September 15, 2021 Carnegie Newsletter

401 Main Street Vancouver Canada V6A 2T7

(604) 665-2289

THE 6TH ANNUAL SANDY CAMERON MEMORIAL WRITIIN6 CONTEST

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!!DEADLINE EXTENDED!!

To Writers and Poets: The deadline is extended until noon on September 30th. Contest Guidelines ape the same and prize money is: 1st-$100; 2nd-$75; 3rd-$50 for Poetry 1st-$100; 2nd-$75; 3rd-$50 for Essay (250-700 words, non-fiction) "Do or Do not. There is no Try." Yoda

THE 6TH ANNUAL SANDY CAMERON MEMORIAL WRITIIN6 CONTEST

!!DEADLINE EXTENDED!!

Sandy was a writer and poet and an historian emeritus who traced the years of struggle for social and economic justice in the life of the Downtown Eastside. He contributed his thoughts and feelings on subjects as diverse as class and whale watching but tied everything to our ongoing ideation on social justice. This contest is to honour him and all who use the written word to express themselves.

This is for writers and poets who identify with the struggles of the Downtown Eastside, who see and feel passion in living with spiritual, mental, and physical yeamings. It may be with wealth (too much or not enough), housing (too luxurious or not good enough), homelessness (seeing people or trying to ignore reality), both sides of addiction in the drug trade, the sex trade, "free" trade, community, women (murdered, missing what it is to be safe and creative), children and growing, festivals, ceremonies, memorials, special people and their contributions (past, present) all you do to make your life meaningful both now and towards the future.

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Prizes for each category: I" - $100, 2nd -$75, & 3rd - $50 Additional non-cash prizes for entries deserving recognition.

Guidelines for Writing Contest.

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Writing must be the original work of person submitting the contest entry & not fiction.

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If plagiarism is recognised the work will be disqualified and returned .

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Contact information for the writer must be provided with each contest entry.

Essays: This means writing in sentences, with grammar and structure attempted.

Poetry: All forms accepted. Must use the same font (typeface) throughout.

Subject is open to the individual author. It can be about most anything relevant to readers. In the words of Sam Roddan "[It] must have a bite. It must create some kind of distu -bance, a turmoil in the heart, a turbulence of memory and feeling."

The length of the essay can be 250-700 words, basically what can be printed on 1 page of the Newsletter. Poetry of whatever length, but no more than can be printed on 1 page.

Deadline for submissions is noon on September 30, 2021. Results will be announced at a special event during the Heart of the City Festival (early November).

Each writer may submit only one essay and/or one poetry entry.

Mailed Entry: Carnegie Newsletter 401 Main Street, Vancouver, ac, V6A 2T7 EmailedEntry:carnnews@shaw.ca

arnegie Community Centre Association

The Carnegie CollldluIDty Centre Association will hold its Annual General Meeting

October!J, 2021 Begins:

· Registration 5:00pm · Meeting Starts:'5:3OpD!-~ ::;:\. ::.. Lo£ation;.:~Camegie ~o~1JDitY'CeJ;l1te- Theatre .~461 ~aiiiS~eet; Vanc6uveJ;:,BC . .

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.The Election for members of the CCCA.BOan:I of Directors will tie held at ttm meeting . ..:. Nominations win take place at the September 9, 2021 CCCA1Jo.?l~Meeting

To vote, you 'must: _". .... . , :-". .have pUl;chaSed a membeiihip card on or before Sepfember22t2()21 • bepresent atthe meeting: y

COVID-19 safety protoco/s win be foHowed at this meeting, including: • Safe physical distancing • Hand hygiene • Masks are encouraged

DEFUND604 NETWORK SJ,REET SWEEPS TOWNHALl

COMMUNITY DINNER & TOWNHALL Bring your knowledge and experience!

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 17TH 6 - 730PM JAPANESE

HALL/

/ 487 ALEX-ANDER STREET, DTES

ORGANIZED ON THE UNCEDED ANCESTRAL TERRITORIES OF THE MUSQUEAM. SQUAMISH. AND TSLEll-HAUTUTH FIRST NATIONS

Carnegie Learning Centre for October 2021 We are very happy to announce that the Learning Centre will open again on the third floor on Monday September zo".

The Learning Centre will be open on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednes~ days from 1(lam to 3pm.

The Carnegie Learning Centre Instructors, Lucy, Betsy, and Emily, will be there to assist you on these topics: Upgrading - Feeling Rusty? Want to get back into learning? Start now with an individual learning plan to improve your writing, reading, math or computer skills.

Getting Stuff Done - Need help with a form? Making a difficult phone call? Wondering where to find information? Come in at the beginning of the session and sign up for assistance.

ESL Improvement - conversation and written English, maximum 10 people Digital Skills - computer skills, understanding your phone, using a tablet, expanding your skills beyond Google

Special Weekly Events: Drawing Class - join this drawing workshop with local artist, Michael Nardachioni on Wednesday mornings 1Oam-11:30am Firewriters Group - supportive, weekly writing group meets on Tuesdays from 1pm -2:15pm Help with Vaccine Passport - get help to down load or print out your Vaccine Passport (days to be decided this week) Weekly Learning Centre Meetings - Come and share what you would like to see happening in the Learning Centre - Wednesday mornings from 11:30am-12:30pm

Thank you to the wonderful Learning Centre volunteer tutors who will be returning to the Learning Centre to assist with one-on-one tutoring.

Contact the Carnegie Learning Centre by phone: 604-665-3013.

