Crackdown

It’s been almost six years since the launch of BC’s tiny safe supply program; also known as “prescribed alternatives.” Although the evidence that safe supply saves lives hasn’t changed, the political favourability of BC’s program has. In episode 56, we talk to safe supply patients, prescribers and experts who are experiencing the dismantling of this life saving program first hand. Share Post reddit Email

With fascism on the rise around the world, we explore the relationship between Canada’s housing and policing policies and the risk of far right authoritarianism at home. Share Post reddit Email

Alberta is the involuntary treatment capital of Canada. Since 2006, the province has encouraged parents to waive their children’s rights and force them into detox as part of the Protection of Children Abusing Drugs Act. And in the coming months, Alberta will begin involuntarily detaining adults as well. On episode 54, Crackdown producer Alex de Boer travels to Edmonton to meet Angie Staines and her son Brandon Shaw. When Brandon got wired as a young teen, Angie had a difficult choice to make: should she force Brandon to sober up? And what would happen to their relationship if she did? Share Post reddit Email

We lost another soldier from the front lines. Trey Helten, longtime manager of the Overdose Prevention Society and all around harm reduction hero on the Downtown Eastside has died at 42. Trey saved hundreds of lives. He was a friend to Crackdown and often helped connect us with community members. He was featured on the show twice. Today we’re listening back to both segments. Trey, we’re heartbroken. Rest in power. Share Post reddit Email

Garth’s new book, Crackdown: Surviving and Resisting the War On Drugs, has just been published by Penguin Random House and is now available for purchase online. In Episode 52 of Crackdown, Garth reads a chapter of his book called “We Will Delete All This,” about his first time using heroin as a teenager in San Francisco. *Trigger warning for sexual abuse of a child and sex work. Share Post reddit Email

On March 26th, we learned that our dear friend and comrade Shelda Kastor passed away. Shelda was a hero who dedicated decades of her life to fighting for the poor, drug users, Indigenous people, and women in Vancouver. Since Crackdown’s first meeting, Shelda helped us tell the story of how colonialism and the drug war work together to harm Indigenous people in Canada. On episode 51 we reflect on this profound loss to our show, our movement, and our community. We will never forget you Shelda. Credits Crackdown is produced on the territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil Waututh Nations. Our editorial board is Dean Wilson, Jeff Louden, Laura Shaver, Samona Marsh, Elli Taylor, Delilah Gregg, and Martin Steward. Rest in peace Shelda Kastor Dave Murray, Greg Fresz and Chereece Keewatin. This episode was conceptualized, written, and produced by Garth Mullins, Sam Fenn, and Alex de Boer. Mix by Alex Kim. All music by Blue Dot Sessions. If you like what we do here at Crackdown, please support us at patreon.com/crackdownpod. Thanks for listening. Stay safe and keep six. Share Post reddit Email

It’s the end of an era in Canada. On March 10th – after nine years in power – Mark Carney replaced Justin Trudeau as Canada’s Prime Minister. We mark the occasion by looking back at Trudeau’s legacy on the drug war: over 50,000 preventable overdose deaths. And we struggle to describe how this epidemic of death and grief has changed us and our movement. Share Post reddit Email

In this bonus episode, we’re introducing On Drugs from CBC. On Drugs from CBC looks through the lenses of history, pop culture and personal experience to understand how drugs have shaped our world. Because even if it’s just caffeine or ibuprofen, there’s a good chance you’re on drugs right now. In Vancouver’s East Hastings, the Safe Supply program challenges the conventional narrative that sobriety is the ultimate goal. Host, Geoff Turner visits the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users office to sit down with Garth. This episode explores harm reduction, examining how drug addiction intersects with issues of poverty, shame, and community. Are programs like these changing lives? Why did they end? Did decriminalization really fail? More episodes of On Drugs are available at: https://link.mgln.ai/Hipojc Share Post reddit Email

Vancouver, British Columbia, is one of the best places on earth – a world class city surrounded by ocean and mountains. If you can afford it, the good life is yours. But over the last fifteen years, Vancouver has become more dangerous for drug users than ever before. Especially young drug users. In episode 49, we hear from professor Danya Fast and Sarah West, one of Danya’s research collaborators. Both reflect on what it’s like to witness and to document preventable deaths during this crisis. Share Post reddit Email

