The protests of the Olympics in China last summer were the first time in my short conscious life that there was mainstream media attention on Olympic resistance.

The protests, if you recall, focused mainly on China’s human rights records, particularly the role China plays in Darfur and they’re stance on Tibet.

As important as this is, it fails to address the real issues that the Olympics bring. More likely than these issues being completely absent from the resistance organizing is that these concerns were simply ignored by most media outlets, who chose instead to focus only on protests and acts of disobedience that exposed faults of the host nation without addressing the fundamental problems with the Olympics themselves (one example being the “Free Tibet” banner drop from the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco; it addresses China’s human rights violations, and asks for the Olympic torch to not pass through Tibet, but stays within the frame of the Olympics being otherwise acceptable). Regardless, this was the first time that I had witnessed any kind of Olympic resistance.

This February, the winter Olympics will be held in Vancouver, Canada; bringing with it a whole array of problems and opportunities to organize real Olympic resistance. This will be the time and place to show not just resistance to what Canada is doing wrong, but what is wrong with the Olympics as a whole..

The Olympics have a long history of being an institution based in colonialism and fascism, which in and of itself warrants it to be resisted. For example, in 1968 when two African American Olympians famously raised their fists in a Black Power salute on the podium, they were immediately stripped of their medals by then IOC president Avery Brundage.

This was in no way the only instance of fascism from Brundage; just days before the same Olympics there was a brutal massacre of over 300 (mostly minority) student protesters by the Mexican army and police force. Brundage refused to acknowledge the massacre or cancel the games, legitimizing the authoritarian tactics of the Mexican government.

Former IOC presidents also include the likes of Juan Antonio Samaranch, who was a government official in the fascist regime in Spain under Francisco Franco.

On the current games:
The financial cost to the city of Vancouver has been enormous. In the initial bid of $2 billion for the proposed cost, the city failed to include the cost of building the Sea to Sky highway, the actual Olympic stadium, or a number of other construction related costs, which puts the actual cost at closer to $6 billion which the people of Vancouver will be forced to pay off for years to come.

The question to be asked right now is if the city can really afford to lose this much money to a sporting event at a time of economic crisis? Imagine them spending this kind of money on a concert or other event; it would never happen. Since winning the bid in 2003, Vancouver has lost over 850 units of low-income housing; during the same period, homelessness in Vancouver has increased from 1,000 to over 2,500. It is estimated by 2010, the number of homeless may be as high as 6,000. Spending just a fraction of the money proposed for the Olympics on housing could easily house all of the homeless in Vancouver.

But instead of offering free or affordable housing, the city government has instead been criminalizing and systematically clearing out the poor from the city in an attempt to make it more presentable to the tourists they hope to attract. “Project Civil City” as it is known, has created a series of laws making it illegal to ask for money, sleep outside, or generally exist as a poor person in Vancouver. They have installed new benches, which make it impossible to lie down, and have reportedly been buying people one-way bus tickets out of the city. This criminalization of the poor happens in every city that hosts the Olympics.

The Olympics also play a role in the ecological destruction of the area that they are to take place. The actual construction of large stadiums and related buildings are some of the most ecologically disastrous projects for the environment. Roughly 80% of the greenhouse gasses that cities produce come from buildings and building construction. For Vancouver specifically, tens of thousands of trees will be cut down and entire mountainsides will be removed for Olympic venues in the Callaghan Valley and the Sea-to-Sky Highway expansion to accommodate them.

Despite promises of bringing corporate investment and new revenue into the host city, the Olympics merely bring in large multinational corporations with large multinational interests. Many of the main corporate sponsors of the Olympics are responsible for massive ecological destruction and human rights violations, including McDonalds, Coca-Cola, Petro-Canada, TransCanada, Dow, Teck Cominco, etc., while others are major arms manufacturers such as General Electric & General Motors.

Lastly, the Vancouver Olympics will be taking place on land that belongs to the indigenous people of the area. According to Canadian law, British Columbia does not have the legal right to claim land or govern over Native peoples. Despite this, the government continues to sell, lease and ‘develop’ unseeded Native land for the benefit of corporations, including mining, logging, oil & gas, and ski resorts; which has intensified since winning the Olympic bid.

