March 1, 1992, carnegie newsletter

CENTRE FRANCOPHONE DU DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE

Amid much l augh te r 6 applause a new se rv i ce o f f i c i a l l y opened i t s doors on Thursday, 27 February.

The idea t ion which spawned t h i s cent re , a t 578 Powell S t . , was f i r s t shared by 5 people, a l l francophones, and t h e idea grew i n t o LA BOUSSOLE where French-speaking r e s i d e n t s o f t h e Downtown Eas ts ide E of Vancouver drop i n t o - - volunteer - enquire F, a s s i s t a n c e with welfare ,

housing E employment - request English courses - enquire about t h e Cen t r e ' s a c t i v i t y - s o c i a l i z e & t ake a cof fee - use t h e telephone - g e t temporary s torage - advocacy - make donations The 5 founding people a r e Marie Du-

s s a u l t , Normand Levesque, Jacques Masse, Claude Noel 4 Brian Roy.Their energy in sp i r ed many o the r s , both ind- i v idua l s E organisa t ions , t o a s s i s t with ex tens ive surveys, networking E j u s t i den t i fy ing i s s u e s t h a t both new

francophones t o t h e DE. and long-time r e s i d e n t s a r e concerned with.

The next s t age is s e t t i n g up E dev- eloping se rv i ces , 1 ike : bank o f . f ranc- ophone se rv i ces ; i n f o sess ions ; Eng- l i s h lessons ; l i t e r a c y & High school courses; s o c i a l evenings; in take , in - formation 6 r e f e r r a l s ; a s s i s t ance ; advocacy E t r a n s l a t i o n . Related work i n t h e recrui tment 6 involvement of vol- un teers , s t rengthening the founding committee, l ia ison-networking with community resources E a news le t t e r i s

In t h e i r own words - "Ce q u i vous manque l e p lus dans l e

downtown e a s t s i d e ... * une p lace pour l e s francophones * du depannage quand t u a r r i v e s E un emploi * une chambre sans vermine * l a femme! . . . p ou r me supporter! * l a pa ix * des con tac t s humains "Personne ne s e demande pourquoi un

hornme s e promene pas r a s e , pas peigne dans l e downtown eas t s ide" ...

By PAULR TAYLOR

S'rELLA'S SECKE'I' She is serving a l i f e - sen tence ,

.men Fate decides which thoughts hide, S h e ' l l be t h e r e f o r twenty years: Ne a r e what we have t o be; But what comes i n and then goes ou t , May not be r e a l i t y .

The many years I ' v e shed my t e a r s , Time has l e f t a l a s t i n g sca r ; A t a qu ie t corner t a b l e , In a dingy,down-town ba r .

Where l o s t , l o n e l y l i v e s would wander, Aimless pathways through the .door; S i t t i n g a t my corner t a b l e , This I saw and so much more.

Inside t h a t b a r , a f a l l e n s t a r , Who wore so r ry , sad - so f t eyes; My f i r s t meeting t h e r e with S t e l l a , Was l i k e touching summer sk i e s .

Though she was a b r e a t h l e s s beauty, You must t r y t o understand; In what I sayYyou must be l i eve , I wouldn't even hold her hand.

Most people hide deep down ins ide , Their dark thoughts and s t range d e s i r e s The burning s e c r e t s i n t h e i r souls , Smouldering a s slow f i r e s .

And so you s e e , i t came t o be, I discovered a t t he s t a r t , For I knew he r hidden s e c r e t ; She could never have my hea r t .

She was such a lone ly person, Living i n a t r a g i c l i f e ; With t h e s e c r e t t h a t she c a r r i e d , Cutt ing deep a s any kn i f e .

So t i g h t l y bound around and round, Twisting through he r body's s h e l l ; Even though I knew her s e c r e t , I swore I would never t e l l .

One l a t e n ight she found he r lover , In anotherys s o f t ,warm bed; So she took a gun and shot him, Put a b u l l e t i n h i s head.

Now i t ' s prison-time f o r murder, In the Peni ten t ia ry ; But I s t i l l th ink thoughts about her , Living he r r e a l i t y .

- . I can only s i t with wonder. While I shed f o r h e r my t e a r s .

So now he r s e c r e t , I ' l l r evea l , J u s t imagine i f you can; That I was t h e only person, Who knew S t e l l a was a man.

Michael James McLellan

Their face lit up a s they t o l d me about t h e new wheelchair they were going t o g e t . A l l e l e c t r i f i e d , so they could go p l aces where they could not go a t t h e present time without someone 's help. A t l a s t , freedom from t h e d a i l y f e e l i n g of use lessness . May- be I'm a person? Maybe I do count?

That was i n January. They were going t o ge t it e a r l y i n February..then the end of February ... now maybe t h e middle of March. Every time I s e e them, t h e l i g h t i n t h e i r face i s fading.

I t almost f e e l s l i k e a game i s being played with t h e i r mind! How many more times can they be t o l d when they w i l l g e t some freedom, before t h e i r f e e l i n g of worth i s completely destroyed?

Those i n t h e pos i t i ons of power a r e probably saying, "why waste t h e money! This person i s not of any use t o soc i - e ty ! They only have one good arm E one good leg! Besides, they a r e j u s t an INDIAN.

The Shadow

CHARITY I S A BANDAID, . .

NOT A S O L U T I O N .

End Legis la ted Poverty has fou r f u l l - t i m e p o s i t i o n s a v a i l a b l e s t a r t i n g March 9 th . People who apply f o r t h e jobs must be on unemployment insurance . This i s a Sec t - ion 25 UI Job Crea t ion P r o j e c t . A l l employees must be r e f e r r e d by a Canada Emp- loyment Centre .

People o f co lou r , F i r s t Nations People, Women and people with d i s a b i l i t i e s a r e s t r o n g l y encouraged t o apply.

End Leg i s l a t ed Poverty i s a c o a l i t i o n t h a t wants g o v ' t s t o reduce & end poverty.

OFFICE WORKER (1 p o s i t i o n ) : This person w i l l do bookkeeping, simple p r o j e c t ad- m i n i s t r a t i o n , o rde r ing s u p p l i e s , o rganiz ing o f f i c e m a t e r i a l s & f i l e s & a r e c e i p t system and o t h e r r e l a t e d d u t i e s . Des i rab le exper ience - bookkeeping courses &/or ------------- ---- exper ience , prev ious o f f i c e work, prev ious work witfi-community group o r agency.

RESEARCHERS ( 3 p o s i t i o n s ) : These people w i l l do p a r t i c i p a t o r y research with peop- l e who use c h a r i t i e s . These a r e some c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s of v a r t i c i ~ a t o r y r e sea rch : * The s u b j e c t group c o n t r o l s t h e process from t h e d e f i n i t i o n of t h e problem t o

t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e f i n d i n g s ; * The p roces s o f doing t h e r e sea rch educa tes & empowers t h e group, i nc reas ing

t h e awareness o f t h e group members; * Both t h e process and t h e r e s u l t b e n e f i t t h e community; * While t h e methods a r e f l e x i b l e & can be ad jus t ed , o b j e c t i v e s a r e maintained.

Tra in ing w i l l b e provided i n p a r t i c i p a t o r y r e sea rch , empowerment s t r a t e g i e s , o r i - e n t a t i o n t o End Leg i s l a t ed Poverty and pover ty i s s u e s .

Each r e s e a r c h e r w i l l o rgan ize a group of people who use c h a r i t i e s & he lp t h i s group c o l l e c t & organ ize d a t a about c h a r i t i e s & develop ways of documenting people I s exper ience wi th c h a r i t i e s .

Researchers can use a va r i e ty of methods i nc lud ing q u e s t i o n a i r e s , d i s cus s ions , workshops, p l ays , photoessays, poems, songs.

A t t h e end o f t h e p r o j e c t , r e s e a r c h e r s w i l l h e l p t h e p a r t i c i p a n t s organize a pub- l i c event where u s e r s of c h a r i t i e s t e l l o f t h e i r exper iences & f e e l i n g s about it and make recommendations f o r long and s h o r t term changes.

Des i rab le ------- exper ience --- (not n e c e s s a r i l y r equ i r ed , bu t u s e f u l ) : Grade 12 ; ;Fami l i a r 7 - 7 - with MS word; ~ 6 i l i t y t o type ; Research exper ience ; Good i n t e r p e r s o n a l s k i l l s ;

A b i l i t y t o f i g u r e out what ' s r equ i r ed & do it; Fami l ia r wi th poverty, poverty i s s u e s & groups; A b i l i t y t o work. with groups; Workshop f a c i l i t a t i o n experience; A b i l i t y t o p lan & organize meetings; Good w r i t i n g a b i l i t y .

This p r o j e c t w i l l l a s t f o r 26 weeks. Wages: UI b e n e f i t s topped up t o $426/wk.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: MARCH 5 t h (Thursday)

Appl icants : P l ea se w r i t e a h a l f -page essay answering t h e ques t ion : "How can pover ty be ended? P l ease enc lose t h i s wi th your resume and send t o :

Hi r ing , End Leg i s l a t ed Poverty, 211-456 W.Broadway, Vancouver V5Y 1R3 (For informat ion , c a l l Jean a t 879-1209)

Mv Ladv

My Lady, my spouse, t o hold and keep f o r ever and ever, She g ives me food f o r thought t o go forward, With l i f e i t s e l f we w i l l endure the bonds of marriage, My Lady and I w i l l compromise the bonds of marriage and t r i b u l a t i o n My Lady, her man, t o keep f o r ever and ever . . . .

A serenade wouid I s i n g Beneath your Dalcony In the e a r l y morning m i s t A minstrel of t h e dawn Lyrics unique brought f o r t h

E.R.T. Barry Saunders

I

1

1

I

I

By haloed moon You would never know the ba l ladeer - nor, perhaps would you ca re Leaving but f a i n t foo t s t eps i n t he dew upon your lawn The only s ign of a c a l l i n g from t h e mins t re l of t he dawn.

Tnm 1 .ew iq

The emergency response team appears to be out of control.Anybody can phone a t i p i n about a neighbour whom they don' t l i k e .

Under t he guise of weapons o r drugs the ERT a r e l e t loose l i k e a gang of p i t bu l l s . I t i s q u i t e obvious t h a t the higher-ups, l i k e t he po l i ce chief, have t o be held responsible f o r t he bru ta l 6 i l l e g a l a c t s of t h e ERT.