On the eve of a provincial election in British Columbia, Garth and Sam drill down on the parties’ platforms. Plus — VANDU member Scotty Archondous tells a story relevant to BC’s coming involuntary treatment program. Share Post reddit Email

In episode 47, we bring you a brief update on the show and the harm reduction movement. Plus you’ll hear new tunes from Garth’s band. Share Post reddit Email

In Canada, alcohol is legal and we have a safe supply of booze. So why do some people drink mouthwash or rice wine? And why does the state over-police poor people for public drinking? In episode 46, we learn how Canada’s alcohol policies drive illicit drinking. And we hear from a group of drinkers who are fighting back with alcohol-based harm reduction. Share Post reddit Email

Politicians and much of the media have been lying and whipping up a moral panic. And now, decriminalization in British Columbia is all but dead. In this episode, Garth talks with Crackdown senior producer Sam Fenn and VANDU organizer Hannah Dempsey to bring you the straight goods on why drugs have been re-criminalized and what the grim implications of this move are. Share Post reddit Email

Right wing politicians say safe supply will hurt kids – that young people will get hooked on drugs they’d otherwise never try. But kids already use drugs. If we want to protect and stabilize the lives of young people who use drugs, we need a regulated, non-toxic drug supply. On episode 44, we hear from Danny – a young queer refugee who shares their story of surviving persecution and toxic drugs. Share Post reddit Email

Rightwing politicians and media pundits want us to fear safe supply and harm reduction. They say these interventions are putting children and families in danger, when we know the opposite is true. But there is one thing these conservatives are right about: Canadian kids have never been less safe. Not because of harm reduction, but because toxic illicit drugs might fuck up their lives. Or, because toxic illicit drugs might fuck up their parents’ lives. On episode 43, we tell the story of Jade — a 21 year old harm reduction worker from Saskatchewan whose parents use drugs. Share Post reddit Email

Across the country, politicians and the media are fearmongering about children’s safety. They’re using a faux concern about families to attack harm reduction and the drug user movement. And their rhetoric is rolling back life-saving, public health responses to the overdose crisis. But now young people are pushing back. They’re saying they don’t want to see harm reduction attacked in their name. Kids on the Block Part 1 tells the story of Bones, a teenager from a small town in Western Canada as he struggles to survive the overdose crisis and keep his friends safe. Share Post reddit Email

Toxic drug deaths continue to break records in BC. We need an immediate expansion on all harm reduction initiatives. More than anything, we need a real safe supply. Instead, the BC NDP is moving backwards. They’ve fallen in line with a nation-wide moral panic and are actively rolling back the province’s hydromorphone prescribing and drug decriminalization programs. Last month, cops arrested DULF co-founders, Jeremy Kalicum and Eris Nyx. Their crime? Doing what the government refused to do — provide a safe supply of drugs to people at risk of toxic drug death. Share Post reddit Email

In the trades there’s a zero-tolerance policy on substance use. But the construction industry relies on drugs. Cocaine and stimulants help maintain a demanding rate of production and opioids treat the pain caused by injury and gruelling physical labour. On the 40th episode of Crackdown, we tell the story of one construction industry veteran, Trevor Botkin, in order to explore the culture of exploitation, secrecy, and hypermasculinity that is driving overdoses among men in the trades. Share Post reddit Email

A right wing backlash against harm reduction and safe supply is brewing in Canada. Garth Mullins and Sam Fenn tell the story of how we got here — and what needs to be done to fight back. Share Post reddit Email

Being a mother who uses drugs can put you under constant scrutiny from the government. Especially if you’re Indigenous. You’re judged and watched. You live in fear of that knock on the door, when they come to take your kids away. Many moms are rightly scared to access safer supply, harm reduction, detox and withdrawal management – so they avoid those life saving services because they don’t want to draw the eye of the state. In this episode Hawkfeather Peterson and Elli Taylor, two leaders in the drug user liberation movement, share their stories of surviving the scrutiny and violence of BC’s family policing system. We also hear from professor Jade Boyd who talks about her research on why overdose interventions aren’t reaching mothers. Share Post reddit Email

