Fire This Time is an independent newspaper
reflecting the struggles of oppressed people for building a
new world. The Fire This Time Newspaper is supported solely
through the individual donations from readers and supporters.
Fire This Time prints 7,000 - 10,000 copies per
issue 20% of this is distributed
throughout Canada, US & Internationally via mail. As a
result of expanding mail distribution, Fire This Time
Newspaper can be found in progressive bookstores and shops
in all major cities in Canada. In addition, the newspaper
is available in more than 150 locations in the Lower
Mainland!
For subscriptions, bulk orders and any other combination,
contact Fire This Time distribution coordinator at:
604-780-7604 or distroftt@mail.com
Antiwar Rally &
Petition Drive
Hands off North Korea!
End the Sanctions on North Korea!
Imperialists Hands Off Syria!
No Sanctions Against Iran!
Stop Israel's Ongoing
Assault on Palestinians!
Self-Determination for Indigenous
Nations & All Oppressed Nations!
U.S. / Canada/ NATO
Out of Afghanistan Now!
France, Canada & All Foreign
Troops Out of Mali!
No to War & Occupation!
Yes to Self-Determination!
Money for Health Care, Jobs,
& Education Not for War & Occupation!
Money for First Nations Not
for War & Occupations!
U.S. Out of Iraq Now!
Free Bradley Manning Now!
No to U.S. Drones!
Saturday June 22nd, 2013
2pm
Vancouver Art Gallery
Robson St & Howe St.
Downtown Vancouver, Canada
Workers of the World Unite!
Against War and Occupation
May 1st, 2012
REPORT COMING SOON!
Vancouver Committee to
Defend Freedom of Expression
Newsletter#1 September 2012
Stand against police brutality!
Stop harassment and assault on civil liberties!
Oppose suppression of freedom of expression!
Hands Off Fire This Time newspaper activists!
Volume 8 Issue 1
of Fire This Time Newspaper
This issue includes the following:
Who's Meddling in Civil War in Syria?
Haiti 3 Years After the Earthquake: Nothing Has Been Accomplished!
Indigenous Awakening
Cuba's Free Universal Healthcare System: How do they do it?
How I Spent My Summer Vacation with the Che Guevara Volunteer Work Brigade to Cuba
Imperialists Hands off Mali - The New Era of War & Occupation Spreads to Africa
Free the Cuban 5 Now! Over 100 People Attend Montreal Cartoon Exhibit of Gerardo Hernandez
January 5th - Another Step Forward! Vancouver Participates in International Day of Action to Free the Cuban 5 Heroes
Huge March Defends Venezuela's Democracy & Revolution
Legal and Political Situation in Venezuela Today
...and much more!
To view the newspaper in PDF Format, click here
H1N1 and the Government of Canada's Inaction to
Help Native People
War and Occupation in Afghanistan:
Which Way Forward?
Minimum Wage: $10 Ridiculous, $15 Not Enough, $17
Acceptable... for now
People Organize Resistance and Fight Back
at the G-20 Meeting in Pittsburgh, USA
My Flower to Bush, the Occupier
- the Story of My Shoe (speech by Muntadhar
al-Zaidi)
The Untold Story of the Cuban 5:
Impossible Mission
Washington on Honduras:
the Tightrope Walker - [part II]
Louis Riel: A Revolutionary Legacy
Reflections of Fidel:
the Bells are Tolling for the Dollar
Hip Hop vs. War: Vancouver Hip Hop Festival
Promotes Peace and Humanity
Vancouver, Canada: International Day of Action to
Free the Cuban 5
World Food Day in Crisis
...and much more!
To view the newspaper in PDF Format, click here
To view individual articles click here
Volume 6
Issue 3
of Fire This Time Newspaper
This issue includes the
following:
Afghanistan Election Farce:
No Democracy under Military Occupation!
What is all this healthcare debate in the US
about?
Washington on Honduras: The Tight Rope Walker
Leonard Peltier Parole Statement
Indigenous in the Belly of the Beast
Would MLK Back Iran's Protester's?
Our People Are Capable of Triumph Over All
Difficulties
Reflections of Fidel: The Yanki Bases and
Latin American Sovereignty
"Smart Power" Against Latin America
Vancouver Successfully Launches 20th Pastors
for Peace Caravan to Cuba
MAWO Activities in July Expose Imperialist
War Drive
Protest the G-20 Meeting in Pittsburgh,USA!
It's Time to Demand Jobs and an End to the War
Against People at Home and Abroad!
Vancouver: Activists Form A Coalition To
Oppose Right-Wing Coup in Honduras!
...and much more!
