No More Empty Talk, No More Empty Lots.
* February 15th, noon at Pigeon Park (Carrall and Hastings, Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories).

Rally with all our neighbours and supporters. Organized by DTES Power of Women Group with the DTES Justice for All Network. Visit: http://dtesjustice.wordpress.com/

* Support the “Olympic Tent Village”. Endorsed by Streams of Justice.

The upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics has escalated the homelessness crisis in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside and the Greater Vancouver area. Since the Olympic bid, homelessness has nearly tripled in the GVRD, while real estate and condominium development in the Downtown Eastside is outpacing social housing by a rate of 3:1. Meanwhile, a heightened police presence has further criminalized those living in extreme material poverty in the poorest postal code in Canada.

With the eyes of the world on Vancouver, residents of the Downtown Eastside and our supporters will be taking the streets to affirm our call for justice and dignity. We want:
1. Real action to end homelessness now
2. End condo development and displacement in the Downtown Eastside
3. End discriminatory ticketing, police harassment, and all forms of criminalization of poverty.

No more empty talk and no more empty lots.

***Organized by the Indigenous Action Movement***

Sunday December 6, 2009
from 12:00pm – 2:00pm
Meet at the First United Church (310 Main Street).

The gathering will move to Dunlevy & East Hastings,
Then to the Vancouver Police station on Main Street.

The public is invited to the Frank Paul Vigil on December 6th, which is the date of Frank’s death. As long as there are unanswered questions, we must keep moving forward to let society and to those with the power to make decisions know, that we have not forgotten and, that this should not ever happen again!

For more information:
http://indigenousaction.blogspot.com/

R.I.P 524 Main PARTY!
Saturday, 24 October 2009 at *6pm* for the POTLUCK and *8pm* for the PARTY!524 Main St. (Between Keefer & Pender)

524 Main St has been a hub for radical & artistic activity since 2007.
The space has housed countless bands, art shows, and subversive
activity…. it’s favorite past time was housing Anti-Olympic eventsand meetings and has been a home to the Anti-Poverty Committee for 2
years. The beloved venue had planned to open its arms to the February
2010 Convergence….  But alas, the end has come…..

In keeping with community values, the building was unable to keep
within capitalist values… and went into debt.
So, the recently EVICTED want to throw the loudest most obnoxious
party we possibly can! Also… we need money!

****Join us at 6pm for a lovely potluck and small art show, and at 8pm
for an awesome party!***
We’re still looking for bands, but here’s our line up so far:

No LA Kill
The Receptionists
Student Teacher

Hope to see you there!

On July 31st 2009 Vancouver will be hosting the World Police and Fire Games. The games is an international sporting event where police officers, firefighters, customs and correction officers compete against each other in over 65 sporting events. More than 12,000 police officers, corrections officers and firefighters will be in Vancouver for the 10 day event.

The Anti-Poverty Committee is calling for a mobilization against police brutality both locally and internationally, and the violence that the state perpetrates around the world everyday through police and ‘correctional’ facilities. The APC calls on all those individuals and groups who are against police brutality and the everyday terror and violence caused by the various police forces to participate in actions and events during the police and fire games.

The APC will stand to honor those in our community who have been killed, brutalized, and daily harrased by the police and to condemn not only the individual police forces, but the structure that allows them to get away with oppression, intimidation and violence everyday in our communities.

We believe that the police cannot be made accountable, and they will never truly protect those that they purport to, and that police will never make our communities safer, as they continue to harass, target and brutalize poor people, indigenous people, youth, sex trade workers and many others.

The APC is calling for a demonstration during the opening ceremonies of the games on July 31st at 7pm (location TBA). To get involved in the organizing of the demonstration please contact APC (apc@resist.ca). If your organization would like to endorse the event please email the APC. We also encourage other groups to organize around these events and denounce the police and fire games.

Yesterday, March 12th, The Vancouver Board of Trade had a luncheon featuring guest speaker Mayor Robertson at the Fairmont Hotel Ballroom, co-sponsoring the event was Concord Pacific. Mayor Robertson’s address was titled “BUILDING VANCOUVER”. The Vancouver Board of Trade has been integral in pushing the city government in its attack on poor people in the DTES through mass ticketing, street sweeps and harassment. Concord Pacific is also pushing poor people further into the margins through its massive condo developments throughout the city and specifically in the DTES.