Diversion: a cold, technocratic word for when we give, trade or sell our prescribed meds to someone else. A ghost story, whispered among doctors and now, a moral panic, hollered by right wing politicians. But really, everyone’s shared their meds. I’ve done it and I bet you have too – as an act of mutual aid, solidarity or maybe survival. But doctors have created all kinds of measures to try to stop it. And politicians have spread lies as part of a pretext to stamp out safe supply before it ever really gets started. In this episode we follow a guy named Pockets, as he finds relief in heroin and eventually gets prescribed Dilaudid and Methadone. Surrounded by death, in the time of fentanyl and benzodope, Pockets starts to share his safe, regulated meds to help save lives. And he’s punished for it. We also hear from professors Thomas Kerr and Geoff Bardwell who talk about their research on diversion, which provides an alternative, evidence-based, perspective on the highly controversial practice. Share Post reddit Email

  BC just decriminalized drugs. Well sort of. For the next three years, it’s legal to carry 2.5 grams or less of certain illicit drugs. But some exceptions apply. We’ve been fighting for decrim for decades. The goal has always been to stop arrests and get cops out of our lives. We got a watered down version of what we wanted. But the fact that the government did anything at all is because of our long struggle. And that struggle is far from over. Today we dig into the details of British Columbia’s diet decrim, the policy, the punditry, and the backlash. We also talk about what this reform means for the drug user liberation movement and where we go next. Transcript: A complete transcript of this episode will be uploaded here when ready. Call to Action and Political Demands: Nothing about us without us. Drug users need to be at the policy-making table as equal partners, not at the kids’ table as an afterthought. Half the dope out there is benzodope. And benzos are not on the list of illicit drugs now decriminalized in BC. That list must expand. 2.5 grams is not nearly enough. The legal threshold must increase to reflect what drug users carry and use. No police creep into healthcare. Police should not be handing out health information cards. The only role police should play in decrim is to stand down. We want cops out of our lives. Cops must not use this as an excuse to ramp up the drug war against dealers. This only ramps up the Iron Law of Prohibition, making drugs more and more dangerous (ie; opium > heroin > fentanyl). Sharing is illegal under BC’s decrim. Drug users often share or sell their drugs to friends. There is no clear line between a “user” and “dealer.” Ramp up large-scale, pharmaceutical safe supply prescribing and allow community based groups to operate safe supply programs. The success of BC’s decrim needs to be measured by the number of arrests, not referrals to treatment. Collect data on drug arrests and seizures of all types across BC, broken down by race. Learning Outcomes: Crackdown episodes are frequently used as educational tools by teachers and community organizers. Please let us know if your class or group listens to our work. Episode 36 is especially useful for exploring the following themes: What BC’s three year exemption from the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act does and does not mean for drug users. The drug-user advocacy that led to the decriminalization of small amounts of some drugs in BC. Media coverage and political rhetoric on the decriminalization of small amounts of some drugs in BC. Suggested Reading: Bonn, Matthew. 2023. “Why Does BC’s Decriminalization Exclude Benzodiazepines?,” Filter. January 26, 2023. https://filtermag.org/benzodiazepine-decriminalize-british-columbia/amp/. Boyd, Susan. 2017. Busted: An Illustrated History of Drug Prohibition in Canada. 1st ed. Fernwood Publishing. Courtwright, David T., 1952-. 2001. Forces of Habit: Drugs and the Making of the Modern World. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press. Johal, Rumneek. 2023. “No, BC Liberals: Kids in British Columbia Can’t Buy Drugs From ‘Vending Machines,’” PressProgress. January 27, 2023. https://pressprogress.ca/no-bc-liberals-kids-in-british-columbia-cant-buy-drugs-from-vending-machines/. Credits: Crackdown is produced on the territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil Waututh Nations. Our editorial board is: Samona Marsh, Shelda Kastor, Jeff Louden, Dean Wilson, Laura Shaver, Reija Jean. And, rest in peace, Dave Murray, Greg Fresz and Chereece Keewatin. This episode was conceptualized, written, and produced by Sam Fenn, Alexander Kim, Alex de Boer, Lisa Hale, and me, Garth Mullins. Thanks to everyone at VANDU’s Tuesday Education Meeting, including speakers Eris Nyx , Vince Tao, Dave Hamm and Caitlin Shane. Special thanks to Dave Hamm for helping us with the cover photo. Our academic director is Ryan McNeil. Sound design by Alexander Kim. Score by James Ash. This episode was produced with support from the Pivot Legal Society and the Unbounded Canada Foundation. If you like what we do, support us at patreon.com/crackdownpod. Thanks for listening. Stay safe and keep six.   Share Post reddit Email

