Just over a week has now passed since South Africa's 2010 FIFA World Cup began. Writing from Cape Town, I remain just as conflicted about the matter as I was eight days ago. I was a staunch critic of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, primarily because of its extreme corportization, the further marginalization of already poor communities, and what I considered to be an insane focus on a one-month party while ever-pressing economic, political, environmental and social concerns were put on the backburner.

I returned to South Africa two weeks ago after a six-month hiatus in Canada.

The end of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics has marked two successes in Canada's pro-social housing movement.

Less than two weeks after opening the Olympic Tent Village, organizers announced that housing was found for 35 homeless persons staying at the Village. Village residents had previously stated that the action would continue indefinitely until housing was found for those in need. Activists also participated in a "tent-in" at BC Housing just hours before accommodation was announced.

While BC Housing claims that these persons would be housed regardless of the Tent Village, organizers are confident that it was instrumental in expediting the process.

While the mainstream media continues to either ignore or blast the Olympic Tent Village, village residents are fighting back by taking things into their own hands.

The Tent Village Voice, a publication by Village residents, has already produced two newsletters during the camp's short week-and-a-half life. Voice profiles Downtown Eastside residents and allies, and highlights the demands of the action.

Hundreds gathered outside the Vancouver Art Gallery today to call upon all levels of government to implement and support a national housing strategy.

Signs that said "The People Say: Build Homes Now!," "Homes Not Games," and "End Poverty. It's Not a Game" lined the steps of the Gallery as advocates spoke of the need for greater federal involvement in ensuring increased access to safe and affordable housing nationwide.

The "Right to the City: Rally for a national housing program" action was organized by the Impact on Communities Coalition (IOCC) and supported by politicians, faith-based organizations, Downtown Eastside (DTES) groups, and other activists and advocates.

For the last three nights, I've been camping at the Olympic Tent Village in the Downtown Eastside. The Village, supported by dozens of groups, is located on a lot owned by Concord Pacific but rented by the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (VANOC) for use as a parking lot during the 2010 Vancouver Games. The action is meant to raise awareness about the lack of safe and affordable low-income housing; the high number of homeless persons across Canada; gentrification; and the criminalization of poverty.

Two pro-social housing campaigns have joined together to create awareness about homelessness and the need for a national housing strategy. Emilio Rojas, a performance multimedia artist and participant with the 2010 Homelessness Hunger Strike Relay, is using one of Pivot Legal Society's red tents as part of his action. Sleeping in the front window of Vivarium Gallery until Sunday as part of a Performance/Installation entitled "Of Hunger, Homelessness and Spectacle," Rojas has created a mock street scene complete with books on homelessness, a cardboard sign, a shopping cart, a sleeping bag; and a prominently placed red tent.

Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES) neighbourhood is not known as one of the city's most beautiful. Notoriously referred to as Canada's poorest postal code, the DTES has high rates of poverty, drug use, and sex work. Next to glossy Gastown, it can seem dark and ominous, viewed by many as offering little else than prowling police and a strong homeless presence.

But the community of the DTES thrives in a way that few others in the city do. Vancouver is referred to by residents and visitors alike as "No Fun City," touting strict liquor laws, few community events, and dispersed neighborhoods. The Olympic Tent Village, located at 58 W. Hastings, embodies a liveliness, spirit and sense of compassion that demonstrates the neighbourhood's resilience, dedication and innovation.