegieaction.org

Shattered Princess +

Remorse

She cried out for help but no one came Once again they ignored her cry.

And now thanks to their deathend ears She took her life and decided to die.

She was never really heard or seen And sti\1not one person cared.

No one thought it would end this way No one thought she would dare ...

When they heard this girl was dead They all searched for a face.

But they find an empty seat, Which used to be her place.

If only someone had smiled once That girl may still be here today Maybe if someone had spoken to her She would have found her way.

But everyone was too self-involved They didn't give a damn about this girl, And now thanks to their selfishness A broken girl has left this world ...

Grey dust settling like snow on grounds unknown.

Sorrow surrounds the dead remains with lust.

Black moss grew on the hearts of those who stayed.

Remorse fell like the snow on fields unknown.

Ronald Evan Gaskin III

The sirens go by Watch little birds fly Trees' leaves turn colour Spend time with a brother The bustle of traffic Radios blare static Butts on the sidewalk The men stand and talk Someone is sleeping He's safe for the keeping The line forms there For each one has care Coffee cups on the ground The murmur of all the sound This is what I look and see The alley that smells of pee So when you go to have a smoke Say hello to your fellow bloke One drink away, one toke too much And we can be living just as such Mark Graham

A couple of people fell in the water at ~iffe.rent times, but it was all good. We waved to Alex 111 his kayak, because we were supposed to meet up with him. We called to him in our canoe and he waved a coupl.e of times, and then flipped into the water. He took It well, and swam to the dock were Nicole and Luke pulled him to safety, but his phone died, despite our best efforts to revive it.

The photos taken by Priscillia show me and Les and Lora in a row-boat. I got to do all the hard work of ferrying them around for an hour, but it was fun.

Thanks to the staff and all the other campers for a good trip, and thanks to Carnegie for giving us a break.

And that's all folks, Cheers,

I

September 19 to 23 was an exciting week for those of us who were fortunate enough to go to Camp Homewood on Quadra Island. Thirty-two seniors and volunteers with Carnegie jumped into a bus and a ferry and another bus and another ferry to take us there, up near Campbell River. It was pouring rain while we travelled there, and pouring rain when we travelled back, but our three full days on the island were sunny, sunny, sunny.

We kayaked and canoed and row-boated around the bay, blessed with the appearance of porpoises that played around our boats. We feasted on crab caught at the dock, cooked over a campfire with salt water in tin foil. We hiked to see petroglyphs at low tide, and visited the native museum at Cape Mudge. We were treated to good food at the camp, with roast beef sandwiches dipped in gijiVY being one of our lunches.

Elder Les Nelson, who is related to those from that territory, welcomed us. He also sang for the talent show we had. There were many skits, one about an invisible bench that people were sitting on, until someone told them that the invisible bench had moved. Then they all fell down.

Part of the adventure included our bus breaking down on the way back from Campbell River. We were stuck by the side of the highway for 45 minutes, waiting for a bus to come from Nanaimo. The bus was flagged down by a passing motorist who saw smoke coming from the bus. Th bus driver was so stressed he asked us for a smoke, and in a busfull of Carnegie folk, there was not one person who had a cigarette to give him.

Phoenix.

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St Paul's Hospital

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I was in the St Paul's from September 16 to the 29th.

You have to walk a long way before they'll release you. I made a full circle around all those rooms and al around the elevators. I was very sick but now am well I was glad they let me go because 1 had to pay rent and my bills.

The first room was private, then they transferred me to a room with three other women. One was a Native woman, 57 years old. She told me her husband had died a year ago, when he was 70. She said she drank every day. I told her that my doctor, Or. Batt, told me that if! kept drinking I'd die of cirrhosis of the liver.

He said it was the worst way to die. So she told me she would never drink again. Maybe I saved her life!

If! can help someone I will.

On the next bed was a 24 year-old girl. She & her boyfriend are both drug addicts. They lived on the streets before coming to St Paul's & are both going tr Rehab.

The third person is an old lady, dying of cancer, wit a large growth growing inside her. Her daughter should look after but she told the nurse she works all day. She said her mother could look after herself because she has a power bike.

Marlene Wuttunee

North. 1'ancouver Community Band. Concert Wednesday, November 9th 7:00 - 8:00 PM, Carnegie Theatre IRREVERSIBLE

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LULLABY

Acrimonious venom spouts from outside 'The street is awake." Even while asleep there is always action a bit of give & take are children allowed to play outdoors at all?! Even when good books that have compelling stories how many look away from their global positioning leach screens music & cool reading material is all I need war could break out with not knowing until the melting of their eyeballs, like a Homeless Person of the Year huge gala full of stars of course I'm referring to the ones in the sky they look at us avoiding what they'd say was primate property feel free to crawl under a rock & die.