Sex workers who use drugs are doubly criminalized. They have to look out for bad dope and bad dates. And change comes slow. Fights for incremental change don’t get at the big structures that cause so much harm. Are they worth it? We wonder about this when it comes to drug decriminalization. Next year it’ll be legal to carry small amounts of opioids, meth, coke and MDMA in British Columbia. We fought hard for this. Of course, the government’s concession is a watered down version of our original demand. But limiting police discretion to lock us up is a step in the right direction. At least we hope so. The prohibition of sex work began centuries before drug prohibition. Sex workers have long had dangerous working conditions imposed on them by puritanic laws. The criminalization of drug use and sex work has made both unnecessarily risky. But reforms have been won over the years. In 2014, selling sex was decriminalized in Canada. And since 2020, BC has offered a version of safer supply to a few thousand drug users. In the wilderness of laws that continue to criminalize most aspects of sex work and most aspects of drug use – do these reforms matter? On today’s episode I explore this idea with sex worker advocates, Jlynn and Jade, as well as academics, Andrea Krüsi and Jenn McDermid. Share Post reddit Email

I know you haven’t heard from us in a while. We’ve been busy. There’s a lot going on behind the scenes. So while we’re working on new episodes, we’ve done a swap with another podcast. Crackdown and Psychoactive podcast are swapping episodes. They played our episode on the Drug User Liberation Front. And we are playing their interview with me. In our conversation, we talk about my life as a young drug user, how I got involved in organizing against the drug war and how maybe Canada gets too much credit for harm reduction. You can check out Psychoactive with Ethan Nadelmann here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/psychoactive/id1574548562 Share Post reddit Email

Drug decriminalization is coming to British Columbia. And that’s a big step forward. Our movement has been fighting for decriminalization for decades. To us, decriminalization means getting cops, courts and jails out of our lives. It means police stop harassing, arresting and seizing dope off of us. For the past year, VANDU sent Garth and others to sit on a government committee and fight for this vision. Unsurprisingly, much of our advice was disregarded. But the cops fought for low thresholds — and won. That means that a big proportion of drug users in BC will remain criminalized. Cops and politicians have also made noise about ramping up enforcement on dealers. On today’s show, I talk to Leo Beletsky about why this is a bad idea that could make the overdose crisis even worse. Further Reading Beletsky, Leo, and Corey S Davis. “Today’s fentanyl crisis: Prohibition’s Iron Law, revisited.” The International journal on drug policy vol. 46: 156-159, 2017. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2017.05.050 Harris, Magdalena et al. “”It’s Russian roulette”: adulteration, adverse effects and drug use transitions during the 2010/2011 United Kingdom heroin shortage.” The International journal on drug policy vol. 26,1: 51-8, 2015. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2014.09.009 Ivsins, Andrew et al. “Tackling the overdose crisis: The role of safe supply.” The International journal on drug policy vol. 80: 102769, 2020. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2020.102769 Peterson, Meghan et al. “”One guy goes to jail, two people are ready to take his spot”: Perspectives on drug-induced homicide laws among incarcerated individuals.” The International journal on drug policy vol. 70: 47-53, 2019. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2019.05.001 Rest in Peace I’d like to acknowledge the loss of two amazing community leaders this month. Kat Norris was a comrade and fighter from Lyackson First Nation. I got to know Kat when community groups banded together to fight the extra policing and gentrification that came with Vancouver’s 2010 Olympics. Kat’s been sticking up for people in East Vancouver since the late 1970s and was famous for her fry bread giveaways. We’d also like to say goodbye to Chrissy Brett. Chrissy was from the Nuxalk Nation (New-hulk). She organized and acted as a spokesperson and defender for many tent encampments in Victoria and Vancouver, including at Oppenheimer Park. —Garth Credits Crackdown is produced on Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territories. Our editorial board is: Samona Marsh, Shelda Kastor, Jeff Louden, Dean Wilson, Laura Shaver, Reija Jean. And rest in peace, Dave Murray, Greg Fresz and Chereece Keewatin. This episode was conceptualized, written, and produced by Sam Fenn, Alexander Kim, Alex De Boer, Lisa Hale, Jade Boyd, and me, Garth Mullins. Sound design by Alexander Kim. Original score was written and performed by James Ash, Sam Fenn, and Garth Mullins. Special thanks to Professor Magdalena Harris for her time and research on the UK heroin shortage. If you like what we do, please consider donating at patreon.com/crackdownpod. Crackdown is funded in part by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Stay safe and keep six. Share Post reddit Email

