Calls to decriminalize drugs grow louder in Simcoe County & Muskoka
A new report provides additional context into the ongoing struggles of opioid-related overdoses in Simcoe County and Muskoka.
'Decriminalization: Humanizing our Communities' is a new report commissioned by the John Howard Society of Simcoe & Muskoka, the Indigenous Harm Reduction Network, Gilbert Centre and the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition.
The organizations behind this new report are united in their calls for decriminalizing drugs to address the growing problem of fatal overdoses. Health officials now say one person dies every few days due to this in Simcoe County & Muskoka.
"There's a lot of really great best practices that come from other parts of Canada regarding how people who use drugs should be engaged in these conversations," says Sarah Tilley, the Gilbert Centre's harm reduction program manager. "However, having this local report of people who are actively living, working, playing, using drugs in Barrie is going to put a more local spin on it and will help to better advocate from a local perspective."
The report is based on two days of consultations with various stakeholders in Oct. 2021, including many substance users themselves. Tilley says their insight is critical as their voice is often neglected in these types of reports.
"So it's been known for a long time that people who use drugs should be part of the policies around people who are using drugs," Tilley says. "So hopefully, that's something that will influence our current political leaders as well as social service providers and medical personnel who are living and working in this community and living and working with people who use drugs."
The report says that decriminalization will "address the social stigma associated with using criminalized substances."
The move to decriminalize would also alleviate many concerns users have with interacting with police and seeking treatment from the healthcare sector. Some contributors to the report suggest drug users are 'red-flagged' when in hospital.
"Treat people with kindness and compassion because, with kindness and compassion, people feel safe to reach out for help when they are ready, and they are more likely to," says Cathy Eisener, a nurse with the Simcoe Muskoka District Public Health Unit.
Several unintended delays led to the report not being released until today, well over a year after consultation first began.
But officials say its release now, just a few months after a municipal election was held, can provide added context to people not aware of the steps taken so far.
"As we move into a new political climate in Barrie with a new city council, I think that this report can be a great first step in introducing people to the issue who maybe haven't been a part of it since maybe the first supervised consumption site application went in," says Tilley.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What's a Barnacle? It's yellow, sticks and screams if you try to pry it off your car
Barnacles, bright yellow devices used to make sure parking scofflaws pay their tickets, could soon be making their way to cities across Canada.
They were from different countries and barely spoke each other's languages. More than 20 years later, they're still happily in love
He decided to spend Christmas somewhere that wouldn't involve snowstorm disasters. She was spending the holidays with family, travelling for the first time outside of her native country of Venezuela. 23 years later, they're still in love.
Man who set himself on fire outside Trump trial dies of injuries, police say
A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former U.S. President Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
Verdun Airbnb listing taken down amid complaints, fines and frustration from neighbours
An Airbnb in Montreal's Verdun borough was the source of much frustration from neighbours who say there were constant parties at the location. It has been taken down from the app, but housing advocates remain upset about short-term rentals.
Fire in Labrador town under control, officials tells residents to stay away
RCMP say the fire that prompted a state of emergency in a Labrador town is now under control.
12 students and teacher killed in Columbine school shooting remembered at 25th anniversary vigil
Thirteen victims of the Columbine High School shooting were remembered during a vigil Friday on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the shooting that was the worst the nation had seen at the time.
Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza city of Rafah kills at least 9 Palestinians, including 6 children
An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza's southernmost city killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.