Things to think abont ...

I used to think that an essay was a patchwork quilt of quotations. My problem is finding a thesis statement & sticking to it without wandering all over the place and to say this in my own voice.

I started writing a piece about memories of my French native Dad who passed away in 2001. I have started reading We Interrupt This Program, 2017 about mainstream media's misrepresentation of Indigenous issues. And yet many of us mixed breeds have been removed from native culture as a result of mainstream news & gov. policies of assimilation. I do notpontificate or romanticize a native culture that I know little of, nor do I actively pursue "the red road" of sobriety or of a commercialized pow-wow - occasions of entertainment, only.

I do not go on about what I know of native issues for the benefit of people who expect me to be some sort of token native. Some white women have done their own pontificating about how much they know of the Truth & Reconciliation agenda. I was present but never asked for my opinion. This felt like one-upmanship which I do not participate in. Many of us status & nonstatus natives are mixed race. My own blue-eyed mother I visited only once in Toronto, 1983. She never raised the 4 of us kids because ofher"retardation" She said to me; "u r lucky that u do not look that Indian". I let this slide because I consider myself lucky that our Dad's French mom raised us so that we would not become fostered or adopted. That would have left us with no connection to our Dad who worked so hard and with so little opportunities.

The instigator of the slander of me died, 2017. Yet I have had at least 3 people say to me: "that was then, this is now; so get over it and stop playing the victim."

Meanwhile, I am very aware of the actual bullies who do use the m.o. oftplaying the victim for the purpose of taking the heat/accountability off of their own imperfections & downright meanness. I do not turn the truth on it's head for the purpose of my own exaltation (Exalted Subjects, S. Thobani, 2008) I guess I'm trying to find my voice to state my own experience of "outsider status" which slapped me in the face from the slander that was intended to ostracize me - altho this is a small clique at Cgie. . When perceived within historical context, the hurtful part of one-sided gossip is that it boils down to the credibility that was allowed to the words of a white woman. A credibility that was not allowed me - as no

one asked for my side of the story. In hindsight, I now perceive this as only one of the many subtle/ covert manifestations of a "nice racism" (Robin DiAngelo, 2021) that gets swung about via one sided gossip and misrepresentation in some historical textbooks. .

Nice white people (especially those who fancy themselves as do-good activists) do not want to be suspected of any form of racism. They busy themselves with acts of charity over the difficult struggles required to give substance to Justice.

Native arts & crafts have their place but our history of colonialism draws not so much interest.

Some white settlers get frustrated with natives who want more substantive restitution than a simple Reconciliation that is no more than' a "sorry ~ for what happened - that was then". Then we get accused of wanting special privileges. What can anyone do with a "sorry" that has no substantive implementation for change?

A step on the road to restorative justice would be the full implementation, by city hall, of Councillor Swanson's Mansion Tax. A tax that would cover the cost of building more affordable rentgeared-to-income housing for all of us; white & native. Public land could be for people rather than sold to developers who get tax- deductible incentives to build condos that so many locals cannot afford. d.LeC

From the Library On September 30th the library will be hosting a virtual event titled, Storvtelling Through Film: Celebrating Indigenous Creation with Kelly Roulette to commemorate Orange Shirt Day. Local Indigenous filmmaker Kelly Roulette will screen her short films "My Mother My Rock" and "Sometimes She Smiles" followed by a discussion and Q&A. The link to the Zoom event can be found at www.vpl.ca under events.

Summer is lingering but coming to a close and as the season changes librarians tend to get excited about the prospect of bundling up with a good book. Here are a couple suggestions from our shelves.

Writer Marlon James has woven a mysterious adventure saga that blends African folk-lore into imaginative storytelling titled "Black Leopard, Red Wolf'. Through rich landscapes of bustling cities, jungles, and rivers, the notorious hunter, Tracker, and a patchwork group of characters are employed to track down a lost boy. As they hunt for the boy they are continually forced to defend themselves by deadly creatures determined to throw them off course. Tracker starts to wonder if there's more to the story of this boy than he's been led to believe.

First in the Dark Star Trilogy, this fantasy story will deliver magic and adventure in spades.

"Nine Perfect Strangers" by Lianne Moriarty is a psychological thriller that follows nine characters from varied walks of life to a seemingly restorative 10-day retreat run by a mysterious Russian woman, Masha. Grand promises of a life altering experience see the group taJs; part in luxuriating, meditating, and gradually wondering whether they should give in to the retreats enticing promises, or run for their lives. The novel was such a hit that it is being turned into a TV series starring Nicole Kidman.

Visit us in the library or www.vpl.ca to find copies of these or other titles.

All best wishes, Izzy

The following list is from a citywide survey on gender-based and sexualized violence Battered Women's Support Services (BWSS) 2417 crisis line - 604-687-1867 2417 text line - 604-652-1867 Justice for Girls Monday-Sunday 6am-9pm Call or text 604-785-7063 advocacy@justiceforgirls.org Advocacy and support for girls and young women Hope for Wellness Helpline 2417 Helpline 1-855-242-3310 Online chat . Support for Indigenous Peoples QChat Saturday - Wednesday 6pm - 9pm Toll free 1-855-956-1777 Text line 250-800-9036 Support for 2SLGBTQQIA + youth Trans Lifeline HotIine 1-877-330-6366 Support for trans people VictimLink BC 2417 call and text line 1-800-563-0808 W A VA W Rape Crisis Centre 2417 crisis line - 604-255-6344 2417 text line - 6~4-245-2425

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