A spectre is haunting BC’s overdose crisis — the ghost of Riverview Hospital. Riverview was one of the province’s main psychiatric hospitals for a century. The giant complex – sitting on 1,000 acres of kʷikʷəƛ̓əm territory just outside of Vancouver – was largely closed in 2012. Today it’s a popular horror film shoot location. Garth recently learned that his great grandmother, Rosa Mullins, spent more than 26 years locked in Riverview. Garth and his father Gary head to Riverview to find Rosa. Garth digs deep into her medical records and doctors notes and Crackdown even manages to get inside of the old hospital itself. The hospital is closed, but it’s not abandoned. The province plans to reopen Riverview as a site for mental health and addictions treatment. Police, politicians and pundits have never stopped dreaming of our banishment. And in recent decades, involuntary detention under the Mental Health Act has soared. We demand an end to involuntary treatment and access to justice for involuntarily detained patients. CW: Starting at around 22 minutes in, there are two brief historical reenactments of electroconvulsive therapy AKA electroshock. The episode also discusses suicide and psychiatric incarceration. Call to Action and Political Demands Drug users’ human rights must be at the center of any solution to the overdose crisis. Incarceration and mandatory treatment obliterate those rights. Plus, they don’t work. Solutions must involve us as partners or leaders – not prisoners. Health systems cannot be jails. Drug users and people with mental illnesses can no longer be banished from society. Drug users must be decriminalized, not re-criminalized or institutionalized. Young drug users must not be subject to involuntary detention as was proposed in BC’s Bill 22. Forced or coerced treatment doesn’t work. BC’s Mental Health Act must be overhauled. We need stronger oversight, more preventative supports and better ongoing consultation with people who use drugs and people with mental illness. List of Episode Learning Outcomes Crackdown episodes are frequently used as educational tools by teachers and community organizers. Please let us know if your class or group listens to our work! Episode 33 is especially useful for exploring the following themes: Institutionalization as a philosophy of care for people with mental illness. Involuntary and coercive psychiatric treatment in BC. The intersection of mental health and substance use. Gendered experiences of psychiatric detention. Works Cited Burr, Ashley. “History of Riverview Hospital: The birth of Coquitlam’s controversial psychiatric facility.” CityNews Vancouver, November 30, 2020. https://bit.ly/3HdcTBc. CTV British Columbia. “Mayors calling for re-opening of Riverview Hospital.” CTV News. August 26, 2013. https://bit.ly/3xm0IgC. CTV Vancouver. “Reopen Riverview as addiction treatment centre, Coquitlam mayor urges.” CTV News, January 24, 2017. https://bc.ctvnews.ca/reopen-riverview-as-addiction-treatment-centre-coquitlam-mayor-urges-1.3255837. Davies, Megan J. “The Patients’ World: British Columbia’s Mental Health Facilities, 1910-1935.” MA, Thesis, University of Waterloo, 1989. Johal, Jas & Meiszner, Peter. “Idea of re-opening Riverview Hospital gains traction.” Global News, August 26, 2013. https://globalnews.ca/news/803311/idea-of-re-opening-riverview-hospital-gains-traction/. Kelm, Mary-Ellen. “The only place likely to do her any good”: The Admission of Women to British Columbia’s Provincial Hospital for the Insane,” BC studies Vol 9 (1992). Kelm, Mary-Ellen. “Women, Families and the Provincial Hospital for the Insane, British Columbia, 1905-1915,” Journal of Family History Vol 19 no. 2 (Fall 1994): p. 72. https://doi.org/10.3138/cbmh.11.2.335. Kʷikʷəƛ̓əm First Nation. “History of Riverview.” Accessed December 10, 2021. https://www.kwikwetlem.com/sumiqwuelu-riverview.htm#history. Kolar, Marina. “Involuntary and Coercive Psychiatric Treatment: A Critical Discourse Analysis of British Columbia’s Mental Health Act.” PhD diss., University of British Columbia, 2018. Merrill, Andrew. “Riverview Heritage Inventory.” MA Thesis, University of British Columbia, School of Community and Regional Planning, 2009. “Riverview.” The Last Asylum Exhibit. Accessed December 9, 2021: https://aftertheasylum.ca/. Rosenbloom, Michael. “Chlorpromazine and the Psychopharmacologic Revolution.” JAMA. 2002;287(14):1860–1861. doi:10.1001/jama.287.14.1860-JMS0410-6-1. Sadowsky, Jonathan. “Beyond the metaphor of the pendulum: electroconvulsive therapy, psychoanalysis, and the styles of American psychiatry.” J Hist Med Allied Sci. 2006 Jan;61(1): 8-10. doi: 10.1093/jhmas/jrj001. Epub 2005 Oct 20. PMID: 16239498. Wyton, Moira. “Forced Mental Health Treatment Spikes in BC.” The Tyee, November 23, 2021. https://thetyee.ca/News/2021/11/23/BC-Forced-Mental-Health-Treatment-Spikes/. Additional Suggested Reading Battersby, Lupin and Marina Morrow. “Challenges