Shortly before Mayor Robertson spoke 5 APC members casually sauntered past security into the meeting with a message for Mayor Robertson, Concord Pacific and the Board of Trade. APC has been working on a campaign against ticketing, and the civil city initiative for the past 8 months. Demanding that the City and the VPD stop their discriminate ticketing and street sweeps of the residents of the DTES. Today, this message was brought to the tables, of the cities business leaders.

Despite the growing security apparatus as the city gets closer to the 2010 olympics, the members entered the ballroom and disrupted their event unfettered.
For 10 minutes the APC distributed leaflets on top of the $85/plate lunches and successfully crashed their party with a message to stop the targeting of poor people, stop the ticketing and the street sweeps.

After realizing their security had been breached the APC members were forcefully escorted out of the luncheon.

APC will continue its fight against any form of the civil city initiative, the rampant ticketing and the blatant attack on poor people.
For more info check out apcvancouver.org

APC drops banner off Cambie bridge

Today, the Anti Poverty Committee dropped a banner off the Cambie Street Bridge stating: CIVIL CITY IS A HATE CRIME. Simultaneously members attended the monthly police board meeting to address the ongoing repression of poor people in the downtown eastside through mass ticketing, street sweeps and a project of criminalization.

APC drops banner, visible from the nearby police station, off Cambie bridge to protest police and civic oppression of homeless.

“In his campaigning mayor Robertson said, ‘ civil cities are created by strong communities, they cannot be enforced or legislated’ but in today’s police board meeting he seemed to have a different story.” Stated Mitchell Milne “So then why is he supporting the ongoing street sweeps and ticketing of people in the Downtown Eastside (DTES)” said Milne.
In the last four months, there has been an increase in the number of tickets given to people in the DTES for minor bylaw infractions such as, jaywalking, vending without a licence, being in a park after 10pm and riding a bicycle without a helmet.

“Basically, this is a strategic plan to criminalize the daily activities of people living and surviving in the downtown eastside.” stated Anna Hunter, “they repeatedly ticket people and then when they obviously can’t pay the exorbitant fines, there is a warrant for their arrest, and they are locked up.”

Superintendent Warren Lemcke also spoke at the police board meeting, and praised the New York plan, the “Broken Window’s Theory”. Arguing that by targeting people for minor infractions and ‘cleaning up the streets’ of unsightly people, the real problems will be dealt with.

“This project of social cleansing is criminalizing the daily activities of people trying to survive. Trying to hide the image of homelessness will not solve the problem.” stated Anna Hunter during the police board meeting.

“Members of the APC have dropped this banner to let the citizens of Vancouver see what Project Civil City really is – a Hate Crime.” Stated Milne. The APC will continue it’s fight against Project Civil City, alongside of other organizations in the DTES as more and more people are being targeted.

And The Pig Of The Week Is… Badge #2060

Parks are for people, not PIG$!

In a further escalation of the Olympic gentrification in Vancouver, the Vancouver Police Department have been doing regular and consistent sweeps of the Downtown Eastside, ensuring no one feels safe in their own neighborhood. People scurry away from in front of the Carnegie Center in fear of the police aggression that patrols the neighborhood. The aggression embodied by state security forces to serve their elite masters was well displayed in Pigeon Park by badge #2060, on December the 23rd.

It was two days before Xmas, and the APC was serving hot chocolate between 10:15pm and midnight at Peoples Pigeon Park. We had above our heads a banner reading “PARKS FOR PEOPLE, NOT PIG$!”. We were there to draw attention to the escalating police state, and the Carrall st greenway. We were also there to serve hot chocolate, and to do our best to make Pigeon Park a more comfortable place for people whose mere presence apparently makes them targets for being “drug dealers”. The atmosphere was resoundingly positive and people were happy to know that on this particular night not everyone was abandoning them to the mercy of the historically murderous VPD.

