October 1, 2021 Carnegie Newsletter

401 Main Street Vancouver Canada V6A 2T7

arnegie Community

(604) 665-2289

Centre Association

The Carnegie Community Centre Association wilIhold its Annual Ceneral Meeting

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COVID-19 safetvprotoco!s win he fOllowed at this meeting. including: • Safe physical distancing • Hand hygiene • Masks are encouraged

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Every aspect of these stories and the societal As this paper is being printed it is the last day of structures in place over more than a hundred years National Truth & Reconciliation Week. There are are being brought into the light of the present day. talks, gatherings and events to hear and see online Matters of Treaties, Land Claims and Unceded at sites like the National Indigenous History and territories are part of this. The core values of Lanone called SIKU. There is also much knowledge guage are being preserved and shared by elders as and shared stories through the National Centre for the basis for people learning history as seen through Indigenous eyes.

Truth & Reconciliation (NCTR).

Truth means acknowledging what actually hapThere is so much to learn, and research will bring pened and letting this knowledge clear a way forsome horrible as well as enlightening information on things we never were taught in school. Most of ward. Reconciliation, again through these eyes, can what is being given as testimony relates to the expe- occur within a framework laid out by First Nariences of children and families, of laws intentional- tions: ly made to "kill the Indian in the child" and residenWE KNOW THE TRUTH RECONNECT FAMIL Y tial schools.

A focal point is Orange Shirt. The woman at the RETELL HISTORY RELEARN LANGUAGE center of this is Phyllis Webstad. She was in CameRECLAIM CUOL TURE gie on Tuesday this week, with her friends and InRE-ESTABLISH PURPOSE digenous elders. When she was 6 years old Phyllis was excited about going to school, as many kids There is so much to learn and grow with that this are. Her mother took her to a local store to let her writing can just begin to scratch the surface. It's up pick an article of clothing to wear on her first day to all of us. and Phyllis chose a bright orange shirt. She was

By PAULR TA YLOR very happy and excited. It took 2 hours for the trip to the school and when she got there the reality of what was waiting began to show itself. The Catholic nuns took away her orange shirt; in fact they took away everything she had and made all the children relinquish personal property. It was the beginning of being dehumanised and treated in harsh ways - no speaking their own language, no contact with their families.

Phyllis spoke of 5 generations of her family, beginning with her great-grandmother, who was taken from her family and spent 10 years at a residential school near Williams Lake. The stories of her greatgrandmother, grandmother, mother, two aunts, herself and eve her own grandchildren are contained in a new book called Beyond the Orange Shirt Sto')I. In a video posted on Youtube and as part of Truth & Reconciliation Week, Phyllis and her Aunt Agnes give fisrt-hand accounts of the demeaning and humiliating treatment they and all native children had to live with If parents objected to having their children taken, they would go to jail. The strictures under the Indian Act mandated that Indigenous people had no rights, even needing permission to leave home.

BC Government must rectify the eviction crisis in Metro Vancouver; VTU slams Housing Minister's previous statements on the issue VANCOUVER A new UBC study shows that Metro Vancouver is the eviction capital of Canada. The five-year eviction rate is 10.6%, double the rate of Toronto. Not only does this represent the loss of homes for tens of thousands ofrenters every year, but due to the lack of Vacancy Control in BC, each eviction represents a home which has now likely jumped dramatically in rent. Metro Vancouver is losing its most affordable homes at the fastest rate.

"This study is the smoking gun of the ongoing eviction crisis that tenants have been shouting from the rooftops about for years," said Sydney Ball, an,organizer with the VTD. "As long as the financial incentive to evict remains, tenants won't have reprieve from landlords taking away their homes for profits. The government's refusal to properly support tenants and prevent property speculation during the pandemic have only made things worse".

During <i town hall meeting with 84 VTU members on April 20th, the Minister Responsible for Housing David Eby responded to a question about evictions by claiming that he "did not see a massive spike in orders of possession applications", and that "there is a balance when it comes to rental housing". Unlike Ontario, the BC provincial government does not track the total number of evictions that happen, as landlords are able to freely serve eviction notices. In that same event, Minister Eby committed to "releasing all data [he has] on evictions publicly". .

"It's time to put an end to the callous collaboration between politicians, government bureaucrats, and landlords for the sake of maximizing profits," said Mazdak Gharibnavaz, spokesperson for the VTU. "Minister Eby must put an end to the manufactured ignorance around eviction data. We can't regulate something we don't keep track of. The lack of information is a feature and not a bug of our system due to intense landlord lobbying, and it's shameful that we've had to rely on a series ofbyzantine processes to get very important information".

The VTU is demanding three immediate steps for the BC Government to deal with the ongoing eviction cnsis: Immediate public release of all data BC Govermnent has on evictions Immediate commencement of work on implementing a system that tracks all evictions province-wide while preserving tenants' privacy .

Implementation of Vacancy Control: real rent control that ties the cap on rent increases to the unit, not the tenant To connect with a representative of the VTU for comments, please contact: Mazdak Gharibnavaz - 604-771-2539 OR info@vancouvertenantsunion.ca

Carnegie Community Centre at a glance Volunteer Program Update for September, 2021: Thanks again to all of you for continuing to keep in touch. Thank you to everyone that has expressed interest in returning, and to all who previously completed the 'Returning Volunteer Orientation' and signed up for a regular weekly shift.

