Written for Daily Hive by Sean Orr, who is a writer, musician, artist, student, dishwasher, and activist, living and working in the unceded Coast Salish territories of Vancouver, BC. He is running for Vancouver City Council with VOTE Socialist.
I never thought I’d ever be doing an op-ed for Daily Hive but here we are. We may not have always seen eye to eye over the years, but I do believe Daily Hive wants what’s best for Vancouver. It may be hard to believe after decades of my bellicose column Tea and Two Slices, but that’s what I want too. I just want it for everyone, not just those who can afford it.
I’ve tried to use my platform, one graciously provided by my late editor and all-around good guy Andrew Morrison, to hold those in power to account, and that includes the media.
Sure, my passion sometimes gets the better of me and I can be ruthless on social media, but it’s almost always in the name of “punching up.” I’m sure Andrew would be just as shocked to see my name on these pages, but I like to think he’d be less surprised about why: I’m running for city council.
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For me, this seems like a natural progression. Most, if not all, of the problems I was criticizing in my early days still persist: inequality, unaffordability, austerity, criminalization of the marginalized, failed drug war policy, lack of art spaces, music venues shutting down, friends priced out of town, and on and on. That’s why when VOTE Socialist formed with the promise of a Vancouver for All, I jumped at the opportunity to represent them.
Now I’m sure some of you will be thrown by the big, scary, s-word: socialism. But we benefit from socialist policies every day. Minimum wage, child labour laws, socialized medicine, libraries, public schools, pensions, and income assistance; to name just a few.
We just want to extend those things. Things like the four-day work week, accessibility justice, free buses, rent control for renters and small businesses (because we can’t let the financialization of real estate destroy the fabric of our city), and social housing.
As my friend says, “you’re a socialist too, you just don’t know it yet.”
But it seems like everyone is talking about the symptoms of inequality — tents on the sidewalk, crime, drug use — and not the root causes. Remember folks, poverty is violence. Let me be clear, nobody wants to see our city like this. But public safety can’t be the sole realm of the Vancouver Police Department. They are the status quo and the status quo is failing.
Public safety happens when we become a community, not when we push us-versus-them messaging that perpetuates a divide. Unhoused people and people living in tents are your neighbours.
What we need are healthy, happy, and equitable cities. Cities with dignified housing, mental health services, safe supply, peer support networks, treatment beds, green spaces, meaningful reconciliation, mutual aid, cheap and accessible transit, and cycling and pedestrian infrastructure.
Because if there’s one thing I’ve said ad nauseam, it’s that the system isn’t broken. It’s working fine. The same system that produces shiny glass safety deposit boxes in the sky also produces people living in tents. It’s all connected.
That’s why we need radical action at City Council — not pearl-clutching and constant points of order. We need policy, not pet projects. People over profits. We may not agree on everything, but come October, save a vote for Sean.