#9101 - Feb 1991

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Digital Archiving Completed by the Ethnography Lab, A University of Toronto Anthropology Initiative and Produced in Collaboration with David Perlman/Wholenote Media Inc between July-December 2015. 12 KENSINGTON COMMON A Union of the Unemployed When people hear of a union of unemployed workers, the most common response is,"How can people' without jobs have a union? They have no workplace!" This didn't deter a handful of enemployed people who gathered in the basement of Spadina MP Dan Heap's riding office at the height of the 1982 recession. Realizing that "In unity, there is strength" they formed the TORONTO UNION of UNEMPLOYED WORK ERS to fight, as a group, for the rights of the otherwise powerless unemployed. Militantly activist, they were an inspiration to the jobless, and other similar groups sprang up all across the country. by Lee Zaslofsky, Community Health Worker, West Central Community Health Centres How well do you know your Health Centres? How often do you use our services? What services would you like us to offer? Are you satisfied with the medical services you ·use? These are some of the questions we will be trying to answer in a Needs Assessment study of the communities that West Central Community Health Centres serves, including Kensington. West Central has two locations, the Alexandra Park Health and Dental Clinic (64 Augusta Av., 364-4107); and Niagara One of their first actions was ·helping to organize a MARCH ON OTTAWA for jobs in 1982. Oth'er actions followed, which forced various government agencies to respond to their demands on behalf of the unemployed. Many remember their fights against unscrupulous companies and landlords who preyed on the poor. They were in the forefront of the struggle for welfare rights, and housing for singles. In 1988, after 7 years of working with the jobless, and in response to an improved economy, the T.U.U.W. suspeneded operations. Last month, with unemployment mushrooming and a recession fully under way, a group of former members decided to re-establish the union. Attacks by the Mulroney government on social benefits such as the cap on provincial social welfare payments and the c'uts in U.I.C. benefits must be stopped, says the Union. They plan to hold a rally for "DECENT JOBS OR INCOME NOW!" on Feb. 11, 11:30 a.m., at All Saints Church "OPEN DOOR CENTRE,'' Sherbourne and· Dundas St. E. A free lunch, and entertainment will be provided; followed by a , march on the Adelaide St. Welfare office and the Federal Conservative Party headquarters. The Union may be reached at 363-0306. West Central To Do Community Needs Assessment Neighbourhood Health Centre (674 Queen St West, 363-2021). Funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health, our focus is on building a healthy community- including physical health and community health. The Needs Assessment will study in depth the health needs and goals of the communities we serve and will recommend ways we can help to meet them. Ministry of Health funding will make us possible to analyze statistics and other data to lay the basis for our study. But our focus will be in listening to people in the community and working with them to seek goals we can achieve together. To do this we will be doing door-to-door canvassing in the various languages spoken in our area; focus groups made up of residents; interviews with community people, and other outreach. We invite interested community members to join us in creating our study, in reaching out to our neighbours, and drawing up recommendations for improvements to our services and to health in our community. The study is due to begin sometime in March, once we have hired a consultant to help us. It will last about six months, and the information we obtain will be available to interested agencies and individuals. We're excited by the possibilities this study will offer to us to learn from, and work with, our neighbours. · The Kensington Market Drum, February 1991 Age 16 in 1988: Pastries from the Control System Age 16 in 1988 . Pastries from the Control System General revenues is the best euphemism I've ever heard. Revenues of these people divided in pies. Odd pieces of pie Who gets the big one? Who wants the small one? And where did they all come from? Who made them? How much came fromMargaret? Her face like a work sock, Dyed red and stuffed with snow. How much of that pie came form Her? Now much this year, she preferred Lysol to finer spirits. And my friends aren't part of it at ali. They are the Lines between this piece and that. Marc F. Walker DRUM IS ALSO photographers advertising+ editorial industrial+ portrait still life + location post production videographers inquire 416-599-drum Here, as offered in the December "DistanJ Drum", is the text of a documenJ prepared by Cecil CenJre Director