To view the newspaper in PDF Format, click here
To view individual articles click here
Volume
6 Issue 2
of Fire This Time Newspaper
This issue
includes the following:
AFGHANISTAN:
US, Canada and NATO Intensify the Killing of
Innocent People
The Canadian Government on Honduras:
Lessons for Today and Tomorrow
HONDURAS: US Counter Revolution Strikes
Back in Latin America
Imperialist Campaign Continues Against
Sudan
An Open Letter to the Anti-war Movement:
How Should we React to the Events in Iran?
US Supreme Court Rejects Appeal for Review
by the Cuban 5
Vancouver Joins International Days of
Action to Free the 5 Cuban Heroes
The Indian Nation
MAWO Statement Against the Coup in
Honduras
Where the Coup in Honduras Could Lead
Reflections of Fidel: A Nobel Prize for
Mrs. Clinton
Cuban Five Visitation Rights for Adriana
Pérez: Obama and Clinton Must Change Their
Position
...and much more!
To view the newspaper in PDF Format, click here
To view individual articles click here
Volume 6
Issue 1
of Fire This Time Newspaper
This
issue includes the following:
SOFA: A Bad Seat for Iraq
Seven Years of Resistance by Afghan
People Shows Absurdity of Bloodshed and
Occupation
Why are the UN/Imperialists Carving up
Congo?
Cuba After the Hurricanes: How
Socialist Cuba Confronts Hurricanes and
Natural Disasters
BOLIVIA: Revolution and Counter
Revolution
The United States, Cuba and the
Economic Crisis
Cuba Hurricane Relief and
Reconstruction Fundraising: A Huge
Success from Coast to Coast!
UN General Assembly Condemns US
Blockade on Cuba
"We Can Move Toward a Just City" -
Interview with Dave Diewert, Vancouver
Downtown Eastside Activist and a Founder
of Streams of Justice
Canadian Democracy vs. Indigenous
People
Louis Riel: A Revolutionary Legacy
Five Cuban Anti-Terrorist Heroes: A
Symbol of Resistance Against Injustice
Vancouver: A City of Homelessness and
Poverty Olympics
Reflections of Fidel: Total
Transparency (English/Spanish)
...and much more!
To view the newspaper in PDF Format, click here
To view individual articles click here
Volume
5 Issue 4
of Fire This Time Newspaper
This issue includes the
following:
It's true, Believe it - Canada is
an Imperialist country...
Canadian Democracy in Action: The
Tale of Elizabeth May
Cuba Hurricane Relief &
Re-Construction Campaign
Hip Hop Versus War
Interview with Pioneers of
Palestinian Hip Hop Sabreena da
Witch & Da Arabian MCs
Interview with Sam McKay - Council
Member of the Kitchenuhmaykoosib
Inninuwug First Nation
Pride & Dignity Against Wind
& Rain (English & Spanish)
Che Guevara, Thinker &
Fighter! Are His Ideas Relevant for
the 21st Century? Vancouver
Conference
Reflection of Fidel Castro - "The
Good-Guy Role, at Whose Expense?"
(English & Spanish)
Carlos Lage Speech to Municipal
People's Power Assembly Presidents
15th Protecting Mother Earth
Gathering
*5 Cuban Heroes Special Section*
Message from Rene Gonzalez, one of
the 5 Cuban Heroes
International Campaign for
Visitation Rights of Wives of the
Cuban 5
56 MPs Sign Letter of Support for
Cuban 5
...and much more!
To view the newspaper in PDF Format, click here
To view individual articles click here
Volume 5 Issue 3
of Fire This Time Newspaper
This issue
includes the following:
"Canada First Defence
Strategy" and the Occupation of
Afghanistan
Canada's Genocidal Residential
Schools
Why Africa Roars (English
& Spanish)
Bill C-50 Government of Canada
New Anti-Immigrant Legislation
Justice for Frank Paul!
What's the Big Deal About
Biofuels?
US government "Day of
Solidarity" with the Cuban
People
Interview with Clarence Thomas
of ILWU on the May 1st, 2008
work stoppage against the US war
and occupation in Iraq
Lifting the Prohibitions
(English & Spanish)
The World of Work in a
Changing Cuba
Reflection of Fidel Castro -
"The Empire's Hypocritical
Politics" (English &
Spanish)
Free the 5 Cuban Heroes
Political Prisoners Held in US
Jails
Key Address by Jose Ramon
Machado Ventura to the
Conference on World Food
Security (English & Spanish)
Global Economy: Recession or
Realignment (English and
Spanish)
...and much more!