So please, reconsider before watching the Olympics, or even before protesting them. Keep in mind who is really behind these games and what that means for the world, for the city that hosts them, and for those who live in that city, even those citizens who have less.

Category: Blogger, News

Written by: Nick

Nearly half of all the food produced in the United States every day is wasted. From the time its being harvested, loaded into a shipping container, put on the grocery store shelf and finally into your refrigerator, it is checked again and again, not for real quality or for how it will taste, but for if it looks good enough to sell. If it doesn’t look like it can be sold (if it doesn’t look like how we perceive our food is supposed to look; even when most of us have never been on a farm or grown our own food), it will be thrown out.

Paradoxically, this happens at a time when people around the world as well as in our own neighborhoods go hungry. As recently as 2007, 36.2 million Americans lived in food-insecure households. More often than not, those that suffer from hunger are families, children, single mothers, and the elderly who don’t have the means to buy food and pay rent.

Thinking of this I cant help but be reminded of the images of the great depression farmers that I saw in my American History class in high school. Not of the Oakies who blew out west with the dust bowl (which brought my own family west), but images of the large farmers in California, emptying hundreds of gallons of milk and countless pounds of oranges and apples into the gutters in an attempt to offset the low prices they refused to sell at. All while the Oakies were starving, trying to scrape by on nothing. This especially sticks in my mind today, as we see the 80-year anniversary of Black Tuesday, the stock market crash that marks the beginning of that era of American History.

80 years on, little has changed in the way we treat our food and our hungry, it seems. We still throw out food because of purely economic reasons, all while others go hungry. But that’s not to say that nothing has been done; in recent decades there has been hope from a growing movement that strives to redefine how we look at and treat our food, especially thanks to an organization called Food Not Bombs.

Food Not Bombs is an all-volunteer global movement that serves free food in public spaces to anyone who is hungry. While each group is autonomous and has its own way of organizing, there are some basic tenants that are semi-universal for FNB.

Among those is the belief that food is a right and not a privilege. Everyone deserves to have access to free and healthy food, just as everyone has the right to clean air and water. It is a basic human necessity that we have the capacity to fill. To provide healthy food, FNB serves exclusively vegan and vegetarian meals

FNB serves food as a form of protest against war and poverty (hence the “not bombs”), and especially as a way of protesting nuclear proliferation. Should we really be spending our resources on weapons when people are starving?

The food that FNB serves comes from a variety of sources, depending on the group, but the idea is that it is food that would otherwise have gone to waste simply because it was seen to hold no value in our capitalist system. Therefore, some food comes from donations by local markets or farmers, and some is reclaimed.

Some storeowners and business’ are so caught up in our capitalist way of thinking about food that they will go to great lengths to prevent people from eating the food that they throw out. They somehow interpret it as a threat to they’re business to have people eating for free (when most of the time it goes to people who couldn’t afford it anyway) and will go so far as to pour bleach or rat poison over the food they throw out, so that no one is able to reuse it.

This kind of mentality seems fundamentally flawed in its wanton disregard for the well being of other humans. You have extra, and they have none, yet you will not let them eat even when it does you no harm.

So please, take this as a call to action! Come be a part of Food Not Bombs and help us build a global movement by cooking or obtaining food donations from local businesses; because food is a right and not a privilege, and you cant give high-fives if you have nuclear arms! We need people on the ground; not just online, we need Food Not Blogs!

Food Not Bombs cooks at 10am on Saturdays at Sherwood Co-Op (4746 18th Ave NE) in the University District and serves at 1:00pm at Campus Parkway.
More info for the Saturday FNB at http://seattlefnb.blogspot.com/

On Sunday Food Not Bombs cooks at 1:30pm at Cascade People’s Center (309 Pontius Avenue North) and serves at 6pm at Occidental Park (in Pioneer Square).
More info for the Sunday FNB at (206) 949-0322,or seattle-fnb@riseup.net

General information on the Food Not Bombs movement can be found here:
http://www.foodnotbombs.net/

Category: Blogger, News

Written by: Nick

Having access to a quality education is one key factor to keeping people out of homelessness. Studies have shown that those with a college education are far less likely to become homeless than those without one (though this is no way meant to marginalize or ignore the huge number of homeless students and graduates that exist within our society).

