SUPPORT THE POWER TO WOMEN BLACK MARKET - STAND FOR THE DTES!

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Sunday March 15th
From 1-3 pm
Vancouver Police Station
Main Street (between Hastings and Cordova)
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All (including men) welcome!

Significant street sweeps have been occurring in the [Downtown Eastside] from increased and aggressive ticketing for things like jaywalking to "illegal" vending. As verified by the [Vancouver Police Department] itself, a year-end performance report shows that officers issued 467 tickets for violations of the Safe Streets Act in 2008, compared to 202 tickets in 2007. Police officers also handed out 133 tickets for violations of the Trespass Act, up from 95 in 2007. Tickets for city-bylaw infractions, including tickets for vending, panhandling, and loitering, shot up to 439 tickets in 2008 compared to 247 tickets in 2007.

Leading up to the 2010 Olympics, such measures are meant to 'cleanse' the neighbourhood and to intimidate DTES residents through the use of no-go orders for "chronic offenders" (i.e vendors/binners) and street checks by VPD Beat Enforcement Team officers.

In response to this, the Power to Women group is organizing an afternoon of "illegal vending" in front of the Vancouver Police Station on Sunday March 15th, International Day Against Police Brutality. We strongly encourage supporters and allies of the group and of DTES residents who are facing this increased onslaught to please come out and make your presence visible. We are standing together and we ask you to come out and support the Power to Women "black market" which will also help fund the groups ongoing activities! If you have any items to donate to our "illegal vending" efforts, please bring them with you (anything goes!)

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Organized by the DTES Women Centre Power of Women Group: We are a group of women from all walks of life who are either on social assistance, working poor, or homeless; but we are all living in extreme poverty and are dedicated to raising our voices and raising awareness about social issues in our communities. Many us of are single mothers or have had our children apprehended due to poverty; most of us have chronic physical or mental health issues, for example HIV and Hepatitis C; many have drug or alcohol addictions; and a majority have experienced and survived sexual violence and mental, physical, spiritual, and emotional abuse. For indigenous women, we are affected by a legacy of the effects of residential schools and a history of colonization and racism.

For more information, see the contacts above.