🍉 VanGran4Pal Community Newsletter (September 13, 2026)
Introduction
Dear neighbours & friends,
The new school year is in full swing, and fall is just around the corner. The leaves on the trees in our neighbourhoods are starting to turn, and with that a new turn of events. In what came as a surprise to many, Canada joined the UK to announce sanctions on Israel because of its “settler terrorism” (UK’s words) in the West Bank, calling it ethnic cleansing.
To be completely honest, these are more platitudes than anything. Banning trade and goods into illegal settlements feels like the smallest gesture towards what we actually need from our government. A full embargo on all military goods being exported to Israel (directly or indirectly), full economic sanctions on Israel, and a full boycott of Israeli goods coming into Canada.
Because of that, we have one major action below for you to take. It is to demand that Canada end all support of the illegal Israeli settlement enterprise.
Lastly, there are many events happening in the coming weeks that give us an opportunity to be in solidarity with others, including a special community member of Main Street.
As we swing into new fall routines, whether at work, at home, or in the community, let's continue holding ourselves up and supporting each other.
Until next time,
The VanGran crew
Actions you can take
Demand Canada finally act by ending all support of the illegal Israeli settlement enterprise
This week the Canadian Government ‘announced’ they are considering restrictions on settlement goods. Shortly after, Prime Minister Mark Carney, along with France and the UK stated they will “take steps to ban the importation of goods from settlements and enforce targeted measures against settlements and those who facilitate them or profit from them.” While we welcome the step, it is insufficient.
We know many goods are being imported to Canada from illegal settlements. We also know there are many other avenues in which Canada is aiding and assisting Israel’s illegal settlement enterprise (in violation of Canadian and international law).
That is why we are demanding the government take fulsome action when it states it will “enforce targeted measures against settlements and those who facilitate them or profit from them”. The framing of the statement positions the “systematic settlement expansion” as an external issue. In reality, the Canadian government, and many businesses and charities are all actively facilitating the maintenance and expansion of illegal settlements. This double standard was made clear in Canada’s earlier statement today where they said
Banning settlement goods is one step, but it is just that. We need more, urgently. The Palestinian people cannot wait. The Canadian government must end all support of Israel’s illegal settlement enterprise.
This needs to include the illegally occupied Syrian Golan as well as illegally occupied Palestine.
Upcoming Events
Liberation for Littles | September 16
Date & Location
📅 September 16, 2026
⏰ 7:00 PM EST
📍 Virtual
About
This workshop is for parents, caregivers, auncles, grandparents, guardians, and all who want to be in liberatory community with children. We will discuss how to explain our current conditions to little ones, how to equip them (and ourselves), and how to organize alongside them to resist and transform our realities.
Kids are more than welcome to participate.
DIE-IN' AND SPEAK OUT AT UBCM 2026 | September 18
Date & Location
📅 September 18, 2026
⏰ 11:30 am
📍 Waterfront Skytrain Station
About
11:30am Gather outside Waterfront Skytrain Station
12:00pm ‘Die-in’ outside the Union of BC Municipalities convention
12:30pm Speak Out for Harm Reduction and to end the war on drugs
HARM REDUCTION WORKS! Defend decriminalization, overdose prevention & safe supply. Our lives depend on it.
Vancouver - Take Action for Migrant Justice | September 20
Date & Location
📅 September 20, 2026
⏰ 11:00 am
📍 Memorial South Park • 5955 Ross Street, Vancouver, BC V5W 1T7 CA
About
Migrants make Canada work. We care for children and elders, grow food, build homes, and keep communities running.
But the government is pushing migrants out instead of giving people equal rights. Permits are expiring, being refused, cancelled, or made impossible to renew. Refugees are under attack. People are being deported. Families are being separated. Those who remain are forced to work with fewer rights and more fear.
At the same time, working class people are being squeezed by high rents, low wages, service cuts, and insecurity. Migrants are being blamed for a crisis created by underfunding, privatization, corporate greed, and governments that put the rich first.
Blaming migrants does not lower rents, raise wages, or fix healthcare. It divides workers and lets bosses, landlords, corporations, and governments off the hook. Migrants are not the cause of the crisis. Migrants are part of the solution.
This fall, the federal government is deciding the future of immigration: who gets permanent residency, who remains temporary, and who is pushed out.
On September 20, one day before Parliament returns, join people across the country taking action to demand:
- Status for all: Permanent resident status for migrants already here, and permanent resident status on arrival for migrants coming in the future.
- Renew permits: Automatically renew expired and expiring work and study permits, restore status, and ensure no one is pushed into exploitation or deportation.
- End exploitation: End employer-tied permits. Ensure equal labour rights, safe housing, healthcare, services, and real enforcement against abusive bosses.
- Stop deportations: End removals, detention, family separation, and attacks on refugees.
Kids Market for Palestine | October 4
Date & Location
📅 October 4, 2026
⏰ 10:00 am - 4:00 pm
📍 Enter from Alley• 1943 East Hastings, Vancouver, BC V5L 1T5 CA
About
Join us for a fundraiser sale of kids clothes, books, toys, bikes, strollers, halloween costumes, winter gear, baked goods, and more!
The Kids Market is a sustainable, affordable way to stock up on essentials for your children while supporting kids in Gaza through the Shaghaf Project, a grassroots education initiative, and Parents for Palestine's Teach Palestine campaign.
Families in need shop for free.
*Last hour will be free for everyone!*
Community Spotlights
Help Mohammad Ali The Heart of Main Street ❤️
Mohammad Ali, was recently shot while working at our convenience store on Main Street in Vancouver.
For more than 20 years, Ali has been a familiar and loved face in the Main Street community. To so many customers, he isn’t just the person behind the counter he is a friend, someone who remembers people, welcomes them with a smile, and has always treated the community with kindness and respect.
Ali is also a husband and a father of three children. Right now, he and his family are facing an incredibly difficult time as Ali focuses on recovering from this traumatic experience. A proper recovery takes time, patience, and support. Being away from work can also bring financial stress at a time when Ali should be focused on healing. That’s why we are raising $15,000 to help support Ali and his family during his recovery and give them some financial peace of mind while he takes the time he needs to get better.
Cinema Club
American Doctor (2026)
One of the most powerful documentaries of the year, this puts us smack in the open wound that is Gaza, filtered through the eyes of three American surgeons who volunteer their time and expertise. Of Palestinian, Jewish and Zoroastrian backgrounds, the three men are compelled to operate in the most challenging circumstances, often without adequate supplies or sometimes even electricity. Of course the hospitals themselves also come under fire. Reluctantly, but inevitably, they also become spokesmen, relating their experiences to the international media, to politicians back home in America, and to anyone else who could conceivably step up and make a difference to one of the defining atrocities of our age