[Vanact.internal] PLEASE READ: urgent - vanact endorsement

[Lena McFarlane]

*PLEASE READ BELOW.*
*Let me know* *ASAP (phone/email) if you approve Van.Act endorsement of the
letter & demands for tomorrow's action (women's action in DTES).*
*Due to urgency of this request, we need to respond asap, I will await for
approvals and let them know by tonight.*

Thank you all,

Love Lena

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Harsha W. <harsha at resist.ca>
Date: Mon, Mar 21, 2011 at 4:00 PM
Subject: urgent - vanact endorsement
To: lena at lena.ca


- draft pls do not forward -

March 22, 2011

Shayne Ramsey, CEO of BC Housing
Minister of Housing Rich Coleman
Mayor Gregor Robertson


RE: Safe Housing and Safe Services for Women in Vancouver’s Downtown
Eastside

For the past two months we, a coalition of women-serving organizations,
have been raising the urgent issue of women's safety in shelters in the
Downtown Eastside. This comes in response to six reported sexual assaults
at the First United Church Shelter in a 3-month period. Since then, it has
come to light that there have been at least two additional reported sexual
assaults in at least one other shelter, the Lookout.

We have been dismayed by the lack of response by all levels of government
about the ongoing violence committed against women in the Downtown
Eastside. According to BC Housing, the safety of women in co-ed shelters
is a priority, yet we have seen no commitment to centering women’s safety
in BC Housing contracts with service, shelter or housing providers. In
fact, in addition to ignoring all our correspondences on the matter, one
of your representatives inappropriate comment “Come on, shit happens, look
at Rwanda, look at Libya” suggests that BC Housing does not consider
prioritize women's safety within their funded facilities.

Based on a clear vision and demands articulated by hundreds of women in
the Downtown Eastside, we are calling for:

1)      A 24 hours low-barrier women-only (*) drop-in space and shelter in
the
Downtown Eastside, ideally on Hastings Street between Main and Jackson.

2)      Housing for homeless women and children with at least 100 new units
to
be made available immediately.

3)      Clear provincial standards for women’s safety in co-ed shelters to
be
implemented immediately in all existing and new shelters, including but
not limited to:

•       Women’s only facilities in co-ed shelters with adequate women only
beds
and services within those spaces.

•       Women staff and training for all staff by women’s organizations
experienced in issues of sexual and gender violence.

Sexual assaults against women in this neighbourhood are normalized and
their safety is not considered of highest priority as we have seen with
the ongoing tragedy of missing and murdered women. Women should not have
to “choose” between the indignity of homelessness and being warehoused in
shelters, and the high-risk of assault associated with both. As women
serving organizations it is our mandate to expose and counter violence
against women and we would be negligent and unethical if we did not.

We look forward to your timely response on this matter.

Signed,

Kate Gibson WISH Drop-In Centre 604-669-9474
Harsha Walia DTES Power of Women Group 778-885-0040
Alice Kendall Downtown Eastside Women's Centre 604-436-4594
Angela Marie MacDougall Battered Women's Support Services 604-808-0507
Marlene George, Chair of Feb 14th Women’s Memorial March Committee
604-665-3005

We are supported by the following organizations in this call:
-       Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre
-       DTES Power of Women Group
-       WISH Drop-In Centre Society
-       Walk4Justice
-       Battered Women’s Support Services
-       Downtown Eastside Neighbourhood House
-       PACE Society
-       Downtown Eastside Neighbourhood Council
-       Vancouver Status of Women
-       Oxfam Canada
-       No One Is Illegal Vancouver

(*) women-only includes all self-identified women.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.resist.ca/pipermail/vanact.internal/attachments/20110321/3a05e1a5/attachment.html>