A nation of ideals will not work' cuz the reformation of the dream has already passed on looks aren't every-. thing yet the people ahead of me are saying Check this guy out how grim as they mumble pass it on the irreversible lullaby has made all to come after them must be the top of the list we're talking only cool girls & guys, like a magician with a non-stoppable supply of blood that continues to pour out of his nose here come Donald Trump's kids collecting as much as they can he can smear it over his $400 shirt to gain some sympathy it's been a tough month does he not know Do you feel sorry for anyone who put down a lot of cash for a condo as his TrumpDump (we didn't think so) ..

Like deciding what flowers to bring to an exorcism I've seen enough levels of Hell right here on Mother Earth has oceans of saltwater & a bottle of holy water one means little the other could define your true inner worth house prices in hell are so much more expensive but they keep on getting sold, like the tension to detail or the mark-up for the seller of much less than

retail we heard that lullaby from Day One of life & right to the day of death I am neither dumb nor smart that requires every single sense cautionary centuries require a humour of sense & humour itself The Eternity Cafe is where the discarded souls like myself watch thuglites pick on weaklings to pedel the score I know this city's best skateboarder & his 4-wheeled comrades they would most gladly lend a fist to these thuggoofs that is what the true humanity of a person let alone people is for - nightmares may consume me bu my memories will never end up nailed 0 a shelf.

There is nothing more certain than the fact our lifespans are so much smaller than Life itself wasting other people's time is so selfish airi't it man I truly try ~ not to do it, like mister husband coming late with that 'I stopped for one drink (after another) will his dreammare be of owning a closing restaurant that brags . about how they make a great cup 0 hot water goodbye business now to try one more time or decide which bridge has the highest & prettiest view, like a rebel without applause is it that time to settle the poor as if they need to bus in "Have Anger Mismanagement Will Travel" no more pedaling to feed realtor scumlords with so much evil punching holes in bodies & doors & if people die to them it's very cool, "Advance & be recognised!" says the voice hidden behind a huge \;>roken mirror. If you want your nightmares to end think og all the future highs & lows & even lower can I make this any clearer never ever. .. make a wish 'cuz it just might come true rely on the best computer which is mankind itself never let others put words in your mouth for you shall only be looked upon as a fool.

By ROBERT McGILLIVRA Y

"If misery loves company, misery has company enough. " -Thoreau (from 1851)

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poLtn'c5 irSELF isA MASS of Lie5, tVASi o}iS,fOLLY,HAr~D AND 5CHi'U)PH~N{A 'f>

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Relapse City

from 1:he Library The coming weeks are full of unique offerings from the library. Starting with the "Heart of the City Festival," we are hosting writers and Elders Lee Maracle and Bev Sellars on Friday November 4th. Join us in the Theatre at 1:30pm for an afternoon of story-telling and poetry from their latest works. These women are . inspirational legends in the community!

If you are a writer yourself, please register with us for the "Manuscript & Cover Letter Workshop" in the level 3 classroom with VPL's Writer in Residence, Sam Wiebe. It's on Thursday November 10th at 4pm and will share how to prepare a "winning package of your work for submission to magazines, agents, and publishers"!

Finally, for "Day of the Imprisoned Writer" we are celebrating the book Arresting Hope: Women Taking Action in Prison Health Inside Out on Tuesday November 15th at 6:30pm in the level 3 classroom. It is a book from the Alouette Correctional Centre, where women composed stories full of healing and hope.

Check out these titles by other imprisoned writers ... some are passionate calls for justice, others reveal heart-break, remorse, redemption, bitterness, and most of them are uncensored.

Doing Time: 25 years or prison writing (2011)

Il-unit: a story of writing and redemption behind the walls of San Quentin (2012) by Keith Zimmerman Life Sentences: rage am! survival behind bars (1992)

by Wilbert Rideau

The Prison Where I Live: the PEN anthology of imprisoned writers (1996) Undoing Time: American prisoners in their own words (2001) Welcome to Hell: letters and other writings by prisoners on death row in the United States (1991) Writers Under Siege: vaices offreedomfrom around the world, a PEN anthology (2007) Your librarian, Natalie

I walk along to pick up buts Occasionally a roach or a penny Maybe a dime twinkles in the sun The blocks go by one by one Is it dry? Is it hollow?

What time does the line-up start Am Ia cow now?

Lead me to a pasture Herd me along line to line Isurvive and yet waste each moment Going from nowhere to nowhere Imagine Africa India and other places Where even this is non existence Who gives out this or that and at what time How long to wait all equates Can I take it out or is it dine-in Menus are set and I eat what I can What to read or watch is secondary now Yet what is there to do but listen to some We all have our stories, most full of strife.