To view individual articles click
here
To view the newspaper in PDF
Format, click
here
Volume 5 Issue 2
of Fire This Time Newspaper
This issue includes the
following:
Iraq: 5 Years of War,
Occupation & Resistance
Poverty has a Woman's Face
Mining in Ontario,
Colonial Conquest of
Indigenous People
Fidel Won the Battle
Gaza: the Acid Test for
Palestinian Liberation
Canada vs. Afghanistan
The Fight for a Living
Wage
Interview with Kat Norris
on Justice for Frank Paul
(English & Spanish)
Speech by Raul Castro at
the closing session of the
National Assembly of
People's Power (English
& Spanish)
Free Mumia Abu Jamal!
Break the US Blockade:
Interview with John Waller
Free the 5 Cuban Heroes
Political Prisoners Held in
US Jails
Visit Revolutionary Cuba
Defend Alison Bodine
The US Attack on Iran, a
talk by Rostam Pourzal
Report back from the
Conference for World
Equilibrium in Cuba
International Women's Day
2008
...and much more!
To view individual articles click
here
To view the newspaper in PDF
Format, click
here
Volume 5 Issue 1
of Fire This Time
Newspaper
This
issue includes articles on
the US' escalating threats
against Iran. Featured is a
special piece on this war
drive by Dr. Naser
Zarafshan, in both English
and Farsi. Included on the
international front are
articles on the current
occupations of Iraq and
Afghanistan as well as the
build up of war against
Sudan. On the home front,
articles explore the issue
of police brutality, both in
the killings of Frank Paul
and Robert Dziekanski. Also
included is an article on
the current attack on Muslim
women through elections
legislation in Canada.
Additionally, two interviews
are featured; one with
Indigenous activist Ray Bobb
on the question of treaties;
and one with Rav Ghuman of
the International
Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers, on the Sears
lockout imposed on his
Union. Notably as well, this
issue has a report back from
the international conference
for the Cuban 5, "Breaking
the Silence", held in
Toronto, Canada in Nov 2007.
Related to Cuba, this issue
also includes Fidel Castro's
latest reflections and a
speech by Cuban Foreign
Minister Felipe Perez Roque
on the UN vote against the
blockade on Cuba. Look
inside for much, much more!
To view individual
articles click
here
To view the newspaper in
PDF Format, click
here
Distribute
Revolutionary
Change In
Your Area!
For Distribution
of Fire This
Time in your
area; across BC,
Canada and
Internationally
please contact:
Nita
Palmer
Publicity and
Distribution
Coordinator
Phone:
604-780-7604
Email: distroftt@mail.com
One year
subscriptions to
the Fire This Time
newspaper are now
available outside
the Lower
Mainland, make
cheques payable to
“Nita Palmer”
(Canada $15, USA
$20, International
$30)
PO Box 21607
Vancouver BC
V5L 5G3
FIRE THIS TIME
UNDER ATTACK!
STOP POLICE ASSAULT ON
FIRE THIS TIME NEWSPAPER!
For more info, visit
http://www.stoppoliceassault.com/
September 4, 2012
FIRE THIS TIME ACTIVISTS BRUTALIZED AND ASSAULTED BY TRANSIT POLICE AND RCMP!
STAND AGAINST POLICE BRUTALITY!
STOP HARASSMENT AND ASSAULT OF POLITICAL ACTIVISTS!
OPPOSE SUPPRESSION OF FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION!
Campaign updates and videos of the assault available here:
On August 31,2012, at Metrotown Skytrain Station near Vancouver, Canada, Transit police officers and the RCMP assaulted, handcuffed and removed three activists that were peacefully distributing the Fire This Time newspaper (FTT). Because FTT is a non-commercial, free social justice newspaper, the officers had no legal ground to stop the distribution. It is clear that the aim of the assault was to intimidate and harass social justice activists which is political targeting as FTT publishes many articles against war and in support of social justice struggles in Canada, from Indigenous rights to labour organizing. This was an attack on our fundamental civil and democratic rights which include freedom of expression and the right to organize and demonstrate without violence and intimidation. It is also a case of police brutality, which is a disturbing trend growing in Canada.
AUGUST 31: Fire This Time Activists Brutalized and Assaulted by Transit Police and RCMP
On the day of the assault, we were distributing the FTT newspaper without incident at the Metrotown Skytrain Station. After an hour, two transit police officers arrived and immediately began telling the four of us that we needed to leave the station and stop distributing. We showed the officers and read aloud the publicly posted Transit rules available on large boards in every skytrain station. These rules state that, “printed material for non-commercial purposes will be permitted on transit properties, other than transit vehicles or fare-paid zones,” provided distribution does not impede transit traffic or operations.
