[van-announce] Monday: May 5th - Oppose the Olympics at Britannia

[megan at resist.ca]

Oppose the Olympics at Britannia

PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY!

OPPOSE THE OLYMPICS AT BRITANNIA
Monday May 5th - 7 pm - Britannia Auditorium

The Britannia Community Centre Board has organized a community meeting (on
very short notice) for Monday May 5th (7 pm) in the Britannia Auditorium
to consult with the community about having Britannia as an Olympics hockey
venue. Given the short notice and lack of publicity from Britannia, please
call/email your friends, contacts, etc., and ask them to come out and
voice their concerns about Britannia as an Olympics venue.

VANOC is pressuring Britannia Community Centre to become an Olympic hockey
venue, regardless of how you feel about having your community centre taken
from you. Please come out and have your voice heard! The Britannia board
will be voting on whether or not to have the Olympics at Britannia after
this meeting.

For more information:
thetorch at resist.ca

Concerns about the Olympics at Britannia:

Security and Surveillance:

More than 12, 500 police, military, CSIS, and private security will be
used for the 2010 Olympics (Globe and Mail) we are concerned about:
- increased police/military/security presence at and around Britannia
- the size of a "security perimeter" around the community centre
- the use of checkpoints, special ID passes and heavy surveillance
including closed-circuit cameras and satellite surveillance (Industry
Canada website)
- that security would be set up at Britannia long before the actual
Olympics and remain long after
- the impact on homeless people including "sweeps" by police and harassment
- increased racial profiling and targeting of indigenous youth
- heavy weaponry (guns, lasers, tear gas, pepper spray, helicopters) near
our schools, libraries, and daycares
- the constant threat of police violence and repression of opposition and
dissent

Community Values:

The Britannia Board represents our community centre, and demographically,
this community voted against the Olympics coming to Vancouver in the 2003
referendum.
If you voted "no" in the referendum, this process at Britannia is in
essence the same vote (referendum was "No to Olympics in Vancouver," this
vote is "No to Olympics" in our community centre). This project will take
place on unceded Coast Salish territory and will impact urban indigenous
people.

Concerns include:

- security perimeters will cut off or severely restrict access for our
seniors, students and children
- increased in traffic and rents, due to the proximity of an Olympic
venue, and general increased gentrification
- That rink upgrades would be carried out at the expense of more pressing
upgrades at Britannia
- That needed upgrades shouldn't be tied to the Olympics. Britannia and
its strong community-based history should be a leader in demanding that
community centres need better funding and upgrades in general
- The Olympics machine (which includes corporate sponsors like
MacDonald's) targets youth and children with mascots, advertising, and
school curriculum

Services Disruptions:

- lack of access to the rink and other services such as the seniors
centre, the pool, the library, teen centre, etc.
- possible room rental disruption at the centre
- disruption to surrounding services and their clients including the
Kettle Friendship Centre and REACH clinic
- the effects on bus routes/services, traffic, and pedestrians
- the displacement of kids and adults in the hockey and skating programs

Accountability and Transparency:

Although private talks have reportedly been held for close to a year
between Britannia and VANOC, the community has not been consulted about
Britannia being used as an Olympics venue. The details of these talks have
not been made public

We are concerned that:

- The use of the Britannia Community Centre was not included in the
Olympic Bid Book
- VANOC has repeatedly been described in local media as "undemocratic"
- VANOC is not subject to freedom of information legislation
- VANOC holds meetings that are closed to the public and of which no
official minutes are kept