A Poverty Olympic Athlete eats in Guru Nanak’s free kitchen in the DTES

This video shows Hendrik Beune dressed up as a Poverty Olympic athlete eating at a free kitchen sponsored by Guru Nanak at Lifeskills Centre in the Vancouver Downtwn Eastside as compared to how REAL Olympic athletes would have nutritious food to eat and have a dietician, team trainer and doctor to help optimize their performances. (If it wasn’t for Guru Nanak volunteer’s benevolence, alot of DTES citizens would go hungry and would not be introduced to the beautiful religion and culture of our friends)

World Class Poverty

Canada is one of the wealthiest countries in the world. And the province of British Columbia (BC) is among its most prosperous regions. But some people are being left behind.

Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside — the city’s poorest neighbourhood — was singled out in 2007 by the United Nations Population Fund as a sign of “trouble in paradise.” The HIV rate here is 30% — the same as Botswana’s. Other diseases like Hepatitis C are rampant. Visitors who think of Canada as a caring, wealthy place are shocked to see the malnutrition, addiction, homelessness, and other harsh signs of grinding poverty all around.

It’s not just one “problem” neighbourhood either. British Columbia has the highest poverty rate in the country. One in five BC children live in poverty.

There are about 10,000 homeless people in communities all around our province, even in small towns. More than 2,000 of them live on the streets of Greater Vancouver. Pivot Legal Society estimates that homelessness in Vancouver is likely to triple by 2010.

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The Second Annual Poverty Olympics will be held on February 8, 2009

1:00-3:00pm at the Japanese Language School, 487 Alexander St, Vancouver, BC.

www.povertyolympics.ca

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I agree with the issue here but would just like to point out (also satirically) that the food at Guru Nanak’s Free Kitchen is very healthy and nutritious and pretty good as well 😉

By kulpreet singh on January 12, 2009 at 7:14 am

… but yes, the government needs to seriously look at how the Olympics could displace and hurt the homeless residents of the Vancouver DTES.

By kulpreet singh on January 12, 2009 at 7:16 am

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