We will be begin recruitment for the fall, this includes reintegrating the "Runner position," to help with food service. Additionally, we will also be adding evening kitchen shifts slowly at first, 1 day at a time to give the kitchen time to adjust- more details on which evenings are going to be available to come. Many of you have reached out about taking more than one shift, we will access this on an individual basis- so please reach out if you are interested.

Huyanne- Community Programmer for the volunteer department have return from her summer of supporting the Oppenheimer Park reopening will resume the Wed-Sat S:30-5 :30 schedule. Luke's schedule will continue to be the Sun- Wed schedules, hours to TBC. Changes to current programs and services within the Centre at this time include: Increased seating capacity on the 2nd Floor, with the Dining Room open during kitchen operating hours.

The 3rd floor is now open for seating, and washroom access.

Increased hours of operation for the Centre: Main Floor (9am to 11pm) .; no closures for cleaning.

2nd Floor and Food Service (9am to llarn, 12pm to 4pm, and 5pm to Spm) - includes a 1 hour closure for cleaning before lunch and dinner service.

3rd Floor (9am to 5pm) - no closures for cleaning.

Oppenheimer Park has reopened with limited access, programming, and a daily morning coffee cart service.

Carnegie CC Programs and Events include: Vaccine Passport Clinic Seniors and Volunteers can get support downloading their Covid-Iv vaccination record QR code to their phone device and/or a printed and laminated hard copy.

Additional sessions supported by the Learning centre at Carnegie will be announced. In the meantime all VPL branches are also supporting the public with obtaining their vaccine passports.

Mondays (1pm to 3pm) - drop in 'Tech Cafe' (tech support, bring your questions and your device).

Mondays (5pm to Spm) - drop in 'VPL Book Giveaway' and drop in 'Indigenous Program Craft Night'.

Tuesdays (1230pm/l pm to 3pm) - drop in 'VPL Book Giveaway' and drop in 'Crafts & Connect Program'. .

Wednesdays/Sundays (2pm to 6pm) - drop by to Visit Elder Les Nelson at Andy Livingstone Park for the 'Our Park Project'.

Wednesdays (630pm to 730pm) - drop in 'Narcotics Anonymous Meeting'.

Fridays (6pm to Spm, Aug 13 and 20) - drop in 'Social Theatre - Community Theatre Workshop'.

Reminder: When at the Centre, be sure to check out the program and information boards on the main floor for the latest daily and weekly program offerings, as well as upcoming events and community information.

Get updates on Cultural Sharing, Seniors, Education, the Learning Centre, and much more.

COFFEE CUP REVOLUTION

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THURSDAY OCTOBER 7th 2021 COFFEE CUP DEPOT NEW'. '\0 cents

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WHAT: Return USED COFFEE CUPS for 10 cents each Max 400 cups at a time - you can keep lining up if you have • more!

WHERE: Oppenheimer Park WHEN: October 7, 2021 .

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Depot from 11:OOam- 2:00pm Depot closes at 2:00pm SHARP NO styrofoam, unused cups, cold drink/plastic cups

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CONNECTION TO

KITH AND KIN

From the Library: The BC and Yukon Book Prizes just announced their winners. Pretty cool to report to you all that VPL's 2019 Indigenous Storyteller in Residence Joseph Dandurand is the Winner of the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Literary Excellence. Joseph A. Dandurand is a member of Kwantlen First Nation located on the Fraser River about 20 minutes east of Vancouver. He resides there with his three children - Danessa, Marlysse, and Jace. Joseph is the Director of the Kwantlen Cultural Center.

Here are some mighty fine words from Jrors Otoniya Juliane Okot Bitek, Sarah Ellis and Sirish Rao: "Joseph Dandurand is a keeper of deep cultural knowledge, whose work gives shelter to voices that have been silenced or ignored. What he does to keep these voices, experiences, and a way of storytelling alive, is an act of conservation which requires both tenderness and ferocity. At a time when we look to artists for healing and for orientation, we are allfortunate to have the guidance of Joseph Dandurand. "

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At the Carnegie, check out the shelves for a copies of I Will be Corrupted (2020) and Sh ilam (the Doctor): Poems (2019), both powerful poetry collections on healing and addiction. The former almost has a film quality to it as if each poem is a scene from an epic tale. These are books of hope, loss, and a yearning for all kinds of peace, internal and external. Dandurand writes, "This is the truth of what has happened to my people. The Kwantlen people used to number in the thousands but like all river tribes, eighty percent of our people were wiped out by smallpox and now there are only 200 of us. As a Kwantlen man, father, fisherman, poet and playwright I believe the gift of words wits given to me so I can retell our stories ..."

On that note, I'm curious to hear about your gifts, whether they be of words or music or otherwise, and how they lend to retelling your personal stories. Are there particular stories about your life you want to express, but not sure how? Let's start a conversation about it.

Come into the library, grab a seat, and stay Danielle

Through My Children's Eyes Their unrestrained laughter and excitement permeate my heart as we play together.

I'm learning to be less over-protective, less controlling of their every move.

As they run carefree in the park I both admire and envy the valiant spirits they are.

Their innocence and theirsimplicity touch a delicate chord in my soul.

How can any mother harm or neglect her child?

I'm mending from the pain and void I knew throughout my childhood.

Those rather-be-forgot memories are being replaced with soulful love, laughter and friendship.

The wounded child within me heals as I experience life through my ~hildren's eyes. © Jacqueline Angharad Giles

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