For many states, what is considered a “public education” is far more expensive than many can afford without being burdened with student loans for the rest of they’re lives. Even when financial aid if offered by FAFSA (free application for federal student aid) or other programs, it often does not come close to covering the full cost of school.

That’s why making college education free and accessible to all people should be a priority for all states to provide; but sadly this is far from the case, as education is more and more being turned into a for-profit business model, even in this faltering economy.

What’s more, many schools are using the current downturn in the economy as an excuse to charge more and more from the students, while simultaneously offering less classes and fewer services. This can be exemplified by looking at California’s public education system – the University of California.

Over the past year, the UC system has announced major cuts in funding to programs and services, while raising tuition and other fees to exorbitant prices. Last spring, for example, they announced an 11% increase in tuition in order to cover the current budget crisis. This increase, however, failed to keep the UC from trying to completely cut the Community Studies program at UC Santa Cruz – the social justice major.

This was by no means an end to this practice; and now the students are beginning to stand up for what they see as a basic human right by demanding an end to these price increases and calling for a free public education system in California. Starting this fall, the UC announced yet another increase in tuition, this time by a whopping 30%. It was then revealed that of this huge increase, not a single penny would go towards student resources or faculty; but rather it would be directed to preserving the bond rating of the institution so that it could borrow money for unnecessary building projects, and bolstering the state of California’s credit rating against its own future borrowing.

This sparked a wave of protest throughout the UC system marked by a massive system wide walkout of students and staff at every campus. Students on the UC Santa Cruz campus, who have been hit especially hard by the cuts, decided to go one step beyond these traditional protesting methods. As of this writing they have occupied two buildings on campus, literally taking direct control of they’re school and putting it in the students hands.

The first occupation lasted almost a week, and ended with no arrests or violence. Immediately after they began the occupation, letters of solidarity from all over the world started to come in, as so many others are feeling the same frustrations. The second occupation lasted only several hours; as they barricaded themselves in the office of Dean of Social Sciences, Sheldon Kamieniecki’s office, three students were maced and arrested by campus police, after not being warned or mirandized.

This is just a recent example of the demand for systemic change in the way we see school. Access to a free and quality education should be a right, not a privilege. If we lived in a society that valued people and education before profit, think of how much different our social landscape would be. I think its safe to say that if people are willing to fight this hard for a free public education that it is a real possibility. Someday soon we may have a truly public education for all people, rich and poor alike.

Check out info on the occupation by going here:
http://occupyca.wordpress.com/

Category: Blogger, News

Written by: Nick

How many cops does it take to arrest an 82-year-old woman? Roughly 50; according to the actions of the Seattle Port Authority last Wednesday.

Around a dozen activists and residents of the Nickelsville homeless encampment were arrested on trespassing charges yesterday, after refusing to vacate Terminal 107, where they have been located since July.

A little after 1pm, port police sporting “Civil Disturbance” patches marched in, military style, to clear the camp of any remaining residents who hadn’t left already (and to ensure maximum possible intimidation). By one count there were as many as 49 police officers, not including the park rangers waiting at the perimeter.

Those who chose to stand their ground at Nickelsville were handcuffed and escorted to a waiting paddy wagon (it was actually a converted school bus, but really what’s the difference anyway?). They were then dropped off at the next terminal and told not to return. Meanwhile, police went through the camp and confiscated necessities such as food, clothing and a generator.

Why? Was this really necessary, or was it just a blatant show of dominance over the poor? To say that 49 officers is excessive force would be an understatement. Having three police officers escort and arrest an 82-year-old woman, or a man who walks with a cane is not only excessive, but it would be downright laughable if it weren’t so sad. Couldn’t these 49 officers be out protecting the peace? How many violent crimes could have been stopped while these officers were preoccupied taking away peoples home?

But then this comes as no surprise; the ports refusal to allow Nickelsville to remain on parkland is merely a reflection of the city’s violent anti-encampment attitude spearheaded by Mayor Nickels. And yes, I do mean violent. By not only denying people a place to live, but by physically forcing them out of a community, the city is conducting an act of violence against the poor.

