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Calgary·NewProtesters stage 'die-in' outside Lethbridge City Hall against supervised consumption site closure
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Sarah Rieger · CBC News · Posted: Aug 31, 2020 9:24 PM MT | Last Updated: 41 minutes ago
Protesters stage a die-in outside of city hall in Lethbridge, Alta., after the closure of the city's only supervised consumption site. (David Opinko/Lethbridge News Now)
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More than 100 protesters staged a "die-in" outside of Lethbridge City Hall on Monday, against the closure of the city's only supervised consumption site.
Lori Hatfield with Moms Stop The Harm said the closure will be devastating to the community,
"The impact will be death. There's no other way to put that," she said.
The site, run by non-profit group ARCHES, shut its doors on Monday.
It was ordered to close by the province after a government-ordered audit found $1.6 million of public money unaccounted for.
The former site had 13 injections booths and two inhalation rooms, and saw hundreds of clients per day — it was the busiest site in the country. It will be replaced by a temporary mobile site which will have two booths, no inhalation rooms, and an area to monitor people for signs of an overdose.
"No other organization would be shutting down the service, they would be putting other management in place and the service would still be operational."
She also accused the province of taking a one-sided approach to addiction treatment that is against harm reduction, an assertion that has been put forward by critics after the government commissioned a review that focused on the negative community effects of supervised consumption sites, rather than lives saved or overdoses reversed.
A report last year found the province's sites, including ARCHES, have a 100 per cent success rate at reversing overdoses. The sites also provide other services, like emergency medical care, education on the harms of drug use, and referrals to other social services like counselling.
Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Jason Luan said at the time the audit was released that ARCHES had lost his trust, and that his focus was to ensure that those in need of support have access to care.
Protesters at the event chanted "harm reduction saves lives," and later held a moment of silence to commemorate lives lost to addiction.
Sam Mackey was once addicted to meth and fentanyl, and experienced homelessness. She now hasn't used in eight months and was working with ARCHES before its closure.
She's 26 and was a client of ARCHES since she was 18.
"They were the only place that I could go that didn't treat me like a junkie," she said. "I can't express the feeling that is to be living on the streets, you go into a grocery store, you go into a gas station, people look at you differently."
She expressed the need for harm reduction services to support others going through what she experienced.
"We have a real epidemic, people are really dying."
The mobile replacement site, which is being operated by Alberta Health Services, can be accessed at the Lethbridge Shelter and Resource Centre at 802 2A Avenue North, seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 4 a.m.
Alberta saw 142 accidental opioid overdoses over the first three months of 2020, or 1.6 deaths per day.
With files from David Opinko of Lethbridge News Now
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Calgary·NewProtesters stage 'die-in' outside Lethbridge City Hall against supervised consumption site closure
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Sarah Rieger · CBC News · Posted: Aug 31, 2020 9:24 PM MT | Last Updated: 41 minutes ago
Protesters stage a die-in outside of city hall in Lethbridge, Alta., after the closure of the city's only supervised consumption site. (David Opinko/Lethbridge News Now)
5
comments
More than 100 protesters staged a "die-in" outside of Lethbridge City Hall on Monday, against the closure of the city's only supervised consumption site.
Lori Hatfield with Moms Stop The Harm said the closure will be devastating to the community,
"The impact will be death. There's no other way to put that," she said.
The site, run by non-profit group ARCHES, shut its doors on Monday.
It was ordered to close by the province after a government-ordered audit found $1.6 million of public money unaccounted for.
The former site had 13 injections booths and two inhalation rooms, and saw hundreds of clients per day — it was the busiest site in the country. It will be replaced by a temporary mobile site which will have two booths, no inhalation rooms, and an area to monitor people for signs of an overdose.
- Lethbridge braces for closure of Canada's busiest supervised consumption site
- Mobile supervised consumption site inadequate to meet Lethbridge's needs, critics say
"No other organization would be shutting down the service, they would be putting other management in place and the service would still be operational."
She also accused the province of taking a one-sided approach to addiction treatment that is against harm reduction, an assertion that has been put forward by critics after the government commissioned a review that focused on the negative community effects of supervised consumption sites, rather than lives saved or overdoses reversed.
A report last year found the province's sites, including ARCHES, have a 100 per cent success rate at reversing overdoses. The sites also provide other services, like emergency medical care, education on the harms of drug use, and referrals to other social services like counselling.
Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Jason Luan said at the time the audit was released that ARCHES had lost his trust, and that his focus was to ensure that those in need of support have access to care.
Protesters at the event chanted "harm reduction saves lives," and later held a moment of silence to commemorate lives lost to addiction.
Sam Mackey was once addicted to meth and fentanyl, and experienced homelessness. She now hasn't used in eight months and was working with ARCHES before its closure.
She's 26 and was a client of ARCHES since she was 18.
"They were the only place that I could go that didn't treat me like a junkie," she said. "I can't express the feeling that is to be living on the streets, you go into a grocery store, you go into a gas station, people look at you differently."
She expressed the need for harm reduction services to support others going through what she experienced.
"We have a real epidemic, people are really dying."
The mobile replacement site, which is being operated by Alberta Health Services, can be accessed at the Lethbridge Shelter and Resource Centre at 802 2A Avenue North, seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 4 a.m.
Alberta saw 142 accidental opioid overdoses over the first three months of 2020, or 1.6 deaths per day.
With files from David Opinko of Lethbridge News Now
CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices|About CBC News
Report Typo or Error
?
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
Alberta reports 426 new COVID-19 cases over the weekend, 2 more deaths
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Climate change creating vast new glacial lakes, with risk of 'gargantuan' floods, researcher says
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It's official, Alberta classrooms no longer required to maintain 2-metre distancing
Drew Anderson
News -Canada -Calgary
'Snow way out' for Albertans this winter, with lots of the white stuff and extreme cold, Farmers' Almanac says
News -Canada -Calgary
Quebec's rising COVID-19 cases could prompt another lockdown, premier warns
News -Canada -Montreal
COMMENTS
To encourage thoughtful and respectful conversations, first and last names will appear with each submission to CBC/Radio-Canada's online communities (except in children and youth-oriented communities). Pseudonyms will no longer be permitted.
By submitting a comment, you accept that CBC has the right to reproduce and publish that comment in whole or in part, in any manner CBC chooses. Please note that CBC does not endorse the opinions expressed in comments. Comments on this story are moderated according to our Submission Guidelines. Comments are welcome while open. We reserve the right to close comments at any time.
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MOST LIKED
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Type your comment here...
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