Or ig ina l ly they were c rea ted f o r r ea l l i f e - th rea t en ing s i t u a t i o n s . Now they a r e going on f i s h i n g expedi t ions, with no r e a l evidence of drugs o r guns but j u s t f a l s e information.

The masks they wear a r e so nobody can pick them out f o r b r u t a l i t y o r property damage. Their Rambo-like a t t - i t ude and d is regard f o r human r i g h t s c r ea t e a dangerous s i t u a t i o n whereby they l e g a l l y ge t away with cr iminal a c t s .

With t h e recent case of the innocent Chinese people being t e r r o r i z e d it i- 1:

obvious they should be subjected t o I

cr iminal charges l i k e anybody e l s e 1 j

would be. This baloney of ' I 'm sor ry ' , is not good enough. i

llere we go agaln, . Another gov t study. Another "pay o f f u . The NDP s a i d they were going t o be d i f f e r e n t . They sa id they were going t o l e s t en . J u s t another p o l i t i c a l l i e .

The previous gov ' t , on t h e advice of people who th ink t h a t j u s t because they have a degree from some col lege o r uni- v e r s i t y they know everything, opened the doors of Riverview, took t h e r e s i -

I dents , and dumped them wherever it was convenient without considering t h e i r

' needs. They were j u s t l e f t t o fend f o r themselves, t o become vict ims.

The people who now deal with those unable t o ca re f o r themselves a r e not even asked what the needs are . These

' people only deal with the problems 24 hours a day but, according t o the gov't don' t know nothing.

J u s t another study. J u s t another I

waste of time. J u s t another waste of taxpayers ' money.

I t seems t h a t our "new" gov' t hopes t h a t these people i n immediate need w i l l j u s t disappear by the time the study is completed and they may have got ten around t o thinking t h a t maybe they should be doing something about the problem.

; So what e l s e is new i n Bungling-Billy Maybe-Mikie land.

The Shadow

(Of course we know what's needed, but t h a t ' s from being on the f r o n t - l i n e of socred abuse f o r 15 years. A l l I ' l l say i n defense of t h e NDP i s t h a t they've s t a r t e d a gov' t 3 o r 4 b i l l i o n d o l l a r s i n debt already 6 every expenditure has t o be balanced agains t t h i s . The most bas ic th ings would be t o r a i s e welfare r a t e s t o the poverty l i n e , t o r e s t o r e the minimum wage t o t h e l e v e l of worth it had (purchasing capaci ty) i n 1975, t o fund universa l school lunch programs and t o proceed with s e t t i n g up scores of group homes i n a l l c i t i e s i n BC f o r those with mental i l l n e s s e s . I t was s t a t e d , spec i f i ca l ly , t h a t they ' (NDP) d i d n ' t have a magic wand & not t o ex- pect miracles. Ed.)

Disabled Access t o Vancouver's Central Naterfront (CRAB) Park S

The Columbia s t r e e t pedestr ian overpass i n t o Vancouver's cen t ra l waterfront park needs t o be b u i l t .

A 260 foo t long ramp a t 5% grade a t tach- ed t o the e x i s t i n g Main s t r e e t overpass (as proposed by the Port Corporation) i s too long.

The Ci ty of Vancouver committee, with community membership, s tudied the access problem thoroughly and concluded t h a t a Columbia s t r e e t overpass was the only s o l - u t ion

The Port Corporation re fuses t o acknowledge t h i s so lu t ion , a s they a r e more i n t - eres ted in r i c h t o u r i s t s mainly using Crab (Portside) c e n t r a l waterfront park.

CRAB Society worked f o r 5 years t o ach- ieve the dream of t h i s 7-acre parks i te . But disabled people, the e lder ly , those with low incomes and chi ldren i n nearby dyacares have not been able t o use t h i s r a re greenspace i n t h e area.

I t was the Port Corporation t h a t b u i l t the Main s t r e e t overpass, twice a s s t eep as proposed a t the entrance.

We have p a t i e n t l y advocated f o r proper, s a f e d isabled access f o r 4 1 / 2 years.

Please pressure the Port Corporation t o do the humane th ing, and approve & bui ld the Columbia s t r e e t overpass over the r a i l t r acks and road.

The Ci ty of Vancouver would l i k e l y cos t - share 50% of t h e one mil l ion d o l l a r cos ts .

The Port Corporation should show compas- sion t o a l l people 4 approve the Columbia s t r e e t overpass before the In ternat ional ' 9 2 Conference of D i s a b i l i t y ~cc ' e s s i n Apr.

Don Larson

Downtown Eastside Residents Association

4

4dvocacy : The Downtown E a s t s i d e Res iden t s ' Welfare advocacy, h e l p w i t h income

~ s s o c i a t i o n i s i n i t s 1 9 t h year . I t i s t a x E l a n d l o r d / t e n a n t i s s u e s a r e done recognised throughout t h e Lower Main- by 3 s t a f f , a s we l l a s networking wi th land as one of - if not t h e most - dy- 3 agenc ies & t a k i n g t r a i n i n g . namic g r a s s r o o t s o r g a n i s a t i o n s around. Relocat ion :

The h i s t o r y o f DERA has been w r i t t e n This d i f f i c u l t , e s s e n t i a l work hds about h e r e b e f o r e i n t h i s Newslet ter . t o do wi th f i n d i n g housing f o r people A s t h e DERA philosophy i s a p p l i e d t o d i s p l a c e d by e v i c t i o n , demol i t ions E d i f f e r e n t housing & community i s s u e s , d i s a s t e r s l i k e f i r e s . The C i t y o f Van- o t h e r groupings i n s o c i e t y i n genera l & couver f i n a l l y admi t t ed it had t o t a l l y - governments, p r i v a t e b u s i n e s s e s E Q inadequate r e s o u r c e s t o do t h i s work

community .organisat ions - q u i c k l y develop an abiding r e s p e c t , some t o t h e l e v e l o f admirat ion.

The Annual General Meeting happened today (Fr iday, 28 February) E t h e many a r e a s o f DERA' s involvement gave r e - p o r t s t o t h e genera l membership. Downtown ~ e ~ o i i t P r o j e c t :

Located a t 33 W . Cordova, t h i s s e r - v i c e inc ludes he lp ing r e s i d e n t s open bank accounts t o have money depos i t ed d i r e c t l y , r a t h e r than have an e n t i r e month's money in-pocket i n cash 6 be mugged f o r it. Help i n applying f o r i d e n t i f i c a t i o n i s a l s o p a r t of t h i s . DERA South:

With t h e massive development a long E with in a block o f ~ r a n v i l l e S t . t h e needs of longtime, low income r e s i d e n t s e n i o r s & o t h e r s a r e t h r e a t e n e d . Both t h e c i t y manager & t h e s o c i a l p lanning d e p a r t backed DERA a s t h e b e s t t o h e l p ensure t h a t d i s l o c a t i o n 6 homelessness were not t h e s e p e o p l e ' s on ly f u t u r e . - C i t y Council , t h e 1 -vo te NPA m a j o r i t y , twice re fused funding, bu t DERA had a 1 ready s t a r t e d c!oing t h e community work. O v e r 500 mernbers a r c s i g n e d up and i s s u c s G concerns a r e being r a i s e d .

E c r e a t e d a job based on DERA' s work. Sen iors :

Anna Wong once aga in l i s t e d many a c t i v i t i e s E accomplishments, inc lud- ing t h e DERA S e n i o r s once aga in r a i s - ing more money i n t h e S e n i o r s t S t r u t than any o t h e r group! - *

SHIPSHAPE : This was a 1-year g r a n t p r o j e c t

t h a t a ided s e n i o r s i n h e a l t h i n i t i a - t i i r e s E community p r o j e c t s . The ALICE General S t o r e i s a l egacy o f SHIPSHAPE. - -

T e l l i e r Tower: Progress i n many a r e a s i n t h i s model

f o r i n n e r - c i t y s e n i o r s ' housing. Pendera:

Opened i n October 1991, Pendera i s a n o t h e r example o f community housing t h a t has skyrocketed a s a model. I t rece ived a H e r i t a g e award i n t h e a r e a o f r e g e n e r a t i n g community l i v i n g , e s - p e c i a l l y s i g n i f i c a n t i n t h a t it was t h e f irst t ime e v e r i t was given t o a new b u i l d i n g . F i n a n c i a l Sta tements :

These were compiled E presen ted bv Rosalyn ~ r e c k n e r - o f ~ r a g b m i r / ~ r e c k n L r f o r t h e y e a r ending 30 September 1391. l i ~ e y were accepted unanimously.

I

I

Up t o now, DERA has fought f o r a l l of i t s successes. The r e p o r t s given were f o r l a s t year. Right now, a s has been reported on in t he media & about which t h e r e a r e endless rumours E speculat ion c i r c u l a t i n g , 7 fu l l - t ime & 2 par t - t ime core s t a f f pos i t i ons have been terminated . The work done by people holding these jobs includes f inance (payro l l , g ran t adminis t ra t ion , payments E b i l l s ) g ran t appl ica t ion G p r o j e c t s , housing proposals E administrat ion of same, supervis ion of s t a f f a t 4 p r o j e c t s o f f - i c e co-ordinat ion & recept ion & d i r e c t - ing people t o who they need t o see f o r welfare problems, landlord/ tenant d i s - putes , income tax , applying f o r co-op o r family o r s en io r housing E on E on.

In t he papers, t h e r e fusa l of t he NPA t o fund DERA because i t ' s " p o l i t i c a l " i s c i t e d a s t he cause of t h i s c r i s i s . That ' s p a r t l y t r u e , but j u s t t h e wages 6 b e n e f i t s of 7 jobs add up t o over $150,000 a yea r . . t he DERA South o f f i c e c o s t s about $55,000 a year .

DERA South, without secure funding, has been cos t ing DERA about $5,000 a month t o run.

The Portland Hotel, on the corner of Hastings & C a r r a l l , s t a r t e d out a s a p lace where the hardes t t o house (of those 'hard-to-house') would have a t l e a s t temporary s h e l t e r u n t i l more per- manent p laces could be found. Because of t he number of r e s iden t s t h e r e with mental i l l n e s s e s , t h e r e has been a con- sequent increase i n t he number of s t a f f needed G t he e x p e r t i s e they r equ i r e t o I deal with s e r ious s i t u a t i o n s .