Last month, Crackdown Editorial Board member Greg Fresz passed away. As usual, we held a memorial for our comrade at VANDU. Sadly, we do this a lot. There’s nothing really that makes this constant death feel better, but at least we can feel “not better” together. That camaraderie? It’s the only thing that helps. When we come together to mourn our dead, there’s grief, but also anger. And resolve. Our memorials are political actions. For the revolutionary, death is not the end. Credits Crackdown is produced on Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territories. If you like what we do, please consider donating at patreon.com/crackdowpod. Special thanks to Brent Olson and Susan Boyd for taking time out to share their memories of Greg with us. Our editorial board is: Samona Marsh, Shelda Kastor, Jeff Louden, Dean Wilson, Laura Shaver, Reija Jean. And, rest in Peace Greg Fresz, Dave Murray, and Chereece Keewatin. This episode was conceptualized, written, and produced by Sam Fenn, Alexander Kim, Alex de Boer, Liz McDonald, Jade Boyd, Lisa Hale and Garth Mullins. Our academic director is Ryan McNeil. Sound design by Alexander Kim. Original score was written and performed by James Ash. Crackdown is funded in part by the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Thanks for listening. Stay safe and keep six. Share Post reddit Email

Can Martin and Laura’s fairy tale love story survive benzodope – the next lethal era of the drug war? British Columbia has seen a surge of unusual overdoses – including Martin and Laura’s. People are passing out for hours, losing their memories, and getting robbed and assaulted. And deaths have spiked. Again. But our community is responding. Harm Reduction workers like Trey Helten at the Vancouver Overdose Prevention Society are coming up with ways to keep people OD-ing on benzodope safe and alive – all without adequate resources or space. You can donate to Vancouver OPS here. Benzo contamination of the drug supply continues to get worse. Almost half of the illicit opioids sampled in B.C. now have benzos in them. More than 100,000 of us depend on this street drug supply – including Martin Steward and Laura Shaver. After withstanding so many other crises, now Martin and Laura need to survive benzodope – a scary new challenge confronting their decade-strong relationship and their work as drug user activists. But what do we do now that so many of us are wired to benzos? How much longer can we wait for safe supply? Call to Action and Political Demands Prohibition has made the drug supply unregulated, unpredictable and potentially lethal. Drug users need a safe supply – that is, access to a safer pharmaceutical version of their drug of choice; coke, meth, heroin, fentanyl, whatever. A safe supply could end the overdose crisis overnight. Police must stand down and stop enforcing prohibition. Enforcement makes illicit drugs stronger and more contaminated. Drug war policing is what brought us benzo-dope. Doctors must start prescribing benzodiazepines and opioids in combination to substitute for the illicit and potentially-lethal street benzo-dope. OPSs should be expanded & funded to accommodate the longer duration of benzo-dope overdoses. Safe supply, substitution treatment and withdrawal management services must be made available to people who are wired to benzo-dope. OPS workers — especially peers — should have unionized jobs with benefits. Learning Outcomes Crackdown episodes are