Sunday, September 27, 2009


CANADIAN ANARCHIST MOVEMENT-VANCOUVER:
MORE OLYMPICS RESISTANCE NEWS:
Seems that there's a lot going on out on the west coast as the dreaded Winter Olympics draw nearer and nearer. Here's the latest news on upcoming events from the Olympics Resistance Network.
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Upcoming ORN events and meetings‏
Upcoming Olympic Resistance Network meetings in Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories (open to all!) as well as events and activities organized by others that we are participating in (including in Seattle and Edmonton -check us out if you are there!) ***
Upcoming ORN meetings
1) Sunday Sep 27, ORN General Meeting 6pm @ Spartacus Books, 684 E. Hastings
2) Monday Sep 28, Youth Education Meeting from 6-8 @ Spartacus Books, 684E. Hastings.
The ORN Education committee is inviting teaching professionals, youth workers, and others connected to youth and youth organizing, to attend this meeting. We plan to present a proposed workshop framework for feedback and development, as well as establish some groundwork for those who are interested in supporting the development and facilitation of youth resistance.
3) Wednesday Sep 30, 2010 Welcoming Committee Meeting from 7-9 pm @ SFU Harbour Centre (515 West Hastings Street), room 1600:
This is the first meeting of a coalition/group to plan a broad-based public mobilization for Feb 12, 2010, the date of opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics. The basis of unity, action plan, and specifics are up to those who choose to participate in the 2010 Welcoming Committee. The goal is to invite a wide range of activists (Indigenous, social justice, labour, environmental, anti-poverty, civil libertarian, community, women’s groups and individuals) to build a broad and accessible protest presence. If you are unable to attend but are interested in being involved, please email us your contact information at 2010welcoming@resist.ca so we can add you to the organizing list.
4) Sunday Oct 11, ORN General Meeting 6pm @ Spartacus Books, 684 E. Hastings If you are interested in ORN, but unable to attend any of these meetings, contact olympicresistance@riseup.net for more information about future meetings and our subcommittees (including outreach, fundraising, legal defence, education, media etc).
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Upcoming Events of Interest:
1) UBC free speaker series on the Olympics from Sep - Dec
2) Panel on Civil Liberties and 2010 Olympics: Mon Sep 28
3) ORN at Edmonton anarchist bookfair: Oct 2-4
4) ORN at Seattle anarchist bookfair: Oct 17-18
5) Legal Observer Trainings: Ongoing workshops
6) Anti Olympic Torch Relay kickoff - Victoria Oct 30th
7) Petition: Yes to Feb 14th Memorial March - No to Olympics!
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"THE OLYMPIC GAMES IN MYTH AND REALITY"
FREE speakers series of Olympic critics and organisers ongoing most Mondays, 5pm, from Sept. 14 - Dec. 7. Hosted by UBC's Green College. Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=133767310558&ref=ts
The speakers begin at 5pm with time for questions (FREE, open to all, no reservations). Optional dinner with speaker at Green College starts at 6:30pm ($12 for students and $16 for non-students; reserve a spot by noon Sundays at 604-822-0912).
Located in the Green College Coach House at 6201 Cecil Green Park Road (north of NW Marine Drive). MAP at www.maps.ubc.ca/?412 . For more info email alissawt@shaw.ca
1. Monday, Sept. 14: "Challenging Olympic industry power and propaganda.” Prof. Helen Lenskjy (Univ. of Toronto). Prof. Lenskyj is an expert on the Olympics and the author of three books on the impact of the Olympic Games.
2. Monday, Sept. 28: “The IOC, Olympic dreams, and the media.” Laura Robinson. Robinson is a freelance journalist and writer working out of Toronto.
3. Monday, Oct. 5: "The hidden 4th pillar of the Olympic Games: privatized profit, socialized debt.” Prof. Chris Shaw (UBC). Prof. Shaw is the author of ‘Five Ring Circus: Myths and Realities of the Olympic Games’ and is along time Games critic.
