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A Facebook page has announced Vancouver's first do-it-yourself street festival in response to recent police crackdowns on unlawful events.

"We do not want to live somewhere where we can’t use public space," the organizers state on Facebook. "We do not need a license to dance, to listen to music, to gather freely. Our hope is that those in attendance will be inspired to organize their own events, and will begin to conceptualize the potential of an act as simple as being in the street."

The DIY Commercial Drive Street Festival will begin at Grandview Park at 7 p.m. on August 21 and include a free barbecue, an open microphone, and a "Fuck the Permits Street Party & March" at 7:30. "The VPD recently issued a statement warning that they will go after the organizers of 'unlawful' events to cover policing costs," the organizers state. "Thousands of dollars are required to secure a permit for any public event in this city, and applicants are routinely waitlisted for years on end—if not downright denied." On July 1, Vancouver police pepper-sprayed people and made arrests at Cannabis Day event in downtown Vancouver.

This came after deputy city manager Sadhu Johnston issued a written warning to organizers that the city had not approved of the east side of the Vancouver Art Gallery.

Police also showed up in large numbers to the annual May Day protest on Commercial Drive, which attracted about 5,000 people. Three people were arrested and one person was stabbed but not seriously injured.