After the shouting had ceased, the banners had been packed up and the man waiving the stuffed lobster had left the building; after the panelists had snapped at the crowd, the candidates had given up trying to win them over, and the reverend had burst into song to try to quell the uprising, a measure of calm returned to St. Andrews-Wesley United Church.
Monday nights mayoral debate was the liveliest so far in this election campaign and not at all what the volunteers whod worked for months to organize the event, attended by more than 1,000 people, had been expecting.
Olive, who declined to give her last name, had arrived earlier that evening to find a throng of Occupy Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»protesters on the front steps negotiating with the minister, Rev. Gary Paterson, tensions already running high. The thought of her place of worship, her sanctuary, being threatened with violence brought her to tears. She went inside and thought about lighting a candle and praying for peace, but was cautioned that under the circumstances open flames probably werent a good idea.
Me and my innocent stupidity, Olive scolded herself after the event. Other members of the congregation cleaned up the debris and many of the placard-waiving activists had returned to the Occupy Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»camp a few blocks away.
I still feel it now, said Olive, placing one hand over her heart, eyes watering slightly.
Lost in the vitriolic debate which saw the candidates pitted against the protesters more than each other was the heart of the matter, said Bobbie, another volunteer. She remembered the homeless man who six or seven years ago would come into the church, sit in the back and sometimes disrupt the church service.
Members of the congregation had formed the End Homelessness Now committee to find a Christian way to help him and understand him, she said. Since then, theyve raised all their own money, written letters to civic and provincial politicians and tried other tactics to nip at the heels of people with the power to help.
Theyd held two political debates on homelessness and even held a rock concert benefit with Dan Mangan, but nothing compared to the chaos that unravelled here Monday.
Weve never had to ask the police to attend before, she said.
Its not that the protesters werent welcome, added Fae Diamond, another volunteer who stopped by to debrief, but she had hoped theyd be more respectful of the space.
St. Andrews-Wesley welcomes everyone, but you have to behave, she said. All three women, their silver hair cropped close to their heads, had been hoping to hear a debate. They were genuinely interested to hear how incumbent Mayor Gregor Robertson and his rival, Suzanne Anton, intend to solve the citys most pressing crisis.
Robertson said hed continue to work with the mayors of other big cities to lobby for a national housing plan and appeal for help from senior government. He admitted that even his children likely could not afford to own a home in Vancouver. From Anton came a plan to increase density in key areas, increase job prospects and put more money into livable communities with parks and soccer fields.
But in the end, no one seemed to remember anything that was said. All they could think of was the cacophony and anger that had consumed the meeting and then flooded out onto the streets where many in this city would continue to spend the night.
