Moms Stop The Harm Defies Rain to Demand Safe Drug Supply

How many people will show up for a rally under pouring rain? Quite a few, for a cause like ending the opioid overdose crisis—and if they're angry enough at government inaction.

Dozens of Moms Stop The Harm supporters defied an Environment Canada special weather warning to rally at the BC Ministry of Health office in Victoria, clamouring for a safe drug supply to put an end to the opioid crisis hecatomb that has afflicted this province for the past six years and claimed the lives of over ten thousand people.

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This is only a tiny fraction of the loved ones that were lost to the opioid overdose crisis. And yet their weight made hanging them on that rope challenging. I know, I helped with that.

You’ve read that right. The leading cause of death among adults aged 19-39 is our toxic street drug supply, and to date 1838 of them have died this year in this province.

Grab a naloxone kit. It may save a loved one’s life—for a while.

Excellent turnout for a rainy day. I’ve seen events being cancelled for less.

The event was held in conjunction with triathlete Jessica Michalofsky’s Marathon a Day for Safe Drug Supply, which has being going for 22 straight workdays of circling around the block of the Ministry of Health office, and drew the attention of several news outlets in addition to Moms Stop The Harm’s official endorsement. Jessica has been harrying the government since the loss of her son Aubrey to the toxic drug supply, vowing to continue the fight until the government yields. Yesterday, she and Correne Antrobus from Moms Stop The Harm even met with BC Minister of Mental Health and Addiction Sheila Malcolmson and Dr. Bonnie Henry, who could hardly ignore the swelling media attention, at the BC Legislature.

Speech time. Jessica Michalofsky is hosting the event.

Rain, what rain? These aren’t umbrellas and rain coats, by the way.

Every death is a drug policy failure indeed. And yeah, honk for safe drug supply; it worked for the Freedom Convoy rallies, after all.

About sixty people closed in to listen to the fiery speeches given by Cowichan Valley MP Sonia Furstenau of the Green Party, Shane Calder of the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition, newly-elected Victoria Mayor Marianne Alto, and Moms Stop The Harm co-founder Leslie McBain. The tone was harsher than at previous rallies, the speakers resorting to scathing rhetoric relayed by a loudspeaker that would convey the message all the way indoors to bureaucrats who, according to anonymous sources, just couldn’t care less about the people, to put it delicately.

Leslie McBain, Moms Stop The Harm co-founder, standing on the stage under the porch at the BC Ministry of Health building.

Well, the people in question denounced lack of government action in addressing a health care crisis which has claimed the lives of over 1800 people since the beginning of this year. It was stressed that the crisis came down to civil rights, such as access to health care and protection against discrimination. Indeed, the participants could not fail to notice the stark difference in the ways the government has handled the COVID pandemic and the opioid overdose crisis, both of which have killed comparable numbers of people, and the latter which being the leading cause of death among young adults, and yet is handled with far less decisiveness.

Moms Stop The Harm demands a health care solution to a health care crisis. It demands a clean supply of drugs as medication to be delivered to patients for whom everything else failed, and whom are reduced to supplying themselves from a street drug supply notoriously contaminated by various poisonous substances, chiefly fentanyl which can kill at even negligible concentrations. In the meantime, Leslie McBain openly supports the efforts of the Drug User Liberation Front, a Vancouver-based drug dispensary engaging in civil disobedience by reselling tested drugs bought from the dark web, which is as close to a safe drug supply as mere citizens with modest means can deliver; to this date, not one drug overdose death has been reported among its customers, in stark contrast with the provincial death toll. Clearly, the current government strategy of relying on naloxone and prayer has done little to save the lives of our loved ones.

Volunteers attended the event to dispense naloxone training and distribute kits, which may prolong the lives of drug users by a few weeks or months. While laudable, this falls way short of our expectations.

Volunteers dispense naloxone training to fellow marathoners. I’ve got a purple T-shirt like that too, they’re really cool.

I took this picture while running laps. Try taking a clear picture on the run, under pouring rain, with a crappy tablet at that.

As for the Marathon a Day, the concept is evolving. It may go on from this point forth as a weekly event with better organisation and greater numbers. This blog may be updated as details emerge.

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