It was an unusually cold and snowy day in Vancouver
but the frigid, negative temperature didn't stop over 200 protesters from taking to the streets.
[chanting: "hell no, we won't go"..]
The rally started at the Panttages Theatre on East Hastings.
one of 10 sites protesters are demanding the city buys to create 100% social housing.
Nothing less.
Downtown Eastside ( DTES) residents like Fraser Stuart
wants gentrification in the area to stop.
"Get the people living in self-contained units that they can afford
Then maybe, possibly, there'll be room for condos down here.
But not for the next 50 years.
Thank you"
The city wants to allow developers to build new condos in the neighbourhood
but residents are worried it'll break up the community and push many out.
"In DTES we are, we take care of one another
We look after one another.
We are a community and we don't need to be taken out of our community
where they can build their condos, which is not our way of life. Thank you."
But the rally wasn't just to protest the lack of social housing
it was also the kick off of the Tent City 2011 at Olympic Village,
the space where the city and developers broke their promise
and reduced social housing from 66% to 10% of the units.
Just like the Tent City last year, this one is making several demands.
"The purpose of Tent City this year is we have three demands
One is that the city reinstate the 2/3 affordable housing
that they promised here at the athletes village
Um, our second demand is that the city purchase 10 sites each year
to build affordable housing on.
And our third demand is that they end the criminalization of the poor,
so, scrap some of the bylaws, to get rid of some of the bylaws
like project civil city and clean streets sweeps
um, arrest people, take people from vending, for j-walking, for spitting, for lying down
Um, the reason that it is the criminalization of the poor
is because it only applies to that four block radius
the poorest [off reserve] postal code in canada, so
Um, we ask that they repeal those laws
and we ask, we're not asking, we're demanding that they reinstate the housing here
and we're demanding that the next electioin
that they purchase the tent ?"
But the Tent City was quickly disrupted by a growing presence of police
and eventually there was an announcement made that they had to leave the public space
or face arrests.
[police announcements and loud protester feedback: "You are on city-owned land"... "shut the fuck up!!" ...can't make out the rest ]
So the campers picked up their tents
and left athlete's village.
They moved to an empty lot about 2 blocks away.
But this Tent City didn't last long either.
The private owner of this space filed an injunction and had them evicted.
The campers then looked for a space to have a meeting and plan what to do next.
They couldn't get into the community centre,
the ? suite where they could meet.
But the police saw this as illegal trespassing and break and entry.
As a result, they arrested 11 peple who were in the space
hoping to have a quiet, warm meeting.
In the spirit of solidarity, other protesters remained
until they were driven off in a paddywagon[sic].
[chants of "let them go!"]
Tent City could't happen in the end.
But the message remains
"What is happening here today should happen right across the country.
Because homelessness is an issue from one atlantic to the pacific,
from the great lakes to the arctic circle.
We need a housing plan here in canada,
and only the federal government can do that.
We haven't had one since the 80's.
And since then, homelessness has gone up in this country
right across the board.
Enough is enough."
[chanting: the people united will never be defeated...El pueblo unido, jamás será vencido...]