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Wikipedia, och tyskland. Allt i ett.

Last Sunday I was watching the Chinese New Year Parade in Chinatown. Many many people where there, of which most probably caught a cold due to the steady rain. While everyone was watching the parade, which was marvellous with its dragons, dancers and the politicians trying to raise their popularity status, almost no one noticed the people in the far back. Those who wore torn jackets, had an un-groomed look and more often than not where pushing an old shopping cart in front of them. In which assumingly all their belongings were. Everyone admired the glamour, tinsel and sparkle from the parade, no one cared about the grey people behind us.

Chinatown is located right next to Hastings, also referred to as Downtown Eastside. As the most worn down area of the city, many of the homeless and drug addicts gather here, for a to me unknown reason. This is the one neighbourhood that is dangerous to travel by night on foot. And the signs of destruction, unrest and even hopelessness are almost touchable.

The Province, on of two local newspapers in Vancouver, reported last week that ‘Of the area’s population of 16,000, roughly 6,000 are injection drug users. Between 600 and 1,000 of Metro [referring to the city centre] Vancouver’s estimated 2,660 homeless population are to be found there, most of the suffering from mental illness and addiction’ (The Province, February 2, 2009). The article carries on, mentioning that there are about 300 agencies directly in the area providing services and saying that a UN report from 2007 proclaimed this area as ‘North America’s most troubled and drug-infested [neighbourhood], with an hepatitis-C rate of just below 70 per cent and an estimated 30-per-cent HIV-prevalence rate rivalling that of Botswana’ (ibid.).

What is not mentioned in the article, but well known, is the fact that most of the homeless are originated from the first nations community. Also, due to the mild climate (exception for this year) many homeless travel to Vancouver to find a warmer spot. The tragedy therefore continues.

I am very surprised to find that not much has been done in Vancouver to beat homelessness; during my WUF3 engagement here 2,5 years ago we spoke about the issues, and they are just all the same. This is not only irritating; it is also astonishing that a city, in the developed world, is so unable to deal with its problem. On the debate pages in the newspapers I read questions about the costs of the Winter Olympics 2010 in Whistler – how come politicians with a clear conscience can pour more and more money into this event? Rumours about ‘cleaning the city’ are also heard, referring to the will of the people in charge to show an Olympic city to the world that has no problem with homelessness.

Vancouver’s new mayor, Gregor Robertson, won his seat after promising to end homelessness in 2015. But is that not a bit late? If the failures and problems are identified, and they are, why not target them immediately? Live, for people without home, shelter and treatment, can only change to the better. And it has to start now.