4. Monday, Oct. 19: “Olympics on unceded Indigenous land.” Gord Hill. Hill is an Indigenous activist, webmaster of no2010.com and a member of the Olympic Resistance Network
5. Monday, Oct.26: "How the Olympics impact the poor and homeless." Laura Track. Track is a lawyer with Pivot Legal Society specializing in housing issues.
6. Monday, Nov. 2: "Olympic security and civil liberties: A lasting legacy." David Eby. Eby is the Acting Executive Director of the BC Civil Liberties Association.
7. Monday, Nov. 16: "The myth of the Green Games." Harjap Grewal and Dustin Johnson. Grewal, Council of Canadians, is a member of No One is Illegal, and the Olympic Resistance Network. Johnson is an Indigenous activist.
8. Monday, Nov. 30: "Understanding the Olympics as part of corporate culture.” Garth Mullins. Mullins is a Vancouver-based social justice activist and member of the Olympic Resistance Network.
9. Dec. 7: “IOC Corruption: Would you take these people home to meet your loved ones?" Andrew Jennings. Mr. Jennings is the author of three books on the IOC.
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The Right to the City: Civil Liberties and the 2010 Olympics
Forum from: Impact on Communities Coalition and the BC Civil Liberties Association Monday, September 28, 2009 from 7:00pm - 9:00pm SFU Harbour Centre - Fletcher Challenge Theater, 515 West Hastings Street David Eby, Executive Director, BCCLA Matt Hern, Writer Stefanie Ratjen, Board Member, IOCC Harsha Walia, Social Activist Alissa Westergard-Thorpe, Olympic Resistance Network Jeff Derksen, SFU professor David Dennis, President-Elect, United Native Nations (UNN) Moderated by Am Johal, Chair, Impact on Communities Coalition
As the 2010 Olympics approach, the possibility of civil liberties violations have been cited by a number of community organizations as a major concern despite assurances from VANOC, government partners and the Integrated Security Unit that rights will be protected. With 16,500 security personnel scheduled to be part of the largest peacetime operation in Canadian history, impacts are already being felt. Ticketing of residents in the inner-city, home and workplace visits of social activists by members of the Integrated Security Unit and a new bylaw passed by the City of Vancouver which places the rights of corporate sponsors ahead of the rights of citizens are only a few of the immediate impacts. This discussion will take a critical view of the policies and framework which have been established and contextualize these processes as part of broader urban development schemes in the inner-city and methods of criminalizing dissent.
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ORN @ Edmonton Anarchist Bookfair
This year's Anarchist Bookfair will be taking place Fri October 2- Sun Oct 4, 2009 at the Edmonton Ukrainian Center (11018-97st). ORN will be tabling on Sat Oct 3rd and Sun Oct 4th and presenting a workshop. Since 2002 the Edmonton Anarchist Bookfair has provided the public with the opportunity to share ideas and connect with others over a free three-day event. Each year upwards of 1000 people are able to access radical books, see independent documentaries and participate in skill-share workshops. The event attracts vendors, speakers and participants from all over Western Canada and USA. We received very positive full-page articles in both of Edmonton's mainstream newspapers,reviews of our feature film presentation in both arts weekly magazines,and multiple interviews on independent radio stations. http://edmontonanarchistbookfair.ca/
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ORN @ Seattle Anarchist Bookfair Seattle Anarchist Book Fair
October 17-18 2009 Underground Events Center 2407 1st Ave(between Battery St & Wall St)Seattle, WA 98121
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Help keep Olympic security honest - become a legal observer!
Upcoming Legal Training Dates are October 11, November 22 and December 6, all at 2:30 p.m. All workshops should be held at the Britannia Community Centre on Commercial Drive (Canucks Family Education Centre). You can register by emailing info@bccla.org .
