Transcript
Speaker: I'm Jane Williams. This is the Red Eye Podcast. You can hear our live broadcast on Saturday mornings from 10 till noon at 100.5 FM in the Lower Mainland.
Speaker: In this episode, Lorraine Chisholm is joined by Jennifer Johnstone of Central City Foundation to talk about the new series of the Hope Dialogue Show on Co-op Radio. The Hope Dialogue radio show and podcast is created in Vancouver's downtown Eastside and broadcast here on Co-op Radio.
Speaker: This show explores topics, issues, and complex circumstances challenging low-income neighborhoods like the downtown east side and others around the lower mainland and beyond.
Speaker: Their new season starts March 2nd. That's Monday at noon here on Co-op Radio. The Central City Foundation provides financial support for the show, and we're pleased to connect with Jennifer Johnstone, president and CEO of the foundation, to talk about this project. Hello, Jennifer.
Speaker: Hello. Hello. Hope Dialogues began as a series of conversations in the downtown Eastside way back in 2017, seems so long ago. What were some of the things you learned about the challenges for women, children, and youth in in the inner city from those foundational conversations?
Speaker: Yeah. so you know, we really wanted to do something different in inviting people into the conversations around the complexities in our community and not just sort of have a panel presentation. So the way we did it was to bring in the leaders of women's organizations throughout the downtown east side to sit in conversation tables with folks for an evening. And people were able to move between tables and dig into some of the issues. And we we had the opportunity to create a ah study guide and was so interesting when we reached out to folks outside the community, invited them in ah how many folks read their study guide and came full of questions and curiosity about the challenges that women in face in the inner city and the ways in which you know, a variety of women's organizations, the Downtown Eastside Women's Center, Battered Women Support Services was there, WISH, the Vancouver Women's Health Collective, and how these organizations have been addressing these complexities over, you know, over time. In particular, the epidemic of violence against women in our inner city, but also the, you know, the specific challenges that women face in finding housing and employment and opportunity within the inner city. And then our children and youth one, we did the same thing, bringing in organizations like Antlia's, Urban Native Youth Association, Anya, folks like that, to have a similar sort of round of conversations and found that it was a really great way for people to take the time to really think about the complexity of things and not looking for simple answers or, you know, a silver bullet.
Speaker: In many ways, at Central City, we've known for a very long time how we can fix things, but there isn't the political will to actually do it. So we want to get into some of those complexities of how we address helping people improve their lives today and then working on those systemic issues that might have a broader improvement across our community.
Speaker: And why did you decide to transition to a radio program and a podcast? um A couple of different reasons. We really have been looking for all the ways in which we can address the narrative that is out there about a Vancouver's downtown Eastside and many inner city communities, that it's really just a collection of problems. And we really wanted to address that dehumanizing narrative about our community.
Speaker: And so felt that the radio show and the podcast were a way to reach a lot of folks and to give an opportunity for people in our community who live and work in our community to lift up their voices and not not in a soundbite, you know, or a two-minute interview, but to take the time to really sit down and have a conversation.
Speaker: that gets into some of that complexity and helps people from outside our community understand the challenges that people face every day and the ways in which people are addressing those challenges and the, you know, the incredible ingenuity and spirit of resilience and innovation that we see in our inner city community every day.
Speaker: I just so much love to hear that because at Co-op Radio, we believe in handing the mic to people who are actually on the ground, close to the experiences they're talking about. And that is not something that you get every day. Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah. We felt it was really important to take some time, you know, so having a full 60 minute interview, it's interesting, folks are a little bit hesitant when we invite them to to be a part of it. But once the conversation starts, in no small measure, due to our amazing host, Don Schaefer, who has a wonderful ability to engage folks in ah in a conversation.
Speaker: But it really, it gives people time to explore issues and to really get into some of those complexities rather than, you know, preparing your your media brief. Tell us about some of the conversations of the past season of the show that stand out for you, Jennifer.
Speaker: Yeah, i ah it's been a real treat to hear some of our community organizations be able to talk about what they're doing. So folks from Mission Possible, for example, our friends from Aunt Leah's and others. And then we've had sort of a series of conversations where we're trying to help people understand some of the deeper issues. So we had Indigenous leaders in conversation, starting with Norm Leach, who is currently the executive director at Frog Hollow Neighborhood House, but an elder in the community, and who spent an hour talking about what decolonizing really means and really sort of breaking it down for folks in terms of both reconciliation, but also in redress and and how we're making, you know, how the change needs to happen in our community these days. We did ah had a wonderful conversation with Ginger Gosnell Myers and one of our board members, actually, Maura Gowans, who is an Indigenous therapist, and she came and talked about what Indigenous trauma-informed counseling really means. It's a beautiful conversation.
