East Vancouver is a district within the City of Vancouver. It goes by several nicknames consisting of: "East Side" or "East Van". The area is bounded by the city of Burnaby in the east, the Fraser River to the south and the Burrard Inlet to the north. Ontario Street divides East Vancouver from Vancouver's West Side, that is not to be mistaken for West Vancouver or the "West End" of Downtown Vancouver.
Before, East Vancouver was the first home for a lot of non-British immigrants ever since the 1880s. It has been traditionally known as a more reasonable area for working class folk. The East Side is home to much diversity, with family income, land use, ethnicity and languages. The diversity could be affected by the gentrification of the place and the rapid increase in housing prices.
The East Vancouver community has a very strong geographic identity and community, comprising of many cultures co-existing together within a dynamic urban neighbourhood. This diverse identity is influenced by gender-identity groups, a vibrant artistic vibe and a politically engaged youth population.
The artistic portion of the area is reinforced by events hosted at the Vancouver East Cultural Centre, the Eastside Culture Crawl, "the Drift" that is an annual event where local artists showcase their work centred around Main Street and a community poetry anthology called "East of Main."
The Republic of East Vancouver is a newspaper which helps to reinforce the community's political identity. The name of the newspaper is more of a joking reference to the left-leaning nature of the community as it has a strong labour history. There are frequent displays of political and social activism like the Commercial Drive Car Free Festival and many protests.