#9204 - Jun 1992

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.
Page Four/June 25 1992
EDITORIAL/LETTERS
Kensington Market DRUM
DRUM
Talking
DRUM
note from the publishers
We're going into our fourth year now:
the summer is always an anniversary ofsorts
for us. In some ways it's hard to
believe that it's been that long. In
· other ways it's impossible to believe
it's been that little.
Big changes ahead for our community
and DRUM, we think, in the years
ahead.
To the people helping carry DRUM to
the areas we're new to, our thanks. To
those new readers, welcome. One big
challenge we face in the coming year is
trying to reach more people with the
same number of papers, rather than
simply printing more copies. (So ifyou
live somewhere where two DRUMS go
where one would do, please let us
know. By the same token, if one is too
many, tell us) '
This month sees fifteen new members
in DRUM's directory, surely a record
since our very early days. This month
sees too the adven(of five new
sustaining members--organizations or
concerns that use DRUM regularly
enough that they have an interest in
reserving blocks of space on a yearly
basis. More about sustaining membership
next time.
For now, happy holidays, eh. Ifwe
keep our little worlds strong and
connected, maybe the larger ones will
also stick.
cu)._\)~~"'
~~~4_3u~~
DRUM is a publication of Kensington Market Drum,
P.O. Box 67590, 576 Dundas Street West Toronto M5T 3B8
Material lvith a DRUM by-line may be reprinted with acknowledgment.
Material with an individual by-line or credit,
is in the copyright of that individual.
Points of view in such items are those of the individual.
DRUM is multipartisan rather than non~partisan.
We have the right to reject items.
For deadlines see page 16.
For rates and infonnation, 363-DRUM.
DRUMMERS, May 1992
Sally Stollmeyer, Allan Schwam, Angelo Pimentel, Amina Miller,
Josh Smith, Robert Lives, Mike Milando, Shelly Stringer, Colin
Puffer., Masha Buell, Nina Ewing, Angie Choly, Leon Kaplan,
Derek Rogers, Sophia Perlman, Luca Perlman, Martin Smith,
John Stollmeyer, Jack Gewarter, Mary Fish, Robert Boucher,
Buzz Burza, David Perlman, SN Bianca, Kate Burt McNeil,
Karen Pang, The Wilburs, Elizabeth Melo, Mabuti Seabe, Stan
Mazur, Lany Walker, Jim M_uggah, Chris Lowry, Jeff Stinson,
Carol Branning, Doug Hum, Pamela Brown, Janice Runge,
Anthony Seaburg, Bernie Buehl, Deborah Cowman, Mark
Kajouji, B. Glenn, Pat Bisset, Maisela Kekana,
Bread & Roses Credit Union
Drum by Matyas, layout by KF Editorial
printing by Weller
Letters to DRUM
Box 67590
57 6 Dundas Street West
Toronto MST 3B8
published. Unless stated here, lettet·s are published in their entirety.
HELP CREATE
A CITY FOR
CIDLDREN
(Safe City Play Space)
Dear DRUM:
Gradually over the last several
decades we have given over more
and more of the city to cars - now
up to 50% of Toronto's space is
largely devoted to this major cause
of urban pollution (air, space,
noise). Toronto now has the distinction
of being the most polluted
of cities of its size in North
America.
At the end of May, I participated
in the second International Auto­
Free Cities' Conference which
took place at the Board of Education
(we also used City · Hall,
Metro Archives and, of course, the
Island - one of North America's
few auto-free spaces.)
We focussed a lot on children as
the biggest losers in the struggle to
limit cars. Dr. John Adams, a
U.K. writer and geographer, spoke
at the "Children First'' workshop
and other forums about how the
unchecked spread of the car has
driven children off the streets into
their homes where young imaginations
are shaped by often violent
television rather than direct experience
(See One False Move, A
Study of Children's Indepemlent
Mobility.)
Our ' concern in downtown
Toronto, is that few steps are
being taken to limit car use, despite
City Council's wish to dramatically
reduce emissions in the
next few years. Children are most
hurt - asthma, bronchial and lung
disorders particularly hurt them ~
but also children are ignored as
City space is converted, not to
parks and playgrounds, but rather
to parking lots and increasingly
congested and dangerous roads.
Children in North Jarvis (30-35
Charles) got a five-storey parking
lot instead of a park; Sussex-Ulster
children are still waiting for a
traffic plan to make their streets
safer; on the Waterfront, with too
many roads, the City still has not
dedicated a bicycle lane on
Queen's Quay to serve young
citizens; St. Lawrence children
will suffer from the failure to close
a small section of the Esplanade so
that they will have direct surface
access to the playground for the
new Market Lane School.
This sad list of the failure to
serve Toronto children goes on
and on. At the Board we are hoping
. to make some real changes in
putting young children first in
determining use of City space.
Recently we passed a motion at the
Environmental Issues Committee
asking that the Board work with
the City to create play streets for
children (particularly in park-deficient
areas). As well, we will be
meeting this summer to plan how
local community schools may be
reinforced th_rough developing safe
cycling and walking routes to
school for children.
At the end of his book, John
Adams reminds us of the United
Nations Convention on the Rights
of the ChiJd (1990) which requires
that children be given first call on
society's concerns and capacities. ·
Wf? have a long way to go to
realize this in downtown Toronto.
Let me know if you would like to
help in this struggle. 591-8044
Ward 5, 6 Trustee Joan Doiron
(
PANHANDLERS HARASSING US, MERCHANT SAYS
Dear DRUM -
There has always been the odd homeless
pe11son walking the streets of Kensington
Market. But things are definitely getting out of
hand. Make no mistake, these people do need
help but bringing them to Kensington to hang
out on the streets and get readily available
cooking wine from the Baldwin St. grocer is
not the answer. The police have gone some
way in handling the complaints and clearing
them from back alleys and other places they
find themselves, but this is not a solution. I'm
sure the fire dept. are tired of being called in
with medics to handle the reports of intoxicated
individuals requiring assistance.
Market shoppers are constantly being harassed
by panhandlers. On just one walk along
. Baldwin Street I was asked for money four
times. Other people were also repeatedly
approached for cash. I am sure that market
shoppers do not enjoy being harassed this way
-who would. The worry is these people won't
return. People come here to save money and
enjoy the market. All that I'm saying is all of
this is not good for Kensington. I'm tired of
1M JUSf 5AYIN~
BE 'f!AU Of
WHAT YOU ijAVf
AT T»E MOMENT
walking over drunken bodies while coming
and going through the stairwells of St. Andrew
parking lot So are a lot of people.
I'd like to take this opportunity to ask the
drop-in centre on Augusta A venue run by St.
Stephens to help alleviate this problem.
The centre should take some responsibility
to find a remedy. Let them start by asking
these unfortunates who use their facility to stop
harassing the public [while drunk and
panhandJing], in Kensington.
We in Kensington Market are a tolerant
bunch, but when business starts to suffer and
customers complain something has to be done.
In order to curb the panhandling and drunken-
- ness in the neighbourhood, I want to ask the
public to refrain from contributing their money
to what is a larger social problem. I feel this
would ultimately help everyone to address the
larger picture and would go a long way to
support prosperity in a struggling marketplace.
a concerned merchant
Roberto Agricola
/;
OOo lbaW~®
)