Fueling the Flames of Division

Dear Editor,

On this Family Day I attended the rally at Minoru Park which was clearly organized to continue fueling the flames of division in Richmond. Why else would this rally be organized if Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) has already decided not to move forward with a safe injection site in Richmond?

Regardless of where you stand on the idea of creating a safe injection site at Richmond Hospital to save lives, there are some people using this issue to create division with false facts which incites hate. This may damage the efforts and good work the City and community has been doing to fight hate, racism, and intolerance. I had several agitated people verbally and almost physically attack me for merely suggesting we come together as one city, one community, to listen to each other and work to find a path forward in helping people who are hurting. 

Hearing comments such as people should not choose to do drugs reminded me how this complex issue has been minimized into sound bites to manipulate the uninformed. I don't know about you but I have never met anyone who woke up in the morning and chose to be addicted to illicit drugs. Every individual has a different story, many which involve abuse, trauma, mental and physical health issues, etc. These are people, not numbers. The safe injection site was part of a broader strategy to address illegal drug use as outlined by VCH, the BC Government and Health Canada. Councilors were elected to make courageous and sometimes unpopular decisions, which often require shifting the status quo in uncomfortable ways to increase public safety and save lives. 

An important piece of information that may be missing from this is, how many lives have been saved by safe injection sites? The Health Canada website indicates zero fatal overdoses in safe injection sites while there were over 25,000 non-fatal overdoses. Does this mean up to 25,000 lives were saved by the existence of safe injection sites? Maybe we should be celebrating this success in saving lives. 

Clearly where the City has failed on this hot topic has been regarding public engagement and consultation or the lack thereof. How the City does public consultation is something that requires a serious look. There were lots of opportunity in advance of the very vocal recent City Council Meetings to proactively hold a public information session where various advocates, health professionals, Councillors, MLAs, and MPs could attend to share differing perspectives to inform, educate and increase understanding before Council votes on motions to proceed forward. Richmond residents have a right to full and informed consultation even if at times it seems inconvenient and unnecessary. 

We can do better together. Let's figure out the next steps together, as one community, on this very controversial issue.

Jerome Dickey