The police insisted that it did not matter what the posted rules state and that there are other rules that are not posted. When we asked what those rules are or how they applied to this situation, they refused to answer. Instead, the police stated that because they were asking us to leave the station and wewere refusing, this was justification for our arrest. This sort of Catch-22 argument never answered the fundamental question as to why they demanded we leave in the first place!
Drawing the attention of many passers-by, who took videos of the escalating police harassment, we continually asked the police, “Why are we being arrested?” “What have we done?” “What laws have we broken?” These questions were never answered. Soon, Shakeel had his arm wrenched behind his back by the officer putting him in handcuffs. During this assault, Mike, another FTT activist, began filming with his phone. Once the officer realized the assault was being filmed he responded by grabbing Mike’s arm and putting him in handcuffs as well. The officer attempted to take away Mike’s phone, but he was able to pass it another FTT activist who was consulting with a lawyer and documenting the assault.
At the same time, another officer was harassing Thomas, the FTT activist who had been explaining the posted Transit rules. Holding tightly onto a stack of FTT newspapers, Thomas continued to ask the officer “Why are you doing this?” The officer ignored this question, threatening him with arrest and saying he would “hurt” him if he tried to move away. In response to Thomas’ peaceful questioning, the officer grabbed his neck, pushed pressure points on his head and slammed him into a corner.
When back-up Transit and RCMP officers arrived, they made the total officer count more than ten, and took Mike and Shakeel out of the station in handcuffs. On the street outside of the station, both had their bags searched without consent and were put in the back of two RCMP patrol cars. Thomas was kept in the station and continued to ask the officer what laws he had broken and why he was being arrested until he was viciously rammed up against the stair railing by three officers, tackled to the ground, handcuffed, and taken out of the station. During this, Thomas was told he was being arrested for “creating a disturbance”. Thomas was put in the back of an unmarked SUV.
After some time in the vehicles Thomas, Mike and Shakeel were each told separately that they would be released without any charges but banned from the Transit system for 24 hours. It was clear that the police officers had no reason for arrest, as Thomas, Shakeel and Mike had broken no Transit rules and had been targeted because of the political nature of the FTT newspaper.
Thomas, Shakeel and Mike were separately driven to a Burnaby Community Police Station and released. All three of us had to visit the Emergency Room for medical treatment following the assault.
Following the harassment and assault, we were never issued a ticket or any written documentation. We were never told on what basis we were asked to leave the Skytrain station in the first place. During this incident 150 of our newspapers were taken and we have video footage of a police officer holding some of them. Immediately upon his release from police custody, Shakeel checked his phone for the video footage he had taken during the assault and it was not there. This video had been erased during the time that an RCMP officer had his phone.
This was not an isolated incident, but the culmination of four months of repeated harassment of FTT activists distributing the newspaper. However, in most cases Transit officials and police officers were forced to allow us to continue distribution after we pointed out the publicly posted Transit rules and defended our right to continue distribution. The August 31 assault was an escalation of this campaign of harassment and intimidation. We have video footage available for many of these incidents.
Stand Up for Democratic Rights!
Why is it that after over an hour of harassment and brutal assault we were released without charges and without being told that we were in violation of any Transit rules? Without a doubt if police had had any justification or valid legal reason they would of pursued further action or charges. This makes it clear that the police and transit authorities were politically targeting Fire This Time activists.
This assault on our democratic rights is happening in the context of the new era of war and occupation. Since September 11, 2001 the U.S. and its imperialist allies including Canada have begun a new era of increasing war and occupation; from the continued occupation of Afghanistan to the bombing and war against Libya and now threats, sanctions and covert foreign intervention in Syria and Iran. Whenever imperialist governments like the U.S. and Canada wage brutal and devastating wars abroad it is always accompanied by a crack-down against those who defend social justice and protest war at home. As an independent social justice newspaper, Fire This Time spreads a message against this war on working and oppressed people at home and abroad. This assault and continued harassment is an attack on our democratic rights and freedom of speech and expression in order to silence independent voices for peace and social justice.
Incidents like these remind us that if we do not defend our rights we lose them. We will vigorously defend not only the right of our organization to organize and publish its ideas, but the right of all poor and working people to do the same even if they contradict the current government’s policies and practices. We absolutely refuse to be intimidated by violence and harassment, and call on all peace and social justice loving people to join with us in defending our fundamental democratic rights. United we can defend and extend the rights past generations fought so hard to establish! United we can win!
We must join together to demand:
STAND AGAINST POLICE BRUTALITY!
STOP HARASSMENT AND ASSAULT OF POLITICAL ACTIVISTS!
OPPOSE SUPPRESSION OF FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION!
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