Tom Sandborn, 30 June 2008, TheTyee.ca

Organizers of the 2010 Olympics refuse to tell the public where gear for the games and Olympics-branded products are made, though critics say such secrecy makes it far harder to expose sweatshops in the Olympic supply chain. The reason is that businesses fear competitors might lure away factories that produce on an ethical basis, or gain proprietary information, said Ann Duffy, who looks after sustainability issues for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Secrecy is guaranteed in agreements already entered into with some suppliers and sponsors, Duffy said at a June 12 public event focusing on ethical purchasing for the Olympics.

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To Whom It May Concern;

Please accept this letter as a declaration of opposition to the upcoming 2010 Olympics set to take place within traditional St’at’imc Borders. Many members of our Nation, including children, youth, elders and land users do not support the Olympics taking place in Whistler for many reasons. First being that Whistler and many other towns, cities and municipalities are illegally occupied by foreigners and run by fraudulent government systems that oppress the original inhabitants, the St’at’imc People. These government systems are built to hold lands illegally and destruct entire ecosystems in order to gain profit for the already wealthy corporations.

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Vancouver 2010, Coronation of the North American “Community”, Future of North America by Andrew G. Marshall 

The year 2010 will mark a very important date for all people living within Canada, the United States and Mexico. The often-cited Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) document, in conjunction with the Mexican Council on Foreign Relations and the Canadian Council of Chief Executives (CCCE), titled “Building a North America Community,” serves as the blueprint for the objectives of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP). The three above-mentioned “interest” groups make up the Independent Task Force on the Future of North America, who produced the report, in which they state, “The Task Force’s central recommendation is establishment by 2010 of a North American economic and security community, the boundaries of which would be defined by a common external tariff and an outer security perimeter.” Vancouver, British Columbia, will be hosting the 2010 Olympics. A 2006 “Report to Leaders” regarding the SPP states as one of its “Security Initiatives”, to “Develop and implement joint plans for cooperation on incident response, and conduct joint training and exercises in emergency response.” As a “Key Milestone”, they recommend to “Initiate planning within 6 months (December 2005) for a preparedness exercise to be conducted in advance of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver/Whistler.”

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by Maya Rolbin-Ghanie, March 1, 2008, The Dominion

“We are preparing to disrupt the Olympics any way that we can. We want to let the world know that our land is not for sale,” said Kanahus Pelkey, at a February 1 talk held at the Native Friendship Centre in Montreal. It was one of many stops on an extensive speaking tour of the Great Lakes and East Coast regions of Canada. The speakers included Pelkey, of the Secwepemc and Ktunaxa First Nations, and Dustin Johnson, of the Tsimshan First Nation — both members of the Native Youth Movement (NYM) in British Columbia. The packed room saw many people sitting on the floor and standing for several hours.

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Gordon Campbell and VANOC are hosting a Countdown to 2010 Luncheon at the Hyatt Regency Hotel. Let us show them what we think of all their corporate plunder!

Monday February 11, 2008. Gather at the Vancouver Art Gallery @ noon. March arrives at Hyatt regency hotel at 12:30. (655 Burrard street, corner West Georgia)

The 2010 Winter Olympics will take place on unceded indigenous land in two years. The effects of the Olympics are far greater than the games itself- with the expansion of sport tourism on unceded indigenous lands and increased land tenure to corporations; increasing homelessness and gentrification of poor neighbourhoods; increasing privatization of public services; union busting through decisions such as the seven-year imposed contract handed down to the BC Ferry and Marine Workers Union and the recent Canadian Union of Public Employees contracts; exploitative conditions for workers especially temporary migrant labour; the fortification of a security apparatus estimated at $175 million; and unprecedented desctruction of mountains, old growth forests, streams, hunting and fishing grounds, and delicate ecosystems.

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