I The Port land seems t o be cos t ing DERA / money t o run.

1 The uniqueness of t hese 2 s e rv i ces , / DERA South & t he Port land, i s undeniab-

t h e se rv i ces provided a r e e s s e n t i a l but t he c o s t s involved c a n ' t be born 1 le; a t t he expense of gu t t i ng t h e core of DERA i t s e l f .

7 . "If people think Granville Street is a blight on the city now, wait until you get 1,500 homeless people living on the street."

crisis threatens

Several quest ions a r i s e - 1. How can government agencies continue funding p r o j e c t s when the re is no core s t a f f t o administer them? 2. How w i l l a $10 mi l l ion p ro j ec t l i k e t h e proposed Union S t r e e t one go ahead i f t h e r e is no core s t a f f t o run i t ? 3 . Knowing t h a t t he e x i s t i n g housing p r o j e c t s - T e l l i e r , Pendera, Portland, Marie Gomez, Four S i s t e r s Co-op - a l l budget f o r & pay adminis t ra t ive fees , w i l l they continue t o pay f o r what DERA appears t o no longer provide? 4. I f t h e 7 core jobs a r e terminated but t h e work s t i l l has t o be done, who w i l l do i t ? ( I f the' answer t o t h i s i s "other DERA s t a f f , what a r e they doing now t h a t w i l l be a f f ec t ed i f they have twice the workload?) ?

These a r e bas ic . I want DERA t o surv- ive. I a l s o want members E r e s iden t s of our community t o be s a t i s f i e d t h a t any dec is ions made & d i r e c t i o n s taken a r e i n t h e bes t i n t e r e s t s of DERA E the community it was born from E has served so inc red ib ly f o r these 19 years .

By PAULR TAYLOR

Rich Man, Rich Man. Where a r e you going?

A man with a Why, down t o the s t a t e Where I can keep growi

t r a v e l l i n g Rich Man, Rich Man. Why a r e you doing t h a t So I can become a much bigger f a t c a t !

Charge Accounts Rich Man, Rich Man. What about our jobs?

the r i g h t upper Go t o h e l l , laughs t h e

Western Rain You working c l a s s a r e nothing but s lobs!

the creek Roving urchins s i t t o r e s t

a bang

f lash ing d r o p l e t s a white smiling

in t h e sun f l a k e s r i g h t br ight

my hand in the pouring r a i n she wonderfully \

approached me evenly

Rudy K. Penner /

WELFARE RIGHTS WORKSHOP

We a r e happy t o announce t h a t t h e r e w i l l be a Welfare Rights workshop fac- i l i t a t e d by the People ls Law School.

Time - 10 am - 12 noon. Place - Learning Centre, Classroom #2 . Date - 10 March 1992 (Tuesday)

'neath t h e p i e r on Crab Park Bay. Nature's b rea th on p l a t eau h i l l s blowing f o r t h a stormy day.

Under c u l t u r e s 1 b lue roof lodge white eyed ravens watch t h e sky. Driftwood logs from f a r o f f shores l a y where they were s e n t t o l i e .

Whirlybirds buzz above g u l l s and geese i n q u i e t f locks . D i f f l r e n t s o r t s of tymac boa t s babble i n t h e i r i d l e docks.

Walking on i t s arc ing path, c e r t a i n t h ings t u r n out a s planned, I can sense some paradise f e l l on Crab Park 's g ra s s and sand.

I t 1 s f o r people i n t h e Morning Drop- In, t he G.E.D. c l a s s e s and o the r s (up t o 25 people).

The workshop w i l l be led by Gus Long an& 7,. rin Schmidt.

"NON -RETURNABLE WAKIW'I'S"

You, a member o f your f a m i l y o r someone you know i n your neighbourhood c o u l d ' v e been a v i c t i m of such a p rac - t i c e . People who d e a l d rugs , break & e n t e r , are v i o l e n t , r a p i s t s , e t c . a r e t h e peop le who t h r i v e on i t . ; \

A pe r son who i s charged f o r one of t h e above cr imes , say i n Toronto, g e t s

I r e l e a s e d on b a i l & f a i l s t o appear i n c o u r t , w i l l v e r y l i k e l y b e sought on a ' Inon-returnab l e w a r r a n t . "

When t h a t person h a s f a i l e d t o appear i n c o u r t a bench war ran t i s i s s u e d f o r t h e i r a r r e s t . On t h a t warrant i s a "non-re turnable" c l a u s e . A r a d i u s o f 100 k i l o m e t e r s from where t h e warrant was i s s u e d i s n o t uncommon.

YOU may b e t h e n e x t v i c t i m and your --

p r e d a t o r may b e from as f a r away as - Hope (BC), where t h e y may b e sought f o r COMPETITION - I WIN, YOU LOSE any number o f r easons .

Listen, f r i end , competition as a prized n our soc ie ty has done so much harm

C a p i t a l o f Canada1' - OTTAWA! t h a t i t ' s time we gave it a second look. T h a t ' s 'what Alf ie Kohn does i n h i s book "No Contest 0 The Case Against Competition1 (Houghton Mufflin Company).

Kohn po in t s out t h a t the bas i s of compe- t i t i o n i s t h a t my success r equ i res your f a i l u r e because we both can ' t be #1.

There 's no way we can build a healthy, t r u s t i n g soc ie ty on t h a t foundation. Kohn then looks a t f o u r myths about competition and shows t h a t none of them a r e t rue .

Myth #1 - Competition i s a f a c t of l i f e because it i s p a r t of human nature .

For a Hopi Elder, human nature i s under- d stood i n terms of a journey t h a t takes

him o r he r towards the sacred, i n a l iv ing r e l a t i o n s h i p with a l l t h a t surrounds him. For a business tycoon bent on becoming a b i l l i o n a i r e , human nature i s understood i n terms of the competitive, aggressive val - ues t h a t w i l l he lp him in h i s quest.

The human na tu re argument f o r competi- t i o n cannot be proven because our view of human na tu re depends on how we understand the deepest t r u t h about ourselves, and t h a t view is shaped by the c u l t u r e in which we grow up.

M t h #2 - Competition motivates us t o do 2 k - r e s t . Competition is more productive than co-operation.

In the f i r s t place, t h i s competitive so- c i e t y we l i v e i n would not funct ion unless people co-operated with each o the r . Also, I can do my best without having my success depend on another person's f a i l u r e . For instance, I can wri te a poem f o r the Car- negie Newsletter. I f I had t o compete, I wouldn't write the poem a t a l l because a poem is a g i f t . I t i s not t h e means f o r winning a p r i z e .

Alf ie Kohn says i n h i s book t h a t the re - search shows t h a t super ior performance not only does not require competition, it usu- a l l y seems t o require i ts absence. Often people hung up on competition concentrate more on winning by any means than on the excellance of the a c t i v i t y they a r e doing. For example, competition has not brought us good t e l e v i s i o n .

Even in economic terms competition i s not more productive than co-operation. The g rea t i n d u s t r i a l production miracle i n Canada occurred i n the Second World War, with government planning and wartime economic controls , including p r i c e controls . I t was a time of co-operation within Cana- da, a time when everyone was needed, a time when the suic ide r a t e dropped s ign i f - icant ly .

Myth #3 - Competition i s fun.

We can have fun playing games, but i f we take competition too se r ious ly we may f e e l more anxiety than fun in competitive a c t i - v i t i e s . Losing i s not much fun f o r us i f our self-esteem depends on winning, and sometimes we f e e l angry and depressed when we lose. Even winning, a f t e r the i n i t i a l excitement i s over, i s not much fun f o r winners because they have t o win again and again i n order t o maintain t h e i r pos i t ion. After winning a t the 1972 Olympics, Mark Spi tz sa id , "I became s ick of myself. I never knew how f a r down someone could

drop, e spec ia l ly a f t e r being up so high." The e f f e c t s of winning a r e not l a s t i n g and s o l i d self-esteem cannot be b u i l t on such a passing t h r i l l . There i s always a f a s t e r gun somewhere ou t there .

Play games, by a l l means, but remember the saying of G.K. Chesterton about play: "If a th ing i s worth doing a t a l l , i t i s worth doing badly." We do not need t o beat o the r people i n order t o have a good time.

Myth #4 - Competition bui lds character .

Competition doesn' t bu i ld charac te r i n the sense of a decent, humane, car ing human being. Competition does bui ld another kind of character , and we had b e t t e r take a look a t t h e kind of character competition bui lds .

Competition buklds competi t ive people, and most of us avoid very competi t ive peo- p l e because of t h e i r aggressiveness. We even become uncomfortable when we become aware of our own competitiveness, and we t a l k disparagingly of the competitive r a t race. Most of u s don ' t l i k e t o have our success depend on another ' s f a i l u r e , o r have our p leasure depend on another ' s d i s - appointment .

Competition poisons $man r e l a t i o n s because h o s t i l i t y is p a r t of the winner/los- e r model. According t o t h e research given i n Al f i e Kohn's book, very competitive a t h e l e t e s tend t o be se l f -centred, shallow in re la t ionsh ips , aggressive with a mean s t r eak , anxious about los ing, unconcerned about the needs of o the r s , d i s t r u s t f u l , and b r u t a l enough t o do whatever it takes t o win. "Nice guys f i n i s h l a s t , " is the way Leo Durocher put it, and t h e l a t e Pre- s ident Eisenhower thought t h a t "the t r u e mission of American spor t s is t o prepare young people f o r war. "

Alf i e Kohn c loses h i s book, "No Contest . The Case Against Competition," by remind- ing us t h a t co-operation is a v a l i d a l t e r - na t ive t o competition. With co-operation my winning depends on your winning, and we see many examples of t h i s a t the Carnegie Centre. We hope t h a t the wisdom t h a t is in t h i s place w i l l t r i c k l e down t o our p o l i t - i c a l and economic leaders .

