OUR MOVEMENT IN MOTION
February 15, 2022
National Harm Reduction Coalition creates spaces for dialogue and action that help heal the harms caused by racialized drug policies.
NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS
Crack Pipes are Harm Reduction
Providing sterile smokeware to people who use drugs is not new. Programs & people across the country already distribute pipes as part of the continuum of evidence-based harm reduction services.
Here’s why: Reduce HIV/HCV transmission, One way to reduce risk of overdose + skin wounds than injection, Reduce COVID, cold + flu risks, Provide connections to care + support, Less risky way to test potency
+ ANNOUNCEMENT: Crack pipes are harm reduction! Harm Reduction needs leaders who will center the wellbeing of people who use drugs over sensational media frenzies. What we saw last week in headlines is a result of the ongoing, racist war on drugs and stigma. Here’s a small roundup of some resources to understand what’s been going on.
Review of what happened this last week:
-Outrage at Biden Administration Caving to “Crack Pipes” Pressure article from Filter: [link removed]
-No, The Biden Administration Is Not Giving Black People Crack Pipes And Calling It Racial Equity article from Newsone: [link removed]
-Hear from Monique Tula and others in this Washington Post article: [link removed]
-Don't miss this great Interview with Tracie Gardner from the Black Harm Reduction Network on the #RolandMartinUnfiltered show (starting from minute 37): [link removed]
Take action:
-Join Drug Policy Alliance in calling on the Biden Administration to let evidence dictate health policy and prioritize saving lives: [link removed]
-Whether you love harm reduction and want to share about it, or you want to make sure folks know that pipes ARE harm reduction, share these graphics on social media! Download the graphics here to share on your own social media
-Invest in what works - donate right now to NHRC and support our work in building power with people who use drugs
Resources for safer use:
Safer smoking from Catie: bit.ly/SaferSmoking
Safer snorting from Catie: bit.ly/SaferSnorting
Safer injection from NHRC: bit.ly/GettingOffRight
Safer use from NEXT Distro: nextdistro.org/resources
EMERGENT & EXCITING WORK
+ EVENT: Join Caracole, Greater Cincinnati’s HIV services nonprofit, for a Q+A series about their journey from harm reduction vending machine idea to execution. These sessions are geared to harm reduction advocates and providers. Scheduled dates are: Friday , March 11 – 2:00 PM and Friday, April 8 – 2:00 PM People can learn more or register at caracole.org/page/machine
+ WEBINAR: On February 22, 2022, catch Anthony Salandy, NHRC’s Managing Director of Programs and Interim ED, on AIR’s Social Determinants of Addiction 101 Webinar. Learn more and register here: [link removed]
Harm reduction saves lives. We face the overdose crisis every day. We know harm reduction works. Together we can end overdose.
+ SUPPORT HARM REDUCTION: Harm Reduction Saves Lives. How many harm reductionists do you recognize in Vital Strategies' full page ad in the New York Times from yesterday! Vital Strategies is sharing amazing harm reduction content all week long as part of their newly launched Support Harm Reduction campaign. At the heart of the campaign is an online overdose memorial, inspired by the AIDS quilt, where people can post the memory of a loved one lost to overdose and call for action in their name. Make sure to check out their website throughout the week! [link removed]
+ ONLINE LEARNING: Did you know we have an online learning lab that offers harm reduction courses, resources, and reflection spaces? From Harm Reduction 101 to Healthcare Financing to Harm Reduction Organizing, we’ve got your online learning covered! Check out our full course offerings here: [link removed]
+ TRAINING: Hep C Medical Care & Treatment Update: Part 2, Thursday, Feb 24, 1-4 PM ET. RSVP: bit.ly/HepCFeb24
Join us for the second of the two-part series to review the latest advances in treatment for hepatitis C (HCV) and increase awareness of HCV peer workers about the overall medical care needs of people living with HCV.
THE POLICY PLUG
+ FEDERAL: The Earn It Act is back, and it’s not good. Sometimes referred to as the next SESTA/FOSTA, this act misses its mark at targeting sex trafficking and instead censors sex workers, harm reductionists, educators, queer and trans folks, and puts everyone’s internet privacy at risk. Learn more about the Earn It Act here: [link removed] and take action here: [link removed] . (And check out this great post by Hacking//Hustling about the first iteration of the Earn It Act in 2020 listing some different ways SWers can take of themselves and each other in case the bills gets signed into law! [link removed])
+ STATE: This month advocates in West Virginia introduced bipartisan legislation (HB 4573) to overturn the opioid treatment program moratorium in West Virginia! Harm reductionists deserve to care for their own communities and not be criminalized for it. Track the bill here: [link removed]
+ TRAINING: Don't get stuck in the same ol' drug war narrative traps when you're testifying for harm reduction legislation and drug policy change! Tune into Baltimore Harm Reduction Coalition's Harm Reduction Advocacy Day Training "Testifying Part 1: Avoiding Drug War Traps…" [link removed]
Follow that up with "Testifying Part 2: Honoring Our Love, Ourselves, and Our Grief." [link removed]
If you support emergent and exciting work at National Harm Reduction Coalition, please join our community of monthly donors, the Harm Reduction Champions!
Become a Harm Reduction Champion Today!
WORK FOR THE MOVEMENT
+ Louisiana Dept of Health: Hep C Lead Navigator [link removed]
Hiring? Send us a note about open positions in harm reduction to
[email protected] to have a job post shared here.
National Harm Reduction Coalition
243 Fifth Avenue
Box 529
New York, NY 10016
United States
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