For more information check out
Taking the training does not require you to become a formal BCCLA/Pivot observer. Legal Training Manual available at:
Pivot Legal Society and the BC Civil Liberties Association have teamed up to train legal observers for the 2010 Olympic Games, and we hope you will get involved! Like many of you, Pivot and the BCCLA are concerned that when the more than 7,000 police officers, 5,000 private security guards and 4,500 members of the Canadian armed forces arrive in Vancouver this February,their presence may get in the way of citizens’ constitutional rights to freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, and the right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures. Bylaws recently passed by the City of Vancouver suggest that we have good reason to be worried. We plan to be ready, with dozens of people prepared to act as eyes and ears on the streets. Legal observers will be trained to watch for violations and to document and report them. As a legal observer, you will help ensure accountability of law enforcement during the Olympic Games. You don’t need to have any legal background to get involved. We encourage you to sign up for a training session and find out more about what’s involved in being a legal observer. Thank-you, as always, for your ongoing support! The Pivot team
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HALLOWEEN Convergence - October 30-31,
Victoria BC Olympic Torch Relay - Coast Salish Territory Get ready for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to share the spotlight with the world's biggest circus of misspent public resources! Deliver a message to the world for justice and equality in Canada! Exercise our right to free speech and free association in the face of a police clampdown and come PARTY on Halloween! Ninjas, zombies, pirates, and superheroes welcome! Plan your own surprise party! The official 2010 Olympic Torch Relay begins Friday morning, October 30, in downtown Victoria. On October 31, the relay goes through Sooke, Metchosin, Langford and beyond. Stay tuned for event announcements. Media convergence organizing is underway. Everyone welcome! Canada is a Free Speech Zone! View the relay route on an interactive map here:
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Yes to Feb 14th Memorial March - No to Olympics!
A petition and campaign has been initiated by the DTES Power of Women group against the City of Vancouver, VANOC, RCMP, and VPD in their attempts to change next year's historic and sacred Feb 14 March for Murdered and Missing Women in order to ensure the flow of Olympic traffic down Hastings Street. The Power of Women group is based in the DTES neighbourhood and its membership is composed entirely of women living in poverty who have experienced and survived sexual violence and mental, physical, spiritual,and emotional abuse. Please sign the online petition
Text of petition:
It has been brought to our attention that the City of Vancouver, Olympic officials, and the Vancouver 2010 Integrated Security Unit are trying to change the historic Feb 14, 2010, March for Murdered and Missing Women in order to ensure the flow of Olympic traffic down Hastings Street. As residents of the DTES and supporters of the Memorial March, we completely oppose any change in date, time, or route of the Memorial March. This March has been happening for 18 years to honour our sisters who die each year due to the violence of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual abuse. It is something far more significant and sacred than the Olympic Games, which has already increased poverty, homelessness, and policing in our neighbourhood. The government is spending billions on a circus, while putting people aside. We, the women in the Downtown Eastside and our supporters, demand that:
There be no attempts to change or control our Feb 14th Memorial March
Not a single person be forcibly removed, evicted, or displaced from their homes in the Downtown Eastside and any other community due to the Olympics.
For more information or to obtain hard copies of the petition for your organization, contact project@dewc.ca or call 604 681 8480 x 234.
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Olympic Resistance Network: contact -
ABOUT THE OLYMPIC RESISTANCE NETWORK
The Olympic Resistance Network is primarily based in Vancouver, Coast Salish Territories and exists as a space to coordinate anti-2010 Olympics efforts. In doing so, we act in solidarity with other communities across 'BC' - particularly indigenous communities who have been defending their land against the onslaught of the Olympics since the bid itself. Our organizing is largely being done under the slogan of "No Olympics on Stolen Native Land," while creating an opportunity for all anti-capitalist, indigenous, anti-poverty, labour, migrant justice, environmental justice, anti-war, and anti-colonial activists to come together to confront this two-week circus and the oppression it represents.

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