At about 11:10pm, two beat cops showed up and immediately demanded that we pack everything up declaring the park closed. We of course refused pointing out that we were merely serving hot chocolate. One of them(badge #2060) saw past our excuse to the banner above our heads, determining that we were a threat. “Take down the banner” he said, which was followed by a flat out “no!” from our side. In a fit of rage, he threw our shopping cart to the side and ripped down our banner slipping and sliding in the snow. He began to leave taking our banner with him.

Led by the people who had joined us in the park we began to heckle them and also sang “no more Pig$ in our community”. Badge #2060 walked back towards us ripping his gloves off. After some time stalling we were eventually forced to give them our identification, so they could send in a squad car to run our names. After disappointingly finding out that they had no good reason to arrest us, they departed. If Badge #2060 had his way he would have us all down face first in cuffs and hauled off to jail for the remainder of the holidays.

It should be noted that while the VPD attempted to shake us down, people were unafraid to gather in the park and drink hot chocolate on a cold winter night, something that has been made illegal and consistently enforced in the name of social cleansing. This victory will not be the last, seeing as people are unafraid to face the police state and reclaim what is rightfully theirs.

The VPD are an overbearing oppressive force in the downtown eastside. The people in the community are considered “the problem” when it comes to gentrification, while social cleansing along with the Olympic Police State are what the ruling elites are hoping will be “the final solution”. For this reason they have earned the title pig$ to describe the police force in their necessary role as the protectors of business interests.

The Class War is the Last War!!!!

Till next time, Pig!!!!!

Presenting Ricky Lavallie:
7:00pm, Friday, December 12th
524 Main St.

All proceeds will go to the artist.

Please join us for a night of music and original artwork by Ricky Lavallie.

Refreshments will be served.

222 Main St
Wed/Thur, December 10th & 11th
9:30am

Last October six APC members were arrested during a housing demonstration, as they tried to squat the abandoned Burns Block at 16 W. Hastings to draw attention to the ongoing housing crisis in Vancouver, and the fact that hundreds of rooms are empty, as people die on the street.

Three members who were arrested are facing charges of Break and Enter. Their trials will be occurring over two days this week. The 3 accussed and the APC are asking for support and solidarity as they face charges and two days of trial. Supporters are invited to attend any or all of the trials. The exact courtroom has not yet been determined, but supporters will be meeting outside of the courthouse before entering.

On Thursday November the 20th during what is known as the Anti-Olympic Days of Action. The Canadian Tourism Commission, Tourism British Columbia, and Tourism Vancouver held an extravagant nighttime reception for the world press who were in town for a tour of the different services and facilities that would greet them when they came to Vancouver in 2010. As they filed off of the tour busses into a giant hall with flashing lights and the fanciest bar anyone has ever laid eyes on they were completely unaware of who else would be receiving a red carpet entrance later on that night…..

VANOC’s 2010 mascot, “Quatchi”, pictured above, was impersonated by members of APC.

Eight APC members pulled into the parking lot where the nighttime reception was to take place, after having tirelessly worked on the identity of their newest member during the week prior. The newest member of the APC is a mascot named Squatchi, who is meant to mimic the official VANOC mascot named “Quatchi” (the sasquatch).

Having barely made it past the first wave of security claiming that Squatchi had been invited, the APC decended upon the decadent gala from which piercing screams of joy could be heard. Leading the pack was of course Squatchi who received a warm greeting at the red carpet. One greeter mistakenly shouted out “watch out for the puddle Quatchi!”. With his out of place looking entourage Squatchi entered the building to roaring applause.

In absolute horror, organizers of the event were directing security to “get them, get them!” With Squachti by the arm, one APC member announced that Squatchi had arrived and had recently been kicked out of his home due to the 2010 Olympics. As boos echoed through the building, and stiffs in tuxedos stood stunned, two security personel grabbed them and started hauling them out of the building. One member yelled “another Olympic eviction everybody!” and another yelled out “fuck the Olympics”. As we passed out anti-olympic leaflets we chanted “homes not games” following the laughing Squatchi to assure that he and his comrade were not harmed.

“Squatchi” gets escorted out by security.

Once outside the building, about thirty feet from the door, we chanted a number of anti-olympic slogans in a brief standoff with security. As the pigs finally pulled up we marched victoriously into the night not quite believing how easy it had been to fool the Olympic security.

Link to video of Squatchi’s ejection (Quicktime .MP4 format)