By SANDY CAMERON

STD CLINIC - Monday t h r o u g h F r i d a y , 9am - 5pm. iMWNTDWN FREE MEDICAL CLINIC - Mon, Wed, F r i d a y 5:30-7:30pm EASTSIDE

NEEDLE EXCHANGE - 221 Main; e v e r y day 9am - 5pm. N e e d l e Exchange van - on t h e s t r e e t Mon-Sat e v e n i n g s .

ACTIVITIBS N . A . meets e v e r y Monday n i g h t a t 2 2 3 Main S t r e e t . SOCIETY

Out t o Lunch Bunch meets d a i l v a t 451 E . H a s t i n g s , 1 0 - 2 : J O

1992 DONATIONS : Keith C. -$20 Nancy W.-$100 Luba P.-$10 Robert -$ lo Four S i s t e r s Co-op -$SO0 DERA -$SO0 Legal Services -$200 E t ienne S . -$3O F o r e s t Lawn -$25 Yvonne C. -$lb Keo -$5 Tom S .-$5 H a z e l M.-$25

l:lll:l: , - l l ~ l l l l l l l ~ ~ l l s l l c c l l ~ ~ l l l l l .

C l t y III~II r l r f f cno ' t nccc-pl h ~ a t IIIIIII f u r thin I IcuaIe t I e r , (II,

I f yuu cal l I ~ c l p . 11116 Fsol I s y l ~ , WIII I ~ e ' l l s l v e you a receipt.

IIIIIIIIIE OVOI~I#IIIIV

, -'

NEED llKI,13 ? The Downtown Eastslde Ilesldents' hijsoclatlol~ can help you with:

* any welfare prol)lcrrw + Informallon on legs1 rlghts + disputes wil l1 lancll'ords

+ UIC problc~ns + fincling I~ousing * oycnlng a bank account

DERA HAS BEEN SERVING THE DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE FOR 19 YEARS.

I ! blolluny, Mom~~y: look! They s i t r i g h t on t h e water."

"Yes. 'Ihey belong wherever they can go."

"hut why do t h e b i r d s s i t on t h e water, bfo~nrny?"

" I t reminds them of t h e t ime before they could f l y . "

O I . Rut how come b i r d s fly?"

"Well, because t h e i r bones a r e hollow, so they a r e l i g h t enough f o r t h e a i r t o play with, l i k e leaves when the wind blows, and because they have wings. \dings a r e t he kind of l e g s you need t o play in t he shy."

0 Look, I ~ o k t h e y ' r e f l y ing again. Bye b i rd s . . ." 'hhllully?'~

"Yes, Angel ." "lvhy is t he sky blue?"

"I don ' t know. Maybe i t ' s hecause blue is t h e I ~ i g g e s t colour-."

"\Jll;it ' 5 a f t e r t he shy?"

"'l'he sky never ends, angel . I t j u s t goes on and on forever."

"IJhat ' s forever?"

"'l'l~e longest t ime t h e r e is. Come on now, i t ' s t ime t o go."

"1,~'t's s t a y t i l l forever."

"Idc c a n ' t ange l , we have t o get hoalo."

"1 low collie?"

"Recat~se I have t o get sorl~c ex t r a work -1o1.e fo r the o f f ice tonight ."

"Yes, Angel?"

"lihy a r e we poor?" - Steven Belkin

This is a tenancy agreeme between

the tenant (s) and

- -

the landlord

The landlord's address and telephone number are:

The address of the place being rented is:

It is called the "premises" in this agreement

Agreement Terms The landlord rents the premises to the tenant Specific rights and duties of both the landlord according to this agreement and the laws that and the tenant are in the following govern landlords and tenants. The most paragraphs. Each paragraph has a number important law that governs landlords and and it is called a "term" of the agreement tenants in British Columbia is the Residential Tenancy Act.

1. Length of the Tenancy 3. Amount of the Rent The tenancy starts on:

I and continues:

Check one box only

month-temonth;

OR

for a t least the following length of

Write the length of time here

(Example: six months or one year) Note: At the end of this time, the tenancy will continue month-to-month.

2. What is Included in the Rent Put a check in the boxes beside the things that a r e included in the rent

0 Water 0 Heat 0 Hydro 0 Cablevision 0 Parking

0 Storage 0 Fridge 0 Stove 0 Drapes

Washing Machine 0 Clothes Dryer I 0 Towels

0 Furniture Room Service

0 Other

I

plus

any extra monthly charge

Total monthly charge D 4. Payment of the Rent The tenant will pay the rent to the landlord on the U day of each month. It is important to pay the rent on time. If the tenant doesn't pay on time, the landlord can evict the tenant. This means the landlord can force the tenant to move out with very short notice.

5. Occupants

There will be 0 person 0 living in the premises. Their names are:

6. Rent Increases b Once a Year

The landlord will only increase the rent once a year starting from the date the tenant first moves into the premises.

b 3 Month's Notice The landlord will give the tenant 3 full months' written notice of any rent increase.

For example: If the tenant is given a notice in anytime in January (even January lst), there must be 3 full months before the increase begins. The full months are February, March and April, so the increase would begin on May 1st.

7. Condition of the Premises The landlord will make sure the premises are in good, clean condition before the tenant moves in.

The tenant will leave the premises in good, clean condition before moving out. (Note: normal wear and tear or damage from ordinary use is not included.

Normal Wear and Tear This expression describes the kind of damage that happens through ordinary use of the rented premises.

The landlord is responsible to pay for damage caused by normal wear and tear.

For example: if the tenant regularly cleans the walls and vacuums the carpets, the landlord must pay for repainting or professionally cleaning the carpets.

The tenant is responsible for damage that is more than normal wear and tear. For example, If a tenant spills a bottle of ink on the carpet or the wall, the tenant must pay to clean the carpet or repaint the wall.

8. Security Deposit The tenant has paid a security deposit of $

Note: all deposits must not add up to more than one-half of one month's rent.

9. Return of Deposit The landlord will keep this deposit during the tenancy.

After the tenant moves out, the landlord has a maximum of 30 days to give the tenant a notice that:

says the amount of the deposit and the date it was paid;

shows how much interest is owed and how it was calculated;

gives details of any deductions from the deposit; and

includes full payment of money owed to the tenant

Deductions The landlord can only keep money from the security deposit for any of the following reasons:

ifthe tenant or the tenant's guests caused some damage to the premises, building or property outside the building and did not repair it. (Note: normal wear and tear or damage from ordinary use is not included)

if the tenant did not leave the premises reasonably clean (Note: normal wear and tear or damage from ordinary use is not included)

if the tenant owes the landlord money (Example: rent or repayment of arbitration fees)

10. Tenant's Duties

a) The tenant will take good care of the pren.lises and any appliances, drapes or other things that the landlord provides a s part of this tenancy. b) The tenant will repair or pay for the repairs to appliances, fixtures or the building itself if the tenant or the tenant's guests cause the damage by misuse. (Note: normal wear and tear or damage caused by ordinary use is not included). C) The tenant will tell the landlord a s soon as they find any problems with the building, appliances or fixtures.

quiet between 11 o'clock in the evening and 8 o'clock in the morning.

11. Landlord's Duties

premises is clean and in good repair when the tenant moves in. b) The landlord will keep the building and common areas clean and in good repair at all times. C) The landlord will promptly repair appliances and fixtures if the damage is not the tenant's fault or there is damage from ordinary use. d) The landlord will clean up the premises after doing repairs or making

premises is the tenant's home. The landlord will make sure the tenant can peaceably enjoy the premises during the tenancy. This means the landlord grants the tenant full use of the premises and will not disturb the tenant or the tenant's guests unless it is necessary.

12. Landlord's Right to Enter The landlord may enter the rented premises only if:

there i s an emergency the tenant gives the landlord permission

to enter the landlord gives the tenant a written

notice that they intend to enter the premises.

This written notice must do all of the following things:

let the tenant know the time that the landlord intends to enter;

give the tenant between 24 and 72 hours notice of when the landlord intends to enter; and

give a good reason for wanting to enter

the tenant has moved out the landlord has a court order the landlord is providing maid service to

a hotel tenant a t a reasonable time.

13. Duties of Both Landlord and Tenant

a) Both the landlord and the tenant will let the other person know in writing if this agreement is not being followed.

This written notice will include the .

following things: Details of how the agreement is not

being followed; and

Give a reasonable time for the other person to correct the problem.

b) Both the landlord and the tenant will obey the laws and government standards in the areas of health, sanitation, fire, housing and safety.

14. Pets

The tenant must have the landlord's permission in writing before the tenant can keep a Pet.

The landlord allows the tenant to keep the following pets:

The tenant must get new permission kom the landlord if the tenant wants to change the number of kind of pets allowed.

15. Tenant Insurance The tenant is responsible to insure their own personal property. Insurance should cover theft, fire and other dangers.

18. Waterbeds and Aquariums The tenant must have the landlord's permission in writing to set up a waterbed or an aquarium. Before giving permission, the landlord may ask the tenmt for proof of special insurance to cover water damage.

17. Residential Use of Premises The tenant will only use the premises to live in. The tenant will not use any part of the premises for a business purpose or as a workshop unless the landlord gives permission in writing.

18. Alteration and Decoration The tenant will not make major changes to the premises unless the landlord gives permission in writing. Major changes are things like painting the walls or putting up wallpaper, removing fixtures or making any changes to the building walls or structure.

19. Locks Normally, the tenant will not put on a new lock or make any changes to a lock or security device (like a door chain) unless the landlord gives permission in writing. If there is an emergency or the landlord is not available to give . permission, the tenant may change the lock and give the landlord a key.

20. Storage If there is a storage area for tenants, the tenant will make sure their belongings are put in the proper storage area. The landlord will tell the tenant where the tenant's storage area is.

The tenant will not store dangerous materials in the storage or living areas.

The tenant will not leave bicycles in the hallways or common areas without the landlord's permission

21. Garbage The tenant will put all garbage in a bag and tie the bag.

The landlord will tell the tenant where to put the garbage bags. The landlord will make sure the garbage bags are taken away.

The tenant will not leave garbage, boxes, papers or other things in the halls, stairs or other common areas of the building.

22. Landlord Notice The landlord must give the tenant notice of eviction for the reasons, in the manner, and on a special form.

The process is described in detail in the Residential Tenancy Act

23. Tenant Notice The tenant may end a month-to-month tenancy by giving the landlord at least one month's notice. This means the landlord must receive the written notice before the day the rent is due for the tenant to move out at the end of the next month.