Julia Goldstein for the Cecil Board of Managei'TU!nJ. We publish it here unedited, and without commenJ exceptio note that we don't have the City legal di!partmenJ' s resources. Kensington Drum Article, Background and Inaccuracies The June/July issue of a local newspaper, the Kensington Drum, included an article . purporting to investigate labour issues at Cecil Centre, titled "Cecil Centre labour dispute raises larger questions". As Board and commiuee members are aware, I received and tabled an unpublished draft versioo of the article before I went on vacation on July 4. An edited version was finally . published in my absence. As I indicated at the June 28 AC and Board meetings, the article seemed to serve the purposes of ooe person, and represented an escalation of an en-going discipline problem. Madeline Yakimchuk, the former· Progr11m Co-ordinator, had already indicated in past memos and during grievance proa:edings that she intended to bring her complaints before the public eye and that she regarded it as her right of "freedom of speech" to publicize her objections to supervisioo. Even attempts (at Step Three grievance hearings by the Office of Labour Relations) to discourage this activity met with no response, despite disciplinary measures. Past memos also declared an intention to challenge my management style as Director of the agency, through any means possible. Shortly before I left, I received word that Madeline, who had gone to attend a Program Committee meeting at Scadding Court, had told Scadding's Program Director that the publication of the article in the Kensington Drum would result in her firing or my own. When coofronted with this report, Madeline denied that it, or anything like it, had ever occurred. It is also worth noting in passing the history of Cecil Centre's reJatioos with the Kensington Drum and its editor, David Perlman. David was once employed as a Kensington Drum Article, Background and Inaccuracies casual program . worker at Cecil, under Madeline's direction, as was his wife, Masha Buell, another Drum staffer. When plaits to first set up the newspaper were under discussion in 1989, Madeline proposed that Cecil sponsor and house the project. The Program Committee turned down the plan. Madeline continued to work with the Drum staff. In May of this year, I attended a meeting of the Kensington Market Area Task Force held at City Hall. As Board and AC members will recall, I reported that all local seiVice agencies had been invited to this meeting and were asked at that time to discuss their services and co-ordination efforts. The Task Force was represented almost exclusively by David Perlman, who took a distinctly hostile tone in questioning all of the agency staff present on the strucrure and activities . of their organizations. Many presenters and the Chair privately expressed objections to the direction and tone of his questions after the meeting. I was not interviewed before the original artricle was written, nor were most current Board members. It appears that two resigned Board members, Louisa Kamin, and Yvonne Ferrer were interviewed along with Board member Keny Gearin. It is clear that Madeline spoke with the reporter; the reporter came tO Cecil Centre io meet with Madeline during working hours the day before I received 'the draft article. When it was presented to me on Thursday, June 21, at 5 pm., I was informed that the deadline for my respoose to the docwnent was Friday, the 22nd, h!:fore 6 pm., when the paper would go to press. The reporter informed me that the article had been deliberately wriuen without speaking to me, and that my "inplt" might perltaps consist of a few sentences at the end of the article. Acting on the advice of the City Legal Department, I contacted the reporter Friday afternoon, to invite him to my office to go through the article with him in order to identify gross inaccuracies and distortions. He refused my offer, indicating that he had no time to do this, as the publication was already behind schedule. He phoned back a few minutes later to ask my permission to quote the conversation we had just held, in which I had stated that the article he had written represented irresponsible journalism, reporting exclusively the position of resigned Board members and a disgruntled employee. I granted him pennission to so quote me. Much to my surprise, after the deadline had passed, I received messages on my home answering machine from . the reporter. Early the following week, !he editor, David Perln(afi contacted ine, insisting that I identify the libellous aspects of the article for him. The paper, evidently, had not yet gone to press. Acting on the advice of the Chairperson, I did not pursue the matter further, but suggested that he speak with responsible parties associated with Cecil Centre. I subsequently established that he spoke with the