Even in this hell, honesty exists.

Isit in the park and watch gulls fly by Roll a smoke to pass the time Eat a sandwich, depends what time Take a breath to escape the abyss of my mind Allow the sun and the air to breathe Fill my lungs to know I am alive.

Stand up move forward to another line It was me who relapsed one more time Walked from God and my Lifeline Only to find a hole that crack can't fill (April 2012) External promises are seldom heard from the wise, too many promises broken in their past and they learned to just try harder and not set themselves up for internal disappointment.

April 2013 as I reread & rewrote "Relapse City" Mark Graham

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113 OR VISIT 121HEATLEY AVE

"This is the first instalment of what we hope will become a regular feature."

A Short Historv of a ChinaBy Debra McNaught town Resident His name was Louie Gim Gum Sing, and from what little information I could find on him he lived a decidedly interesting life. It was certainly a long one; he died here in Chinatown at 107. As a minority immigrant, his story - his history - was mostly left out of the history of this city because Rich White Men figured theirs were the only stories worth telling. It is because there is so much missing ofLouie Gim Gum Sing's story that I've tried to write some of it here.

He was born in China in 1850, and had been working construction in Hong Kong when he was recruited by the CPR (Canadian Pacific Railway). They needed a foreman for a crew of Chinese labourers doing the hard pick-and-shovel work laying the road bed for the railway tracks through the Fraser Canyon; he arrived . in Victoria in June of 1884. In 1886 he was in Vancouver and survived the Great Fire that laid the city flat, and it was noted, "he helped to rebuild the city."

Of the men that worked to build the railroad that would finally connect British Columbia to the rest of Canada, the Chinese work crews were the bottom of the food chain. The work was incredibly dangerous and the Chinese were pretty much considered expendable, and thousands of them died doing the worst work for the worst wages. They got $1 a day, and from that had to buy overpriced groceries from the CPR stores, and their own tents and camping equipment. Meanwhile, the White guys got $1.50 - $3 per day, a rolling bunkhouse to sleep in, and hot meals prepared for them.

The Fraser Canyon is a heart-stopping gorge that funnels the Fraser River through narrow crevices of solid rock. Not only was the terrain trying to kill them - and it didn't care if you were Chinese or White or Indigenous - blasting techniques were pretty primitive back

then. It set loose tons of rock that sometimes destabilized the cliffs above; the danger of falling rock was constant. Imagine living in a tent, perilously perched on a narrow shelf overlooking a raging river that promised swift death, and trying to not think about waking up under a boulder the size of a house. They don't call it Hell's Gate for nothing.

Louie was an educated man, and worked to protect the rights and wages of Chinese workers, organizing them and taking their fight as far as the courts. He was also known for his physical strength.

After the railroad was completed the Canadian government dismissed the work crews and strongly encouraged them to return home, no longer needed and not desirable as immigrants. But many were stranded, having sent most of their wages back home, and worse abandoned by the "snakeheads" that had enticed them to Canada with a promise of riches and oh yes of course return passage. Jeez, maybe the CPR should have paid a living wage to start with? Louie stayed, and became a farmer on Lulu Island, which became Richmond when it grew up. When he finally retired he came to Chinatown and probably lived as one of the "bachelor men," in a boarding-house constructed of flimsy cubicles filled with other lonely old souls. The married labourers had not been allowed to bring their families, the theory being they would then be anxious to return home. But our Chinatown would be full of aging single men who ran laundries, cafes & gambling dens or worked as "houseboys" for White people, and lived rather sad lives with no wives and no children.

This situation worsened in 1923 when the Exclusion Laws were brought in; no other ethnic group was forced to cough up money to get into Canada.

In keeping with the marginalization of the Chinese I suspect Louie spent his last years in poverty. No social security, no El, no OAP. I only hope that a Sing Family Benevolent Association had a Vancouver presence and looked after him, provided what comforts they could, made sure he got meals and clothing, made sure he saw Chinese herbalists with his health concerns. And when you live to the age of 107 health concerns probably took up a good part of his day. It would have been a long association in any event.

Louie died in 1958, in that day the oldest Chinese resident of Canada. Whether he is buried here, maybe in the Chinese section of Mountainview Cemetery, or whether his remains were sent home I don't know.

Many Chinese dreamed of being returned to the home of their ancestors for final burial. As a White broad, is it ethical to admire his contributions to a country, a city, I consider home, a land we stole from the Coast Salish to begin with? I wonder what he thought about this new rough province, of White People, as he struggled to navigate all the bullshit they would have handed him. Every time I pass under the viaduct and read "Welcome to Historic Chinatown!" Iwish someone would spray paint alongside, "Yeah, visit it while you still can," because it's being gentrified out of existence. The Chinatown Louie Gim Gum Sing lived in disappeared long ago, and all that's left are the ghosts of the men that helped build British Columbia. His story deserves to be told in full, and probably by someone with closer ties to the Chinese community.