Speaker: and full of love and belonging. So yeah, we've had some really wonderful conversations, some that are more intellectually challenging. You know, I've listened, needed to listen to them a couple of times to understand everything that folks are talking about. So that's been great.
Speaker: And based on some of the numbers we're getting in terms of people listening, I think, We've built up a ah body of understanding that just keeps growing. And so I'm excited about that as well. We're able to, you know, because i encourage people to listen to the radio. I love to listen to the radio and I listen to co-op radio. So I think it's great to listen to on the radio, but it's also great that we're building up this archive. of and storytellers, an archive of these amazing conversations that we can refer people to. And it's been a really great way for people to learn more about our community and and about the organizations they want and might want to get to know.
Speaker: I understand that Corey Douglas will be the first guest on the coming season. Give us a glimpse of some of the conversations you have planned. Who who are a few of the people you have coming up on the series this year? Yeah, so we have Corey. We also did something very fun. We flipped the script, and I interviewed Don Schaefer, who's our host. This was a very fun conversation, really talking about why conversations are important and and why right now this medium of radio and the opportunity to you know to spend some time talking about things is so important as a way to bring us together.
Speaker: And a place to you know where people with different different ideas can come together and have a really good conversation. So that was really fun. We also have Melissa Giles from Band City. Community Foundation, who's coming to talk about the BC Rent Bank. We've been talking with Andrea Reimer, who is doing ah some very interesting work these days around power.
Speaker: And Jill Atkey, CEO with the BC Nonprofit Housing Association, is another person that we're working with right now to try to to have that conversation. So trying to cover topical things that people are concerned about right now, and also digging into some of those bigger issues and those systemic issues that need to be addressed in our in our community.
Speaker: Sounds wonderful. Sounds like definitely worth tuning in. Now, Jennifer, as a nonprofit leader in the social justice area, what values and mindsets would you like to encourage that could foster greater support for and better solutions for people in the downtown east side and other similar kinds of neighborhoods and communities?
Speaker: Well, I think, and the name of the show is sort of the underlying value here, which is hope. You know Central City Foundation, hope is an active choice and it is an active resistance to despair. And we practice it here.
Speaker: And it's rooted in our commitment and belief in the intrinsic value of human beings that everyone who is here belongs here and should have the opportunity to overcome injustice and participate and thrive in our community. And that what we can do to foster hope programs and things that that help people belong and have that sense of belonging goes a long way to building a community where people will be able to thrive.
Speaker: You know, when people have been working on projects or books or films, I love to ask what they hope audiences will take away from their work the work, the audience for that work. And since the show, as you mentioned, is called Hope Dialogues, that question seems ah especially appropriate. what What are your hopes for the show? Yeah, I think that, you know, that people will will come and listen and sit with us in this complexity. You know, we're not, this is not a show where we're, you know, we're seeking clicks and things like that. We do hope to reach a broader audience across, particularly across Metro Vancouver, but and beyond as well, of course, and to help influence how people see their neighbors, you know, and understand that that we are all neighbors here.
Speaker: And I believe that we live in a very compassionate community. And one where the more we understand this each other's struggles, the more compassion grows. And that, you know, this show is a way for us to to bring those compassionate voices together to dig into some of those more challenging issues that that we're trying to address. And whether that's poverty or violence against women violence. you know, how we heal from trauma. These are conversations that are important and will lead to, I believe, a deeper understanding and a greater compassion for each other.
Speaker: It's been really wonderful talking to you. And i really hope we have lots of ears, lots of listeners for your show. Thank you, Lorraine. i appreciate that very much. I've been speaking with Jennifer Johnston. She's president and CEO of the Central City Foundation. They're the originators and funders of the Hope Dialogue radio show and podcast. Their new season starts March the 2nd. That's Monday at noon here on CFRO, Co-op Radio, 100.5 FM, streaming live worldwide at coopradio.org.
Speaker: You've been listening to the Red Eye Podcast, produced by an independent media collective based in Vancouver. If you enjoyed this episode, it would be great if you left a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps other people to find us.
Speaker: Also, please consider sharing this episode with a friend or telling someone about our podcast. To keep up with the show, you can subscribe to Red Eye wherever you listen to your podcasts. And you can follow us on Blue Sky at Red Eye Radio.
Speaker: I'm Jane Williams. Thanks for listening.