Otairperson and with the Office of Labour Relations at this point, among others. As mentioned earlier, the editted version was published in my absence. This article was apparenty distributed in photocopy form to a variety of people associated with Cecil Centre. I am unable to say who has received copies, as I am only aware of those individuals who have contacted me as a resuh of the mailing. (One example, Victor Cheng, former computer consultant for the AOCC agencies). To date, very few people have. The article itself contains many errors and distortions. There are errors of fact, judgement, and some basic misunderstandings about how a community agency functions. The intent of the article is, quite simply, to discredit my work as Director, and to discredit the Board. The theme of the article is ostensibly "community accountability", but it is never established how this accountability is to be provided, or how it has been failed at Cecil Centre. Several large, false impressioos are aeated in the article. The overall impression is created that I am an mbitrary, racist manager, who refuses to be evaluated. (As members are aware, I tabled a fonnat for my evaluatioo last March, before any of this had occurred.)' I am said to be an employee of the Office of Labour Relatioos, rather than the Board. In general, it appears that I've said things, set policies' and acted in ways I have not. A good deal of what is said directly echoes passages from past memos from Madeline. As I was never inteiViewed for the article, I cannot really explain the use of quotation marks around material credited to me. The article reports the nwnber of staff at the centre incorrectly and inconsistently within the text, is inaccurate as to individual memberships on the Board and A C, identifies "majority" Board opinion falsely, and attributes policies recommended by the Program Conuninee to me. h is difficult to identify passages in the article which in any way reflecf the events at, or structure of, Cecil Centre. Finally, me of the key issues ignored in the article is the fact that the staff of Cecil is unionized. 1hls affects virtually every aspect of staff supervision and staff relations. The impression is created that the staff have no means of protectioo from management abuse and are forced to take desperate measures to bring a case to light. In reality, the collective agreement provides ample protectioo from abusive management practices, as it spells out precisely the way in which basic administrative practices regarding labour relations will be handled. As discussed previously in various committees, the grievance procedure in particular provides a legitimate mechanism for the airing and resolution of staff grievances. The procedure itself is the result of the process of collective bargaining and represents a mutually agreed upon basis for problem resolution. The article also challenges the notioo that Boards must operate lawfully, taking the position that such a responsibility cannot be imposed upon volunteer-run bodies. All Boards are required to act within legal requirements, and cannot improvise their own rules as they go, especially within the context of a unionized staff. The text objects to the process whereby a Board communicates with staff primarily through the Director, yet that is a normal procedure in any hierarchical body, and is, of course, consistent with the management of unionized staff. Update: ' Before. this article was published, the reporter, Mike Milando, and the editor, David Perhnan, were warned by myself and the Chairperson that the contents presented in the draft might be libellous and could result in legal action. At the present time, the centre is still waiting for word from the City Legal Department regarding the issue of libel and defamation. Julia J. Goldstein
Digital Archiving Completed by the Ethnography Lab, A University of Toronto Anthropology Initiative and Produced in Collaboration with David Perlman/Wholenote Media Inc between July-December 2015. The Kensington Market Drum, February 1991 The· Carwash by Derek Rogers KENSINGTON COMMON Bob felt like he was dead He had just got off the the 11 pm bus from Sudbury with no money, no job and no family or friends in Toronto. Going back to Sudbury was impossible. The only shelter that he knew of was closed, so he slept on a heating vent in an underground parking garage. The next morning, he felt ~orse than the day before. He lined up at the Scott Mission for a cup of coffee and a donut By late morning he was . out panhandling and two hours later he had enough money to buy a razor and give himself a proper shave. Looking for a job was more difficult There's no worlc in Toronto for a sheet metal worlcer with a prison record After weeks of fruitless searching he was offered $20 to clean up the basement of a bar on Queen street. When it came time to be