Moms Stop the Harm (MSH), a Canadian organization made up of families whose lives have been impacted by substance use, abuse, and deaths, is marking the fifth anniversary of the British Columbia government declaring the opioid crisis a provincial health emergency with a rally taking place at the legislature on Wednesday, April 14.
Jan Mahoney, a member of MSH who lost her son to an overdose in 2018, says that legalization and safe use is key to stopping deaths.
[“The government has] been very, very negligent in funding mental-health care, in funding treatment programs, in funding emergency programs for people,” she says. “I know when my son needed to get into detox on an emergency basis, it was a month wait. They have a lot to answer for.”
Mahoney says the protest on April 14 will consist of signage featuring late loved ones lost to the epidemic, signs calling on local officials for action, and safe distancing and mask wearing.
“It’s tough with COVID-19,” she says.
Mahoney says it’s key to treat addicts through whatever avenue they choose, be it cold turkey, harm reduction, 12-step treatment, or another method.
“Some people, abstinence is just something they can never obtain,” she says, “but if they had a safe regulated supply, their lives are livable, because they’re not out on the street trying to hustle for dope.”
Mahoney says that the government’s unwillingness to properly address this issue comes from fear of losing votes. More people died in BC in 2020 from the opioid crisis than the COVID-19 crisis, and the government response to the latter shows what can be done, says Mahoney.
“We definitely want to prevent deaths from COVID-19, there’s no doubt about it,” she says. “But when you see what the government can do when they put their political will, and their money, and their heads together, I don’t see why they can’t be doing the same thing to prevent and stop this overdose crisis, which is now ravaging all communities across the country. It’s just lack of political will.”
Mahoney will be going down to the Parliament Buildings and holding a vigil for her son for two hours every day this week.
“We felt like we needed to do that,” she says. “You also hold a place in your heart for everybody else that’s died… We’ll be down there with a picture of our son and some candles.”
Mahoney wants people to understand that it’s very challenging to try to navigate the system alone, and that accepting the fact that many people who suffer from this illness do have relapses is also part of the process.
“Addiction is the only disease where we kind of kick people to the curb,” she says, “and then expect them to figure out how to get help.”
5th Anniversary of the Declaration of a BC Public Health Emergency
12 pm, Wednesday, April 14
Parliament Buildings
momsstoptheharm.com