For example: The tenant wants to move at the end of May. The tenant must make sure the landlord receives a written notice by April 30th.

Note: this notice does not have to be on a special form.

24. Assign or Sublet The tenant may not assign or transfer this agreement to another person unless the landlord gives the tenant permission in writing. Also, the tenant may not sublet or rent any part of the premises to another person unless the landlord gives the tenant permission in writing. The landlord may not refuse to give this permission without a good reason.

25. Damages During Move The tenant will be responsible for damage to the premises, the building itself or the property outside the building that happens during their move, if the tenant or anyone helping the tenant causes the damage.

26. Return of Security Deposit See the "Security Depositt1 section at the beginning of this agreement.

r Write down any additional terms which both the landlord and tenant agree to.

O n e example is, the landlord will mow the lawn and do all the yard work. Another example is, the tenant and the tenant's guests will not smoke in the premises.

I

Building Rules These are written rules that are usually about the use of services or common areas that the landlord provides for a number of tenants.

If the landlord gives the tenant a copy of the Building Rules before signing this agreement, those rules become part of this agreement.

; Changes in Building Rules If the landlord wants to change the Building Rules, the tenant can either accept the changes or continue with the original rules.

If the tenant wants the new rules to replace the original rules the landlord and the tenant must sign a copy of the new rules. After the new rules are signed, the landlord will give a copy of the signed rules to the tenant.

If the tenant wants the original rules to continue, the tenant does nothing.

Condition Report This is a detailed description of the condition of the premises when the tenant moves in. Both the landlord and the tenant can use it at the end of the tenancy to compare the condition of the premises when the tenant moves out. A Condition Report can be on a special form or can just be written out on normal paper.

Usually a Condition Report describes how clean each room is and the general condition of things like the paint on the walls, the floors or the carpets. It also says exactly where damage is located and how bad it is. For example: there are about 20 cigarette bums in the middle of the carpet in the living room.

To make a Condition Report part of this agreement, both the landlord and the tenant need to sign it. The landlord will make a copy of it and attach a copy of the report to each copy of this agreement.

Tenant's Copy of Agreement The landlord will make a copy of this agreement and give the original back to the tenant within 21 days of the date the tenant signed it. If the tenant doesn't get the agreement within the 21 days, the tenant can hold the rent they owe until the landlord gives the tenant a copy of the agreement.

Agreement Must Obey Residential Tenancy Act All parts of this agreement must obey the rules in the Residential Tenancy Act. Any term that tries to change these rules is "void". This means neither the landlord nor the tenant can be forced to follow a void part of the agreement.

Change of Owner This agreement will apply for the entire length of the tenancy unless the landlord and the tenant agree otherwise.

A new landlord has the same rights and duties as the previous one and must follow all the terms of this agreement.

A tenant does not have to sign a new agreement if there is a new landlord.

Changing the Agreement No part or term of this agreement may be changed unless both the landlord and the tenant agree to the change.

The landlord and the tenant show they agree to the terms in this agreement by signing on

Date , 1 9 . Tenant

Landlord (or Agent) Tenant

This agreement was produced by theTenants Rights Coalition with support from the following organizations in B.C.: the Law Foundation. Legal Semces Society, the Notary Foundation and the United Way

, The Tenants' Rights Action Coal i t ion (TRAC) met with both Moe Sihota and Robin Blencoe, the NDP MLAs responsible f o r housing, on Thursday the 20th.

On the agenda was a l l manner of concerns stemming from 15 years of socred abuse.

Six TRAC Board members & t h r e e s t a f f made i s sues c lea r : the continued e x i s t - ence of a housing c r i s i s , t h e inadequacies of the Residential Tenancy Act & Branch, l e g i s l a t i v e changes needed and the necess i ty t o br ing i n r en t controls .

Each o f these a reas was discussed with the exper t i se acquired from years of f r o n t - l i n e experience - espec ia l ly the manner i n which landlords can do a l l manner of i l l e g a l p rac t i ces while fac ing no prosecution o r even f ines .

Sihota was on the edge of h i s s e a t & a l l e a r s whenever s p e c i f i c reference was made t o changing the- language - the p r a c t i c e s - of t h e RTA & RTB.

Par t of h i s concern was following gut f ee l ings - l i k e pu t t ing a "right t o housing' i n the Const i tu t ion o r the Charter - only t o have lawyers represent ing landlords t w i s t t h e i n t e n t t o make mat ters worse.

For example, a landlord could say t h a t zoning by-laws o r r e n t control v i o l a t e h i s cons t i tu t iona l r i g h t i n t h a t he i s c,-3,-r . - . - .. .

"required" t o adhere t o everyone's "right" t o housing.

The meeting was productive, i n t h a t both Blencoe & Sihota assured u s of the implementation of a t o l l - f r e e 800 l i n e What is special to you about province-wide f o r t enan t s wanting informa- Vancouver's urban landscape? t i o n on t h e i r r igh t s . The i s sue o r f - - pu t t ing a l l documents, agreements & \

publ ic i n f o i n p l a i n language was addressed d5 ' WIuI don't you like about Cars! and s t e p s a r e being taken. Most Vancouver's urban landscape? s ign i f i can t was the t ab l ing of TRAC's own Tenancy Agreement, wr i t t en i n p l a i n c.ars ! language and tested with people do you think are the three biggest challenges English i s a second language.

Blencoe cautioned us, a s it seems or threats to Vancouver's urban landscape? hundreds of groups have already been L-acs ! cars! cautioned, t h a t they a r e dealing with a mess o f po l i c i es , laws & a t t i t u d e s What can we do to maintain and improve l e f t by iocred " I t w i l l Vancouver's urban landscape'? happen, but not overnight." \

R, ! cat5 '

By PAULR TAYLOR caS~'. As Vmcouver enters the next century, what would your ideal urban landscape be like?

United Native Nations hosted t h e F i r s t people 's Conference on t h e C o n s t i t u t i o n i n Vancouver on February 21-23.

Coa l i t i ons & groups r ep re sen t ing i s s u e s .t exc lus ive t o Native Peoples, l i k e

poverty, c h i l d apprehension, peace, env i r - onment, housing, w r i t e r s , t e a c h e r s e t c . were a l s o i n v i t e d t o p re sen t t h e i r s t a t e - ments on t h e Tory c o n s t i t u t i o n a l proposa ls .

Aboriginal PeopIes have responded v igo r - ously t o t h e deafening s i l e n c e i n t h e Tory gameplan. These proposa ls g i v e vague promises with one hand and t a k e away t h e means t o make them r e a l wi th a l l t h e othc changes.

Aboriginal People, f i r s t & foremost , want the word "inherent" spec i fy ing t h e r i g h t they have t o self-government. This cannot be given t o them a s a " g i f t " by any government o r cour t . This seemed s o s e l f - ev iden t t h a t I 'd thought it would j u s t be a f f i rmed unanimously by a l l t h e r e and t h e workshops could go on t o t a l k of r e l a t e d concerns. On t h e l a r g e pad bes ide t h e f a c i l i t a t o r were 7 numbered concerns: - Inherent Right; - Obtaining Aboriginal People ' s consent f o r any changes a f f e c t i n g them d i r e c t l y o r i n d i r e c t l y ;

Recognition a s a d i s t i n c t s o c i e t y within Canada;

- t h e (infamous) Indian Act; - Senate Reform and a b o r i g i n a l r ep re sen t -

a t i o n (not propor t iona l o r token) ; - Char te r o f Rights & Freedoms P ro t ec t -

ions. .Native Women's Rights; - Aboriginal T i t l e & Rights .

Being a Non Aboriginal Person (NAP was k indly used throughout t h e conference) , I 'd expected t h e meeting t o b e run i n a NAP-oriented way, bu t t h e Aboriginal Peo- p l e p re sen t , each having s t r o n g p o s i t i o n s , continued t a l k i n g i n terms o f t h e i r own experiences and those o f t h e i r f r i e n d s .

A s people spoke, I began t o understand t h e na tu re o f t h e s t rugg le . Throughout t h e l a s t 500 y e a r s Aboriginal People have been promised much only t o f i n d l a t e r t h a t t hey had been l i e d t o & betrayed.

There has been a sys temat ic e f f o r t by NAPS (governments & i n d i v i d u a l s ) t o d e s t - roy t r a d i t i o n s & c u l t u r e by t o t a l a s s imi l - a t i o n , u s ing l e g a l & i l l e g a l t r i c k s t o de- p r i v e Native people o f t h e i r land, t h e i r resources , t h e i r ch i ld ren and, o f t e n , f- ir l i v e s . Things l i k e smallpox-laden b l m k e t s given t o t r i b e s i n d e s i r e d lands; t hen t h e Indian Act al lows NAPS t o dedide who is o r i s n o t an Indian, while d iv id ing up r e se rve lands .

One woman warned of being t%educedl' by the NAP system, where more years a re spent debating while the ones in power keep up the abuse. Another woman, an Elder, sa id the re should be no compromise with yet another promise by the "whites" - tha t the re i s s t i l l a conspiracy going on t o defraud and destroy Aboriginal Peoples.

The f e a r s of people(NAP)are fostered by misconception & ignorance. Aboriginal Peoples want t h e i r fundamental r i g h t s recognised now i n t h e const i tu t ion, not l e f t f o r judges, cour ts , o r p o l i t i c i a n s t o decide as time goes on. A l l manner of concerns a r e born out of t h e i r treatment in t r e a t i e s , negot ia t ions and o ther in te r - ac t ions with NAPs.

The most popular myth is t h a t Native people get everything - f r e e homes, f r e e education (including univers i ty) e tc . Even on paper these supposed ' f reebies ' a r e only applied t o those who l i v e on Indian Act reserves. Natives l iv ing off reserves have no access t o these programs.

The r e a l i t y is having any such programs in place on paper, most money going t o t h e adminis t ra tors (NAPs), money being systematically rerouted and of ten jus t not released..while the government's s t a t i s t i c s s t a t e otherwise.

One gathering was t h a t of t h e Elders and Native Veterans - people with the longest h i s t o r i e s of maltreatment and outr ight criminal a c t s agains t them and t h e i r fami- l i e s by Indian Act agents, government bureaucrats & t r e a t y viola t ions .

End Legislated Poverty has unanimously supported t h e bas ic p r i n c i p l e f o r f u r t h e r aboriginal involvement in Canada - t h e i r inherent r i g h t t o self-government & s e l f - determination.

As was s t a t e d i n a declara t ion of the Native Council o f Canada: T h i s i s our l a s t t r ea ty , t h i s const i tu t ion. We must get what is needed now."

By PAULR TAY LO

E d i t o r , P U ~ L

Quote: " A l l my l i f e I have t r i e d t o do t h e r i g h t t h i n g . . . I ' m being sub- j e c t e d t o c r i t i c i s m ... t h a t I d o n ' t t h i n k i s warranted. ., . I can o n l y do what I am t o l d is OK. I d o n ' t want t o t r a v e l f o r t h e C i t y b u t I do." Unquote. Alderman George P u i l . Sound f a m i l i a r ?

Like M r . Vanderzalm, Mayor Gordon Campbell f a i l s t o s e e t h e c o n f l i c t o f i n t e r e s t i n M r . P u i l ' s u s e o f (6 pro- f i t i n g by) Trans Globe Travel Agency, owned by s a i d P u i l .

Mr. P u i l , l i k e o t h e r s o f t h a t p a s t G d i s g r a c e d government, f i n d s i t so con- ven ien t t o be u n a v a i l a b l e f o r comment.

If Mayor Campbell i s t r u l y a l e a d e r o f r e p u t e . . t h e n he has no a l t e r n a t i v e but t o ask f o r M r . P u i l l s immediate r e s i g n a t i o n .

A s f o r t h e s t r a n g e t r a v e l l i n g peca- d i l l o e s of t h a t Catamite, Gordon P r i c e , who con t inuous ly compares Van- couver t o San Franc i sco whi le i n Coun- c i l , pe rhaps a s l a p on h i s l i t t l e wrist by Mayor Campbell j u s t may curb h i s s t r a n g e wanderings a t taxpayers,? expense.

Gerald Windsor, 29-326 Woodland D r . , Vancouver.

r Every f o u r o r f i v e y e a r s maybe l e s s . o u t comes t h e s h i t E p o l i s h w i t h a new b r e a t h .

L i s t e n t o u s , you i g n o r a n t Canuck, AS we know what is good f o r you, wi th some luck .

v o t e f o r me o r my f r i e n d n e x t door . we do know t h e d i f f e r e n c e , between o u r a s s & a h o l e i n t h e f l o o r .

The Shadow

- - - ~- I f capi ta l i sm ( the philosophys & t r a d i -

t i o n s o f the r i c h E middle c l a s s ) is t y p i - c a l l y t h e a t t i t u d e "hard-headed r e a l f smIP;

i ts opposite, t h e value system o f the poor is t y p i c a l l y emotional & hear t -or iented. - it is generous, benevolent G i l l o g i c a l .

The "logic" of the c o n t r o l l e r ' s mind i s t h e log ic o f board meetings, agendas, com- mit tee formats & paperwork smokescreens. The needs & values o f economically depriv- ed individuals , a s defined by them, a re , t o t h e con t ro l l e r , simply a mass of individual " ~ p i n i o n s ' ~ t h a t amount t o nothing. The c o n t r o l l e r does not da re t o a ssoc ia te with !'the poor" on a n a t u r a l one-to-one b a s i s of d a i l y f a m i l i a r i t y f o r any length of time, s ince t h i s kind of humanizing would tend t o erode h i s o r her f a i t h i n . the forces & motivations of con t ro l , which

THE UNCONTROLABLE: seek t o e l iminate t f . ad i t ionr o f poverty. The p o l i t i c a l c o n t r o l l e r s of t h e Down- The p o l i t i c a l c o n t r o l l e r s of our neigh-

town Eastside; t h e d i rec to r sh ips , committ- bourhood do not seek t o strengthen o r em-

ees associa t ions , whose agendas a r e aim- phasize the uniquely human - ins tead they ed a t el iminating poverty, have no use f o r work cons i s t en t ly & determinedly, i n paid t h e philosophys & t r a d i t i o n s associa ted pos i t ions , t o undermine, control & system- "

with it. a t i z e the rad ica l , the unique, t h c v is ion- The philosophys & t r a d i t i o n s once formed ary, the d i s r u p t i v e & uncooperative pers-

the historical basis - t h e foundation & onalized na tu re of the "lower" c lasses . - roots of r ad ica l socialist e th ics . Today, The "social service" work fo rce of the

however, even the word " soc ia l i s t " has Downtown Easts ide is rec ru i t ed from t h e been el iminated from the language of mod- ranks of r e l a t i v e l y r i c h & middle c l a s s ern politics. wat was once w s o c i a l i s t t ~ groups who a r e e n t h u s i a s t i c a l l y c a p i t a l i s t . has now become Itnew democraticll - 6 t h i s That i s t o Say, t h e i r bottom-line philoso- is p a r t of the obscuration, o r smokescreen phys, which they w i l l f i g h t t o t h e death terminology t h a t is widely used i n modern t o defend, a r e based on the expedient

short-term goal o f preserving t h e i r econo- p o l i t i c s t o hide the r e a l na tu re of t h e mic c o n t r o l l e r s ' a c t i v i t i e s .

As "social c r e d i t q 1 was a f r o n t f o r the promotion of capi ta l i sm & the c a p i t a l i s t work e t h i c , so "new democratic" i s an inn- ocuous, v i r t u a l l y meaningless l a b e l ; a . convenient f r o n t f o r business a s usual .

The philosophys & t r a d i t i o n s of poverty a r e unconventional , o r " r a d i ~ a l * ~ ; standing a s they do, i n d i r e c t opposit ion t o t h e philosophys & t r a d i t i o n s of the r i c h and comfortable middle c l a s s . They a r e the en- emy of a l l c o n t r o l l e r s . Basically, they cons i s t of a kind of i n d i v i d u a l i t y & inde- pendence t h a t looks inward t o the soul , values spontaneious unclass i fyable a c t i v i - t y above r u l e s & regula t ions , & measures human achievement i n terms of s t a t e s of consciousness r a t h e r than economics.

Under the guise of "helping the poor" they seek t o indoc t r ina te t h e lower economic c l a s s e s with images, laws & a t t i t u d e s t h a t des t roy & d r i v e underground the t r ad - i t i o n s & philosophys of individual freedom.

The p o l i t i c a l organizers & c o n t r o l l e r s of our neighbourhood, c i t y , province & na- t i o n see nothing but s t a t i s t i c s & econom- i c s - they grudgingly acknowledge t h a t these a r e r e a l human l i f e t i m e s involved i n these th ings , but t h e s t a t i s t i c s & econom- i c s a r e so e s s e n t i a l t o maintaining t h e i r priviledged pos i t ion i n soc ie ty t h a t they cannot, under any circumstances, allow t h a t system t o become t r u l y benevolent & u n c r i t i c a l .

The "helpt1 t h a t is given t o "the poor" by them i s necessa r i ly surrounded by a wall of s u p e r f i c i a l humourously pat roniz- ing jargon. They a r e always moving too quickly t o absorb any in-depth f e e l i n g s from t h e i r immediate s o c i a l surroundings. Naturally, they a r e a f r a i d they might become infected with t h e t r a d i t i o n s & phi lo- s o p h y ~ of poverty, which they tend t o c l a - s s i f y a s criminal o r mentally defect ive .

I p red ic t t h a t under the "new democratsf1 we w i l l see no new democracy, j u s t a s und- e r the socreds we had. no soc ia l c r e d i t . A s long a s l a b e l s , images, agendas & paperwork guide them; a s long a s the controllers. ' da i ly hope, dream o r v i s ion c o n s i s t s of "economic hea l th & s t a b i l i t y " they w i l l continue t o s t e p on , ' des t roy & ignore the c o l l e c t i v e r e a l i t y of our f ee l ings , person- a l values & ideas which spr ing l a rge ly from the pos i t ion of t h e ou t s ide r ; t h e one who embraces poverty, madness & disease a s simply l i fe-genera ted n a t u r a l condit ions of existence.

I f the r i ch & middle c l a s s r e a l l y bel iev- ed i n democracy, freedom, love, cha r i ty , benevolence & equa l i ty , those th ings would manifest i n t h e i r p o l i t i c s & bureaucra t ic a c t i v i t y s - a s i t i s , these th ings a r e j u s t window dress ing f o r backroom dea l s t h a t promote t h e i r personal success a t t h e expense of genuine i n t e g r i t y .

TORA

WANDERING

A s I wasn ' t l e a r n i n g v e r y much a t schoo l , I s t a r t e d t o p l a y hooky 6 t o s t r a y f a r t h e r 6 f a r t h e r from home. A t e l e v e n , I l e a r n e d t o s t e a l b i c y c l e s t o go j o y r i d i n g . I a l s o h i t c h - h i k e d wherever I wanted t o go. I wanted t o s t a y away from my mother ' s l o v e a f f - i a r s . I d i d n ' t l i k e them 6 t h e y , o f c o u r s e , d i d n ' t l i k e me.

I d i d whatever it took t o g e t money t o l o s e myself i n t h e movie houses. I s o l d newspapers. I s tood o u t s i d e t h e b e e r s t o r e w i t h my wagon t a k i n g home p e o p l e ' s c a s e s o f b e e r . I ' d go t o t h e movies a s o f t e n a s I could . I ' d buy p o t a t o c h i p s , pop & whatever I could a f f o r d . That was my escape from t h e r e a l i t i e s o f l i f e .

Some movies were v e r y good and some were v e r y bad. Of a l l t h e he roes , I g u e s s I ' d have t o s a y Gene Autry was my f a v o u r i t e . I t ' s funny bu t I cannot remember what h i s h o r s e ' s name was - not P rancer o r Dancer o r Rudolph.

