We advocate for sensible drug policy, while on unceded xwməθkwəy̓əm, Skwxwú7mesh, Stó:lō; and Selilwitulh land. We are a grassroots network of youth (under 30) and students who are concerned with the negative impact of drug policies on individuals and communities. Drug use is a health and human rights issue no a criminal one. And the war on drugs is a white supremacist, colonial, ableist, and classist war on bodily autonomy. We are member led, and the work we do depends on the capacity and interests of those that join our club. We advocate for evidence-based responses to reduce and prevent harms associated with drug use and drug criminalization. Our advocacy is broad and aims to reach beyond the UBC campus with a diversity of tactics and community comrades and partners.
Read the public statement on our support for DULF; As students and young people dedicated to addressing the drug poisoning crisis in the UBC and greater Vancouver communities, we condemn the criminalization of DULF leaders for providing community-regulated safe supply. We unequivocally affirm: DULF Saves Lives.
Policy that is:
is evidence-based,
treats drug use and drug-related harms as an issue of public health and social justice, and
doesn’t criminalize people who use drugs.
Harm reduction very basically aims to reduce the harm someone is experiencing. Harm reduction has always been rooted in community and is a response to systems and hierarchies of harm maintained by capitalism, colonialism, white supremacy, ableism, xenophobia, classism and all forms of oppression. We support evidence-based harm reduction programs including but not limited to supervised consumption sites, needle/syringe exchange and distribution, naloxone/narcan distribution and training, and drug checking. Harm reduction can also look like culturally relevant services, trauma informed mental health care, safe spaces for immunocompromised folks, and alternatives to emergency services that include interaction with law enforcement. We believe that all people who use drugs, including young people, should have access to harm reduction in their communities.
: