This past Tuesday, Manitoba’s NDP government opened the province’s first taxpayer funded drug consumption site for the supervision of the use of illegal drugs. The opening followed almost three years of controversy and multiple proposed or considered locations. A previously selected location was ultimately abandoned because of protests that it was too close to a school and to a daycare. Hundreds of people came out to community organized forums to protest the location before it was eventually determined it would not be used for a supervised drug use site.
The proposed next location, on Henry Avenue in Winnipeg, drew the same types of concern from local residents and businesses. Community forums were held and residents asked the NDP government to reconsider the location which needed extensive renovations. It was the subject of around the clock security, months before it was actually open.
It might be easy to assume that the objections where simply from people who did not want the facility in their neighbourhood. To be sure, many local residents did object, concerned about the potential for increased crime and drug use and selling in the area. This is part of the reason that in other parts of the country many of these facilities have been closed. But also, among the concerned Manitobans were many who expressed the opinion that the way to deal with addiction isn’t to provide the mechanism to do drugs, but rather to increase the support for addictions recovery. One of those voices, Joseph Fourre, has lived experience with addiction and homelessness and founded Singing Red Bear Foundation, which provides support to families dealing with addiction.
Mr. Fourre said that on Tuesday, after the supervised drug consumption site was opened, that his heart was breaking. Mr. Fourre’s plea for a focus on addictions recovery brings up a significant concern.
While the primary focus of the NDP for the past three years has been on pouring, time, energy and taxpayers’ dollars into getting a supervised drug consumption site open, there has been comparatively little attention given to helping people break free from addiction. That requires additional treatment beds and facilities where people can get long term support. The previous Progressive Conservative government, on the advice of addiction specialists, opened RAAM (Rapid Access to Addictions Medicine) clinics in various locations in Manitoba. These clinics have been critical in helping those dealing with addiction get medical support more quickly from specialized professionals. Yet, while there is a need for more clinics with longer hours, the focus of the NDP has been almost exclusively in opening, despite local objections, a drug consumption site.
Will the NDP now, finally, begin to focus on treatment facilities for those struggling with addiction? There has been little sign of that so far. And yet, there are many non-government organizations in Manitoba who are more than willing to step up and partner with the government to provide addiction treatment support in a holistic life changing way. Many of these are faith-based organizations and many of them are not, but they stand ready to help in one of the most pressing problems the province currently faces.
Three years of almost exclusive focus on a supervised drug consumption site should not have come at the cost of improving treatment support. And yet, it is clear that was the priority. It is now time, past time, for the focus to shift to ensuring that those who want to break the hold of addiction can find ready and appropriate support.