paid the bartender said he was short on cash, but could offer him a few calmly looked through the more interesting stories to tell !.hap drinks instead. Several hours later, viewing window. Unable to see Larry the taxi driver. He woilld Bob found himself staggering up the woman through the clouds of talk to Bob about all the strange Spadina Avenue. Too drunk to' steam, he put his ear to the glass things that had happened in his cab make it to a hostel, he curled up in and could distinctly hear over the and they quickly became friends. a doorway and fell asleep. The noise of the machinery the words One day after worlc the two of them next morning he· was awakened by to the song, "singing in the rain". decided to go for a drink. LarrY a man wearing a funny looking hat, ·needed some cash so they stopped whose loud, jovial voice echoed in "I'm singing in the rain at the money machine on the his aching head, "Hey I can't have Just singing in the rain corner of Spadina & . College. my workers sleeping on the job .... Oh what a glorious feeling Sprawled face down on the floor, so come on in and get to work". I'm happy again" directly in front of the machine From that time on, for twenty-five was a guy Bob had seen before dollars a day Bob found himself The woman re-appeared at the sleeping out on the A venue. A worlcing at the carwash. other end, miraculously unhurt In long line of people were waiting to Bob enjoyed his new job. He fact, she looked and felt great. use the machine. One after another liked how the cars would drive in After putting her clothes back on, they uncomfortably stepped over off the streets covered in the salt she bowed to her stunned audience the uncot ncious figure. The loud and grime of a long winter. Their thanked them for a wonderful time 'beeping sound' of their fmancial wi..'11 ~hields would be caked with and then walked off down the transactions filled the air. mud, their fenders marked with the street. After looking long and hard at scars of a thousand battles. Like For most of the guys working at the man, Bob turned to Larry and old and tired warhorses they the carwash driving the cars on and . softly whispered in his ear, "I think would slowly pull into the off the conv~yor ·belt was that guy is dead". Larry laughed driveway, their rads wheezing something special. The chance to loudly, "hell no he's drunk, he'll from the strain of the cold winter be able to sit behind the wheel of a probably wake up with one hell of air. The owners of these poor ' Jag or a Poi:che, even if_ it w~ only a hang over". ''Listen Larry", Bob beasts would hand over their keys for 10 seconds, was a big thrill. Of persisted "I've seen a dead man to Bob and silently give him a look all the cars that came through the . before and I'm telling you that guy as if to say, "please.... is there one that was the most popular was is dead". Their discussion ·was anything you can do?" Bob would not the Jag or the Mercedes or even interrupted by a woman in high respond with a nod of calm the Rolls, it was the Cop car. Bob healed shoes as she tripped over reassurance. He would proudly would wa~ch. his co-workers as the sprawled figure. Jokingly, climb into driver's seat and drive they sat, grmnmg ear to ear, unable Larry yelled out, "Hey lady, do the tired vehicle onto the conveyor to believe that they were actually you know it's thirty years bad luck belt Once the front wheels'were in the driver's seat of a cop car and if you trip over a dead man. The firmly secured, he would step out not in the back seat wher~ they had woman glared at him and silently of the car and like a concerned been on countless occas10ns. proceeded to . make a cash ~ parent sending their child off to What interested Bob the most withdrawal as if nothing had school foc the first time, he would was the relationship between the happened. Bob and Larry watched watch as the car slowly descended driver's and their cars. After her as she punched in her code. into the carwash. From the dealing with literally thousands of The money popped up in the slot viewing window that ran the cars and their drivers he began to and she quickly put it into her length of the building he would realize that it was not necessarily purse. Once she had left, they watch as great torrents of water the person that made the car, but cautiously approached the man on rained down on the roof and sides rather the car that made the person. the floor.and rolled him onto his of the car. Jets of scalding hot It got to the point that if he saw back. The man was dead. The steam shot up from the flooc while someone walking down the street police came and the body was large, bushy rollers twirling at he_ would say, "Now that guy is a taken away. Later, they found out frantic speeds wiped off months of BMW kind of guy" or "that from one of the police officers that dirt In a fmal coup