A s I grew a l i t t l e o l d e r , I s t a r t e d t o s a i l on t h e Great Lakes' s h i p s . The Great Lakes were my home f o r t h e nex t twen ty -e igh t yea r s . I enjoyed e v e r y minute of my l i f e . I t c o s t me

d e a r l y though. By JAMES ROADKNIGHT

I

t hlany persons i n t h e Downtown Eas t s ide During t h e s e s e s s i o n s t hey began p l a n t -

w i l l remember George, an ex-prospec tor , ing p i c t u r e s i n my mind, v i s i o n s , s o t o

although he has not been around f o r yea r s , 'peak, the meaning of which I d idn ' t under George t o l d me of an exper ience he had i n stand at But One day I was leafing mitehorse i n yukon. H~ said he and a through a magazine publ i shed i n China and f r i end were on a tremendous binge 6 wound came a a painting up in their hotel room, the friend passed of a range of mountains i n China. I r e a l -

ou t on t h e f l o o r & George l y i n g on t h e bed ized t h a t t h e two had shown me e x a c t l y

tak ing d r i n k s from a whiskey b o t t l e . t h a t i l l u s t r a t i o n i n one o f t h e l l v i s ions t l

There came a time when a l a r g e male & a the previous day.

female, human f i g u r e s , s tepped through t h e In days I a rec- door i n t o t h e room. . without opening i t . ord o f my v i s i o n s . In going over it & t h i n -

The woman s a t on t h e foo t of t h e bed & king back I saw that a l l the m ~ s t e r ~ ; ~ i c - the man leaned on t h e d r e s s e r wi th arms t u r e s & scenes t hey had shown me i n p a s t

fo lded and t h e 3 of them had a p l ea san t days had always been p i c t u r e s showing me

conversa t ion . George was a b i t saucy i n what I ' d be doing o r exper ienc ing t h e day

that he cal led them nyou spooks.w After a fol lowing. Continuing exper ience proved

, t ime they l e f t t h e way they 'd come - t h r u this be true. t h e c losed wooden door. George f e l l a s l e e p . I that the world i n which

The next morning both men were s i c k , so- t hose two e x i s t e d was probably j u s t a s ber & so r ry . . e s p e c i a l l y s i c k . George was r e a l t o them a s mine was t o me, b u t t h e i r t e l l i n g h imsel f , "Now I'm see ing people world e x i s t e d 24 h r s o r s o i n t h e f u t u r e . walking through doors 4 I'm even t a l k i n g L imi t a t i ons of space compel me t o c u t t o them. I ' v e got t o q u i t t h i s dr inking!" t h e s t o r y o f f . a t t h i s p o i n t . In t h e next But then h i s f r i e n d spoke up: "1 woke up i s sue , t h e E d i t o r w i l l i n g , I ' l l t e l l how +

f o r a few minutes l a s t n i g h t O you were I thought of t h e two who'd v i s i t e d George 7

t a l k i n g t o a woman. I heard h e r voice . Who Amnesty, how I was moved by t h a t memory t o was she and how d i d she g e t i n here?" i n v i t e t h e two f o r a v i s i t . There was ve ry -

About 2 yea r s a f t e r hear ing George's l i t t l e d r ink ing involved bu t I s t i l l man- s t o r y I was r e n t i n g & l i v i n g a lone i n a 1- aged t o a c t s t u ~ i d l y & t hey had t o do some- L

II bedroom house c l o s e t o downtown Abbotsford but soon found I wasn't e n t i r e l y a lone .

By us ing techniques I descr ibed i n e a r l - i e r i s s u e s o f t h e Newsle t te r , I sometimes would t u r n o f f my conscious mind and, when doing so , came a c r o s s a male 4 female l i v - ing i n t h e same house. I knew it was t h e same house because I ' d have mind-to-mind con tac t with them 4 would be looking ou t - through t h e i r eyes, see ing what t hey saw.

Locked i n i n such a way t o t h e man, I ' d ' sometimes s e e t h e woman and, through t h e woman's eyes I ' d sometimes s e e t h e man.

I t was p l a i n t o s e e t h a t t h e woman was a Native E t he man Caucasian.

Apparently t hey were much more r e a d i l y aware of me than I was o f them and it was p l a i n t hey d i d n ' t have any g r e a t degree o f r e spec t f o r me. In speaking of me they of - t e n c a l l e d me "the Sasquatch."

. - ~ ~ -~...

t h i n g r e a l l y extreme t o it a c r o s s t o me t h a t t hey were t h e two l i v i n g "tomorr- OW" i n t h e same house.

I hope no one w i l l t h i n k t h i s is myst i- cism. (I 'm n o t a myst ic . ) I ' m t e l l i n g a h i s t r u e s t o r y because it seems t o show t h e r e is more t o r e a l i t y t han meets t h e eyeba l l .

By ERIC ERICKSON

Mission Statement Canadians enjoy a rich heritage. As members of the Council of Canadians,

we are dedicated to safeguarding this inheritance through preserving and enhancing our distinct identities and our sovereignty. As Canadians we must take our destiny into our hands so that Canada may continue to play a constructive and respected role in the community of interdependent nations.

As individuals, through political parties and through other associations, Canadians pursue various causes related to our economic, social and cultural well-being. But as a people, we must never surrender the capacity to make our own democratic decisions on these matters. Hence, the goal of the Council of Canadians is to contribute to Canada's democratic development and to the enhancement of its political, cultural, social and economic sovereignty.

This article appeared in the Globe and Mail, January 2nd. 1992. John L. Orr is a Director of the Council of Canadians.

Free trade at three: a disaster ESTERDAY was the third anniver- sary of Canada's free-trade agree-

'Y 'O - Y ment with the United States. A recent series in Report on Business, ,- Living In A Free Trade World, presented

the good-news side of the debate on the deal. But random opinions and anecdotes based on isolatcd success stories hardly constitute a valid basis for drawing conclu- sions on free trade. This requires an analy-

j sis of all trade-related factors to permit comparison of Canada's performance before a d i~ftcr tlie pact wcnt into effect in January, 1989.

Thcrc is now enough evidence to evaluate tlie agreement's impact on the Canadian economy. The key measures are trade performance and job creation, which were the principal justifications for the deal.

Canada's objective for the agreement was to expand exports of manufactured

I goods to the U.S. market. Conversely, the U.S. objective was to eliminate its merchan-

ldise trade deficit with Canada by expand- I ing exports of finished goods to this coun- try, thereby taking over an even larger share ofour domestic market.

The true measure of trade pcrformance must be the trade balance (exports versus imports), not export growth alone.

'lo make valid comparisons, tlic value of exports iind imports must bc adjusted to consI;ltll doll:~rs, eliminatin~ ~ l l c mislead-

ing effects of price inflation. Also, bccawie of thc iissocicltcd rise in thc exchange value of t l ~ c Canadian dollar, the trade deal has significarltly affccted our trade with the rest of the world. Consequently, the following analysis is based on global rather tliari bi- lateral tradc data alone.

Wliilc cumulative exports for the first three years of frce trade show an increase of $46.7-billion compared with the preceding three-year pcriod, global imports cxpandcd by $74. I-b~llion over tlie same pcrtod. In fact, imports from all countries have ex- ceedcd exports since 1988, when imports surgcd by some S IS-billion under the inipe- tus ol'a 10 per cent rise in the exchange rate for thc Canadian dollar.

Thus the principal impact of the free- trade iigreenicnt has becn to expand ini- ports at a ratc 58.5 per cent greater thiin for exports, rcsulting in a cumulative trade deficit of 627.4-billion since January, 1989. This pcrvcrse result clcarly dctnonstrates thc. failurc of thc agrccment to benefit the cconomy arid reveiils the immediate cause ofcanada's current reccssioti.

The main selling point for the trade deal was tlic proniisc of "jobs. jobs, jobs," which was endorsed by most economic soothsay- ers. However, the growth in the employment rate began to declitic r:lpidly in 1989 and stopped altogether in April, 1990 (cor- respondi~ig with the rising level of imports :III I ! tlv w o r ~ r ~ ~ i ~ i v tr:~dr t~1:111re) ('om-

r pared with January, 1989, there are now 100,000 fewer Canadians employed, and u~ie~nploymcnt has swollen by 423,000.

To place these figures in perspective, i t should be noted that an additional 225,000 jobs are required every year to accommo- date new entrants into the labour force, because o f continuing population growth. For comparison purposes, from January, 1983, to J;i~~unry, 1980, total employment grew by an avcrage o f 325,000 jobs a year, which contrasts sharply with iln average annual loss o f 34,600 jobs since the trade pact came into force. The employnlent situ- ation will u~idoubtedly deteriorate further in 1992 as a result of contirluing business failurcs and plant closings.

The massive growth o f imports hiu more than nullified any possible benefits from tariff reductioris resulting from the trade agreelncnt. Since January, 1989, industrial production has dccliried by some f 10-bil- I ior~ (7.5 pcr cent), gross donwstic product has remained essentially static, and the bal- awe o f payments has dcterioratcd by some $10-billion (73 per cent), o f which i~lmost $5-billion is attributable to incrcascd interest payments on forcign dcbt.

B Y every mcasure, free trade will1 the United States has had a catastrophic in~pact 011 thc Canadii~n ccononiy. I t is no accident that the onset o f economic decline coincided with the implenientation o f the deal, or that Canada's economy sank into recessio~~ well before any o f our niajor trad- ing partners wcre anectcd by the downturn in the world busi~iesscyclc.

Clei~rly tlic free-trade agreement has failed to 1nee1 any o f its declared objectives. Indecd. its singular achicvemcnt has been the exp;insion of imports, rcsultitlg in a whopp~ngdeficit in Canildil's trade biilance t i l i l t itlrcatly has precipitated an ovcrall loss of somc 369,000 jobs in Ci~nadian goods- producing industrics.

Apart from the calan~ilous trade rcsults, thc tradc agrcenicnt suffers from the following flaws: I. Failure to deal with changes in the

exchangc value of the Ca~r;~dian dollar Illat rcsult from monetilry policies dictated by the Group of Seven economic summit. The risc in thc dolli~r's value sincc 1987 is tanta- mount to an across-the-board tarin barrier of about 20 per cent on'illl cxports to the United States (far exceeding the magnitude o f the U.S. tariffs that the agreement was supposed to eliminate).

2. Failurc to resolve the issue o f indus. trial subsidies before the deal was ratified, thereby allowing U.S. businesses to inten- sify their harassment o f Canadian export. ers. Therefore, it seems inevitable that, i f and when the subsidy question is ad. dressed, any settlement wdl be based on termsdictated by the United States.

3. Acceptance o f inherent constraints in the agreement on the development and exploitation o f Canadian energy and natu- ral resources that effectively neutralize any "comparative advantage" Canada might otlicrwisc possess. Specifically, Canada is required to provide unrestricted U.S. access to its rcsourccs and to sell such exports at thesame price as for the domestic market.

4. Failure to obtain exem tion from existing and future U.S. trade ks. which supersede the provisio~ls o f the free-tradc agreement in all cases. Conscquently, the supposcd safeguards in the FTA (including disputc settlement) are effectively nullified. And there is nothing to prcvent the United States from unilaterally enacting new laws to circumvent ally provisions o f the agreement that Washingto11 considers inimical to its intcrcsts.

Considering all this, i t is difficult to understand why the Can;dian government chose to ratif the agreenwnt before resolv- ing its crucia i' sliortcomings. Furthermore, - in 1987 when tlic tradc ncgohtions wcre in their final stages, the C:~nadian economy wils enjoying unprecedented prosperity, and there was no evidence o f ally credible necd to gamble on free tradc.

So, lrce trade with the United States has 1 proved to be a disaster, in terms o f shrink- 111g trade balances, massive job losses and a cri pling rise in our balance o f payments P dc ait. Moreover, given the unprecedented lcvel o f business bankruptcies and the emi- gration o f manufacturmg plimts to the United Statcs or Mexico, there seems to be little prospect ofany signilicant recovery in the foreseeable futurc. Indeed. the present trcnds must surely lead to the de-intlustri- alizi~tion o f Canada. Thc cruciid question for Cani~dians is how much longer wc are prcpared to suffer ~ h c ruinous handicaps caused by this ill-conceived experinient. Our government must be persui~ded to ter- minate i t before thc damage to Canada's cconomy bcconies irrcversiblc. I

A - John L. Orr, u rcrirecl profissiuntrl ungi-

nerr tmd uflicid oj' ~ k e fi(lem1 rle crrmenr P uf in i l~r~lry, is arrre1111.v n ~ccl~rru ugy con- slrhat~l in Vicluricr.

ACTION C A N A D A NETWORK (BC) Annual General Meeting

A few i s s u e s ago an a r t i c l e was i n he re about a r e s o l u t i o n adopted by t h e BC Fed- e r a t i o n o f Labour. Af t e r 8 years , members agreed t o support & work wi th c o a l i t i o n s again. . s p e c i f i c a l l y wi th t h e Action Canada Network.

The n a t i o n a l Action Canada Network i n c l - udes labour, fa rmer ' s , women's, Aboriginal , an t i -pover ty , environmental , peace, church and s e n i o r c i t i z e n s ' groups. The purpose -

'We be l i eve t h e Canada-US f r e e t r a d e dea l and t h e proposed t r a d e dea l wi th Mexico a r e t he cen t r ep iece of a l a r g e r s t r a t e g y '

t o r e s t r u c t u r e Canada a long con t inen ta l - ist and market-oriented l i n e s . We in t end t o continue t h e s t r u g g l e t o ensure t h a t Canada's f u t u r e is shaped by and f o r people, not p r o f i t s ."

ACN (BC) used t o be c a l l e d t h e Coa l i t i on Against "Free" Trade. With t h i s new co-op- e r a t i o n from t h e BC Fed, it seemed b e s t t o g e t a working s t r u c t u r e s e t up & have t h e BC c o a l i t i o n ' s purpose & g o a l s w r i t t e n ou t so we had an annual genera l meeting.

-

I

"Terms of Endearment " :

Some of t h e member groups a r e Oxfam, Carnegie Cent re Associa t ion , DERA, Hospit- a l Employees' Union, Vancouver & D i s t r i c t Labour Council, Tin Wis Coa l i t i on , End Legis la ted Poverty, Canadian Autoworkers' Western Off ice , UFAWU, BC Teachers' Feder- a t i on , P rov inc i a l Council o f Carpenters , t h e Confederat ion of Canadian Unions, CUPE Metro D i s t r i c t Council, and more.

A p a r t i a l l i s t o f t h ings ACN (BC) has done i n t h e p a s t yea r - * organized a T r i a l o f Brian Mulroney and

a Goodbye Brian Pa r ty f o r t h e Oct.26th National Day o f Action (Enough i s Enough); * organized an a l t e r n a t e news conference

t o oppose t h e r i g h t wing Debt Freedom con- fe rence i n Vancouver; * produced 5 d i s t r i b u t e d , through t h e BC

Working Group on Canada-Mexico f r e e t r ade , Que Pasa, a t a b l o i d on how t h e proposed t r a d e dea l w i l l a f f e c t BC; * produced, through Repeal t h e Deal Pro- 1

duct ions , a v ideo c a l l e d "We Can Say Now on t h e impact o f t h e dea l on Canada; * d i s t r i b u t e d "We Can Say No" i n BC; * held a conference & demonstrat ion ag-

a i n s t f r e e t r a d e with Mexico i n June '91. There w i l l b e a group meeting on how

ACN (BC) & t h e BC Fed can work t o g e t h e r & t h e s e o b j e c t i v e s were adopted a t t h e AGM: - To f i g h t t h e f r e e t r a d e d e a l s and supp-

o r t each o t h e r i n o u r s t r u g g l e s aga ins t t h e g lobal co rpora t e agenda a s r e f l e c t e d i n f e d e r a l c o n s t i t u t i o n a l proposa ls , c u t s

I t o s o c i a l & c u l t u r a l programs, GATT, p r i v - . a t i z a t i o n , de regu la t ion , compet i t ive poverty, ryc . ; - To develop & promote p o l i c i e s t h a t w i l l

s e rve people, & promote equ i t ab le d i s t r i b - u t i o n o f wealth & power; - To sha re information 4 educate on iss-

ues t h a t a f f e c t u s ; - To develop & implement campaigns/action - To be an e f f e c t i v e p a r t o f t h e n a t i o n a l

Action Canada Network. When people were he re i n November & Dec-

ember from South Afr ica , t h e P h i l l i p i n e s & Mexico, t h e y t a l k e d about common problems i n c o a l i t i o n s . . .& l e f t what t hey c a l l

c o a l i t i o n members agree t o 1 . Agree on the ob jec t ives 2 . operate by consensus a s f a r as poss ible 3 . Try t o a t t end meetings so t h e i r input

w i l l be heard; 4. submit t h e i r group's pos i t ions f o r d i s -

cussion when needed ( r a t h e r than aband- on the coa l i t ion i f t h e r e ' s disagreemt;

5. Try t o be p a t i e n t & t o l e r a n t ; 6 . Respect the d i f f e r e n t experiences and

ways of operating of o t h e r coa l i t ion members & t r y t o learn from them;

7. Keep t h e i r groups informed of the coal- i t i o n ' s work & keep the c o a l i t i o n informed of t h e i r group's pos i t ion and involvement;

8. Consciously t r y t o hear people from sec to r s t h a t have been oppressed o r s i l - enced & leave space f o r them t o p a r t i c - i p a t e i n meaningful ways;

9 . Try t o have a sense of humour.

Written f o r t h e Carnegie News le t t e r

Home wears a s t r a n g e v a r i e t y o f f a c e s ; i s miss ing from t h e empt iness of s t r e e t s ; f a k e s promises when t h e promises a r e p l e n t y ; a cause o f t e a r s when company one seeks . I look a s i f t h e world t r e a t s me wi th k indness , a s i f I have whatever one might need, and t h e n ..... Carnegie on t h e c o r n e r ,

s, doors , a f e e l o f l i f e d i d n o t s e e me

H i l a r y Meeroff

TO MlCKIE

I bathed you, Smelled the clean baby h a i r , Lifted you high above me, You grabbed a t my face , l i t t l e hands And then you smiled.

A red-headed todd le r careening In black l eo ta rds , c o l l i d i n g With a coffee t a b l e , down and crying, I l i f t e d you high above me; k issed An imagined hur t , then you smiled.

You turned your pages quickly, Soon bi r thdays , p a r t i e s . a n d weddings, Where you kissed and hugged Parents, Aunts and o ld Uncles. Your smile made our ca res seem s i l l y .

I f Fate e r red and mis t rea ted you, A l l of your I r i sh-Cathol ic s a i n t s Would scream and beat t h e i r b reas t s , Condemning those who would sadden you, And deprive u s of your smile.

What a mournful wind, b i t i n g a t limbs, How busy i s t h i s rugged wind, sending

These l a s t leaves and I a r e Autumn For we share our knowledge Of s t a r k t r e e s , shadows and violence . We recognize the next season re luc tan t ly , But we don' t want you t o know.

For Winter is God's s e c r e t . A mystery he w i l l never share. In Winter, my Winter, a blanket 'Of snow and e a r t h around my shoulders, Sleeping with leaves u n t i l we a r e mold.

F lu t t e r ing , whirl ing then reposing, sad leaves, Since you a r e near , The leaves smile a t me. Since you a r e near, I smile back at them. Tom Scot t

(back from a 3 years, 7 months s l eep)

Trembling leaves t o ga the r a t our f e e t , AS you and I watch your daughter p lay In a p i l e of Nature 's golden, dented lockets .

Spring is l i k e your daughter, Both tender and gen t l e from inception, Sharing the wonderment of Nature's b i r t h s A l l l i f e is wrapped and she l t e red In a so f t blanket of innocence.

And Mickie you a r e l i k e Summer F e r t i l e summer, a r ipeness i n your cheeks, Carrying your husband's baby out l ined Beneath your tweed coat. Laugh and Watch your bundled daughter play.

I t i s l i k e a t e l eg ram, a non-s top message, The S t r e e t speaks a l l day, a l l n i g h t , People of d i f f e r e n t walks o f l i f e a r e t h e r e , The S t r e e t speaks from one pe r son t o a n o t h e r , The S t r e e t i s l i k e a f a m i l y , I t p r o t e c t s i t s own kind, The b a r e s idewalk n e v e r s l e e p s e v e r , The S t r e e t can be co ld o r h o t sometimes, But t h e S t r e e t s u r v i v e s always. . . .

Barry Saunders

March 1, 1992, carnegie newsletter

Documents

t t e r i s

i t e r

e n s t

s t s i d e

t corner t

s e t t i n g

t h e cen t r e s

s s u e s t h