Vancouver Public Space Network Explains Use of Olympics Flag in Event Poster
By Richard Eriksson on May 1, 2007 - 1:01pm
While waiting for the bus at Broadway Station, I happened upon a poster advertising a debate and discussion about Project Civil City, an initiative by Mayor Sam Sullivan to clean up this Stinktown. No more spitting, protesting, and say so-long to Vancouver's proud tradition of jaywalking on Hastings St.
But seriously, after posting a photo of the poster to Flickr, the Vancouver Public Space Network commented at length explaining the use of Olympic imagery, which I noticed as my role of administrator of Vancouver Olympics Protest group on Flickr. (You don't have to oppose the Olympics to be a member of the group, which is interested solely in documenting the resistance.) I quote the comment at length below, which links to the Network's website on Project Civil City.
Actually we did it to be a bit ambiguous. We could have mentioned "the olympics" specifically, but referenced it by talking about "2010." This is similar to the Project Civil City document itself, which talks about cutting homelessness, reducing the open drug market, etc. etc. 'by 2010.' (So while it's not overtly an Olympic document, there are a lot of Olympic-related language and assumptions in its pages.)
The other thing that makes the flag itself (vs the olympics) a good image for the civility/un-civility debate in that it has itself been a flash point since it was first raised... both because it was stolen, then because of the protest at the flag-raising, and then because this issue was used to justify further action against groups that protest - e.g. the cutting of the DERA grant by City Council because of their association with the APC, etc...
(In that sense, yes, there are folks who equate civility with a lack of protest...).Comment by Vancouver Public Space Network on "Project Civil City"
The event, which I've listed here at Urban Vancouver, happens tonight at the Vancouver Public Library. If you're attending the event and have photos, video or audio, I'd be interested in knowing about it, so feel free to link to that here, as I won't be attending.
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