“Why?” was the question being asked again and again by the now displaced Nickelodians. There is just not enough space in the city’s emergency shelter system to accommodate the number of homeless individuals in Seattle, yet that is where they are being told to go. The city is simply pushing people around, forcing them to go from once temporary location to another, without offering any real solutions.

Camps such as Nickelsville offer people a safe space, free of drugs and alcohol, where they can build a sense of community that will never be found in a shelter. Yet the city refuses to recognize this, choosing instead to portray encampments like this as dirty shantytowns, with talk of piles of garbage and human waste.

For now they have secured a space at St. Andrews Episcopal Church, but after a week they are out on the street. The city needs to recognize the important role that tent cities such as Nickelsville play for people who can’t or don’t want to be a part of an overcrowded and dangerous shelter system. Until they do so, the camps will simply continue to be moved from one part of town to another, straining the already non-existent resources of the poor, forcing them further into poverty.

When asked why he was willing to be arrested for this, one handcuffed resident responded simply, “Because this is something that I believe in”.

Now if only Greg Nickels would believe in it too…

Category: Blogger, News, Nickelsville

Written by: Nick

Look beyond the grass skirts and floral printed shirts on the backs of countless uncouth tourists, and you’ll see a dark underbelly to America’s tropical islands in the pacific.

Hawaii has gotten a lot of attention over the last couple of months for a pool of blatantly anti-homeless legislation, which has been brought before the Honolulu city council.

Last month, Councilman Rod Tam introduced a bill that would attempt to regulate the smell of bus passengers in Hawaii.  The bill would criminalize any person whose odor “unreasonably disturb[s] others or interfere with their use of the transit system.”

Despite the obvious flaw in the wide interpretation of this bill (how smelly is too smelly?), the consequences it proposed were unreasonable.  Any person who was found to be excessively homeless (excuse me; odorous) would be fined $500 or spend six months in jail.  That’s six months in jail because you didn’t have the chance to shower that morning since, you know, you don’t have a home and all.

This is clearly a law directed against the homeless – would someone be fined or thrown in jail for wearing too much cologne or too much sunscreen?  That stuff can really bother my nose…but we all know the answer is no; this is exactly the kind of law that would be selectively enforced against the poor and homeless.

Luckily, the national attention this gained meant that the council voted against this particular bill.  However, this isn’t the end of anti-homeless legislation in Honolulu.

The council voted last week to approve a bill making it illegal to sleep, sit or lie down on public sidewalks.  The bill came after community members complained about the homeless sleeping on the sidewalk and in doorways, after being banned from public parks in the area.

This bill, while similar to a Seattle ban, is far more extensive – banning people from sitting or sleeping at ALL times of the day, every day of the year.

Instead of offering any real solutions to the Hawaii’s homeless population, this is merely the city attempting to make the homeless population invisible, to shoo them away to a different part of the city where no one will have to see them.

Those caught violating this new law would be fined $50 after an initial warning.  This may sound reasonable compared to the previously mentioned law, but it’s by no means a small fine for someone living in poverty.  If you have no home and are sleeping outside every night, you could potentially get fined $350 a week.  Once these go unpaid it’s only a matter of time before you end up in jail.

I’ve often cited a 1962 Supreme Court case, which ruled it unconstitutional to criminalize a person’s right “to be”.  Doing so, they ruled, violated the eighth amendment protecting against cruel and unusual punishment; and that is exactly what is happening in Hawaii.  Land of the free indeed.

Category: Blogger, News

Written by: Nick

September 22, 2009
5:30 pm	to	9:00 pm

Join RCOP, the ACLU, the Defenders Union, and more for some hands on advocacy around issues of Criminal Justice and public safety.  We will be grilling our future city officials on effective policing, alternatives to incarceration, safer communities, and the criminalization of poverty.

Candidates for King County Executive, Seattle City Council, and City Attorney will be among those fielding questions from the community.  Lets tell them what we think about the impact of the criminal justice system on our communities of color and the poor.  Building a new Jail in Seattle would undoubtedly be exclusively for these communities – and that’s not something that we can let happen.

Dinner Free to All / Hallal Meal served late for Ramadan
Daycare / Translation Available

Rainier Valley Cultural Center at 3515 S Alaska St., 5:30PM

Category: Blogger, Events, News

Written by: Nick