"Know someone's story that needs to be told?¡ Write it, or just send us the idea; if you need help with the telling we can do that. Contact Debra or Paul at carnnews@shaw.ca."

Attention!

Artists living in the DTES! DTESSmall Arts Grants Applications are now available on line: http://vancouverfotlndationsmallarts.ca or pick up a paper application at the Carnegie lnfo Desk (Main FI,401 Main St) lnfo Sessions, 3rd Floor, Carnegie: > Wed, Nov 2, 7-8pm > Sun, Nov 13, 1-2:30pm Contact Coordinator for further info: p: 604.665.2213 e: dtesartsgrants@gmail.com

Constituency Office now open

2572 E. Hastings Street Vancouver SC V5K 1Z3 Tel: 604-775-5800 Fax: 604-775-5811 Email:Jenny.Kwan@parl.gc.ca Jenny Kwan MP Vancouver East NOP Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Critic

Sinner Cleaning World on a Frosty Night Open the bin door, what's inside stashed away, something to hide?

Nah, just bottles and cans 'n' stuff what the heck, more's never enou~h.

A few cents a bottle, a few cent's a can leave the place tidy, the lid unopen.

Move down the alley to the next giant box Curse the moon sideways if it has any locks!

Shopping cart wheels, need some fresh oil: Clackety clack: the neighbors embroil out of their sleep to take a pee, look out the window "Now who could that be?"

Garry Gust

WRITING CONTEST A SUCCESS

In recognition of 30 years publishing the Carneg.

Newsletter a call went out for writers to submit we in 3 categories - Poetry, Essay and Memoir. 'SUCC :is a relative term, so getting 15,5 &5 pieces for th :respective styles is okay.

As part of the Heart of the City Festival there will an event from 4pm-5pm on Friday November 4t in Camegie's Theatre for celebration of 3 decades announcements of 'winners' in each area, those de¡ serving of Honourable Mention and readings of SI lected work. There will be prizes!

Those being recognised will hopefully all be con tacted and able to attend. All are welcome so plea: come.

Lisa David and PaulR Taylor

W.e acknowledge that Carnegie Community Centre, arid this Newsletter, are occurring on Coast Salish Territory.

THIS NEWSLETIER IS A PUBLICATION OF THE CARNEG1E COMMUNITY CENTRE ASSOCIATION Articles represent the views of individual contributors and not of the Association.

"Never doubt that a sl11~1Igroup of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, It IS the only thing that ever has."

-Margaret Meade

WANTED Artwork for the Carnegie Newsletter Small illustrations to accompany articles and poetry.

Cover art- Max size 17cm(6 '/.")wide x 15cm(6")high Subject matter pertaining to issues relevanllo the Downtown Eastside, but all work considered.

Black & White printing only.

Size restrictions apply !i.e. if your piece is too large, it will be reduced and/or cropped to fil}.

All artists will receive credit for their work.

Originals will be returned to the artist after being copied for publication. . .

Remuneration: Carnegie Volunteer Tickets Please make submissions to Paul Taylor, Editor.

The editor can edit for clarity, format & brevity, but not at the expense of the writer's message.

Next issue:

SUBMISSION DEADLINE FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11TH

ll.SLAP (Law Students Legal Advice Program) DROP·IN Call 604·665·2220 for time COMPUTER ADVICE Vancouver Community Network Cost-effective computer & IT support for non-profits VCN Tech Team http://techteam.vcn.bc.ca Call 778-724-0826 ext2. 705-333 Terminal

Ave, Van

WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION • • • • •

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AIDS POVERTY. ,HOMELESSNESS VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ABORIGINAL GENOCIDE TOTALITARIAN CAPITALISM IGNORANCE and SUSTAINED FEAR

(Publication is possible only with now-necessary donations.)

DONATIONS 2016: Sheila B.-$300 Robert McG.-$230 Elsie McG.-$400 In memory of Sam Snobelen:Anonymous $200 In memory of Harold David: Susan 5.-$200 In memory of Bud Osbom: Kelly F.-$66 Laura $50 In memory of Gram: L.-$10 Barb & Mel L.-$100 Christopher R.-$300 Laurie R.-$50 Sid CT -$50 Wilhelmina M.-$44 Leslie 5.-$300 Ellen W.-$35 Glenn B.-$200 Cory K.-$19 Winnie T.-$200 Humanities 101 -$300 Craig H.-$500 Maria Z.-$50 Micbele C.-$100 Yasushi K.-$50+ Michael C.-$50 Usa 0.-$50 Susan C.-$100 New Star Books -$56 .

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