An email from VPD Sgt John Rennie reporting claims that machete-wielding Native Americans were attempting to “make it a native issue and escalate to violence.” The claim was originally voiced by a “peaceful protester” who alerted private security, who in turn passed it on to the VPD. Woodsquat was indeed “a native issue” – the very first demand of the Woodwards Coalition reads “1. Develop Woodwards as social housing immediately. A. There must be an allotment of housing in the building for aboriginal people equal to or greater than the percentage of aboriginal people in the Downtown Eastside.” Woodsquat saw a difficult internal battle over the inclusion of indigenous demands, which helped to solidify the centrality of indigenous interests for activists working in the Downtown Eastside.
