Straight Talk

Video: Homeless man hosed down in front of Gastown commercial real estate office

by Charlie Smith on March 28th, 2020 at 5:54 PM
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      Some Vancouver residents have expressed outrage over social media in connection with how a homeless person was treated in Gastown.

      Video on social media shows a person spraying a garden hose to remove the man from the front door of 305 Gore Avenue.

      The real estate office is part of an 11-storey mixed-use condo complex called The Edge, which was developed in 1999 at 289 Alexander Street.

      One of those who tweeted about the incident was Harsha Walia, executive director of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association.

      She described the use of the hose as "despicable anti-homeless violence".

      (Warning: the video includes swearing.)

      It's increasingly difficult for the homeless to find a place to rest in Vancouver as a result of the closure of libraries and most community centres, as well as the conversion of fast-food outlets and other restaurants to takeout joints.

      For more on that, check out the tweets below by homeless resident and Straight contributor Stanley Q. Woodvine.

      Update

      This hosing of the homeless man has generated a great deal of discussion over Twitter. Here are some of the messages.

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