de grace, a woman is definitely of the fourgigantic he had died of starvation. fan enveloped the car in a wheel drive variety". Peo~le were Two weeks later Larry drove his blast of hot air. The car would their cars. How they lived, who cab into the car wash as usual. As emerge at the other end looking they were was all reflected in the he headed inside for a coffee he shiny and new. For Bob it was a cars they owned and drove. called out to Bob, "Hey Bob, can sight he thought he would never One day while cleaning out the you clean out th~ back seat for tire of. It was as if new life was interior of a BMW Bob found me .... my last fare stunk it up real being breathed into every vehicle three, new twenty dollar bills left good". Sure enough Bob found a that passed through the car wash. carelessly out on the front seat. plastic bag stuffed under the back One day when Bob was working Leaving them where they were, he seat He ripped it open and inside the late shift, a woman drunk from continued on with his work. Wh,en wrapped in a towel, was a dead drinking at the bar across the the driver, a man in a three piece baby. It took less 'than 20 minutes avenue walked onto the lot and business suit got back into the car for it to bocome the media event of loudly announced that she needed he called the owner of the carwash the year. TV, radio and 'newspaper a wash. Before anyone could stop over and accused Bob of stealing reporters converged on the her she stripped off her clothes and the money. Luckily the car wash carwash. Bob was asked to reenact the discovery several times ran singing into the carwash. owner was a fair man and believed . While the other workers screamed Bob's story. for both the police and the media. in horror and frantically raced for Of all the people that passed A massive man hunt was the emergency cut-off switch, Bob through the carwash, none had organized to find the baby killers. That night, Bob and LaiTy were interviewed by the CBC Journal's Barbara Findley and in that following week the carwash did its' best business ever. All that Bob could think about was the poor guy who died all alone in front of the money machine. A week later after 35 years of driving a cab, Larry called it quits. Bob missed his friend. Everything around him began to look like the color of grey. He couldn't concentrate on the job and it all felt · routine. On one particularly grey morning officers Bates and Bowanda drove their cruiser into the carwash. Bob climbed into the driver's seat and drove the cruiser onto the conveyor belt. He remained inside the car as it travelled through the carwash. He watched with awe as the jets 9f water propelled against the windows and the giant brushes rubbed up and down against the cruiser. Feeling like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon Bob drove out of the carwash onto the tarmac. For the first time in weeks he felt alive again.Without 13 hesitating he locked all four doors of the cruiser. Officers Bates and Bowanda were standing 10 feet behind the crosier eating their Harveys double cheese burgers. Looking at the control panel on the dash, Bob flicked a switch. The cruiser's siren W-A-1-L-E-D loudly._ Bates laughed "Will you look at ·that ... the guy fmds a dead kid and now thinks he can do anything". Inside the cruis-er· Bob decides to try a few more switches. The rotating redlights on the roof of the-cruiser begin to flash. "Cut it out will ya" yells Bates. In response, Bob shifts into reverse and presses firmly down on the gas pedal. The cruiser leaps backwards towards the officers. The double cheese burgers go flying. Bob shifts back into drive and the cruiser screeches out of the car wash and disappears down the Avenue. That ends the story of how Bob came to get and lose his job at the carwash. What's The F.U.S.? Feline Urological Syndrome by Jack Gewarter Cats can develop a disorder of the urinary tract whereby mineral crystals form in their urine, irritating the lining of, the tract and sometimes causing a ' deadly blockage to normal urination. Both sexes may be affected, neutered or intact, but due to their anatomy, males are more prone to blockage. Cats will often tell you when they're suffering from F.U.S., if you pay careful attention to certain signs. First they may spend alot of time scratching around and straining in the litterbox. Often owners think their cat is constipated or making an unusual number of visits to the box. Other cats may urinate or spray in odd places around the house and blood might be detected in these cases. Some cats will sit and groom their genitals excessively · or cry very plaintively while · attempti11g to urinate. These . cats might demonstrate pain on being touched or picked up around the
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#9101 - Feb 1991

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