[van-announce] Jan. 27th APC FORUM: People's Inquiry into Police Violence

[apc at resist.ca]

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                  People's Inquiry into Police Violence
                         Thursday, January 27th
                                 6:30pm
           SFU Harbour Centre - 515 West Hastings St.  Room 1315

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The Anti-Poverty Committee is inviting you to the first People's Inquiry
this Thursday, January 27th.  This will be a public forum for the
discussion of the reality of police violence and murder.

This is an issue that has persisted in local and international headlines
for years.  Police forces here in Vancouver and abroad continue to kill
our brothers and sisters with impunity and we continue to demand and fight
for justice.  We know now better than ever that this justice will never be
forthcoming from the system that these cops are sworn to protect and
uphold.  Police violence and murder and not accidents or occasional
excesses - they are clear attacks against all people oppressed under the
imperialist ruling classes.

We believe that police violence must be exposed and stopped.  Right now,
all the bureacratic and juridical institutions who have been charged with
this responsibility work only to protect and insulate the police.  We do
not believe that either the Public Complaints Commission, and certainly
not other police forces, have any other class interests that the
protection of the police and the maintenance of the status quo.  We refuse
to look to a government that uses law only to further criminalize and
punish poor people for any retribution against these thugs.

The speakers at the first People's Inquiry will be:

     * Julie Berg, sister of Jeff Berg who was murdered by the VPD;

     * Kat Norris, an advocate with the Indigenous Action Group who will
speak of the violence experienced systemically and physically by
indigenous people and specifically of Frank Paul's case (a Mik'Maq
from Big Cove, NB who was also murdered by the VPD);

     * Rob Morgan, president of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users;

     * Megan Oleson of the Anti-Poverty Committee and the 327 Carrall
Street Safe Injection Site;

     * Anthony Fenton, human rights supporter who will speak of RCMP
involvement in transforming former death squads into the current
police force in Haiti.

Please come and take part in this discussion and the on-going struggle
against all forms of oppressive violence.


For more info on APC and ongoing campaigns check out our website at
apc.resist.ca