frequently used as educational tools by teachers and community organizers. Please let us know if your class or group listens to our work! Episode 31 is especially useful for exploring the following themes: The outsized role of peers at overdose prevention sites in responding to the poison drug crisis. Ruptures and changes within the illicit drug supply. Romantic relationships and structural vulnerability. Public health outcomes of the benzodope crisis on people who use drugs. Works Cited News stories/journal articles: Crawford, Robyn. “Vancouver Overdose Prevention Society blames new drug for 16 overdoses in 2 days.” Global News. July 7, 2019. Daflos, Penny. “B.C. paramedics understaffed by up to 40 per cent daily due to burnout, injuries, vacancies.” CTV News, November 10, 2021. Harris, Magdalena, Kirsten Forseth, Tim Rhodes. “‘It’s Russian roulette’: Adulteration, adverse effects and drug use transitions during the 2010/2011 United Kingdom heroin shortage.” International Journal of Drug Policy, Volume 26, Issue 1, (2015): 51-58. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugpo.2014.09.009. Hennig, Clare. “Spike in overdoses reportedly due to opioid-sedative mix that acts like’ date rape drug.’” CBC News. July 8, 2019. Howard, Paul et al. “Benzodiazepines.” Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, Volume 47, Issue 5 (2014): 955-964. Jones, Jermaine D et al. “Polydrug abuse: a review of opioid and benzodiazepine combination use.” Drug and alcohol dependence vol. 125,1-2 (2012): 8-18. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2012.07.004 Laing, Matthew K et al., “An outbreak of novel psychoactive substance benzodiazepines in the unregulated drug supply: Preliminary results from a community drug checking program using point-of-care and confirmatory methods.” International Journal of Drug Policy. no 93 3:103169 (Feb 2021): 1-4, 10.1016/j.drugpo.2021.103169. Melnychuk, Mark. “New Varieties of Drugs Fuel Surge in OD Deaths; Fentanyl Containing Benzodiazepine Less Responsive to Narcan Antidote.” Leader Post, Oct 27, 2021. Ti, Lianping and Samuel Tobias, “‘Benzo-dope’ may be replacing fentanyl: Dangerous substance turning up in unregulated opioids.” The Conversation. August 11, 2021. Vescera, Zak. “B.C. harm-reduction sites, doctors struggling with new type of overdose: Benzodiazepines don’t respond to emergency treatments such as naloxone.“ Vancouver Sun, July 9, 2019. Reports: Kielty, Collin. “February 2022 Monthly Report.” Vancouver Island Drug Checking Project. March 22, 2022, https://substance.uvic.ca/blog/february-2022-monthly-report/. BC Centre for Substance Use Drug Checking Report February 2022 which found 37.9% of opioids tested positive for benzos in Feb 2022. The report states that the true number may be higher because of limits on drug testing technology. Illicit Drug Toxicity Deaths

In spite of a massive spike in overdose death, BC’s government still refuses to offer a genuinely safe supply of drugs. Eris Nyx and Jeremy Kalicum tell the story of how the Drug User Liberation Front has stepped up to do what the policy makers refuse to do themselves: offer people a safe version of the drugs they already use. Then, Crackdown’s science advisor, Professor Ryan McNeil talks about his recently published work on BC’s “risk mitigation guidelines.” Why has this program failed to curb overdose deaths and what needs to be done to improve it?   Works Cited Ed Day, Julie Ison, and John Strang, “Inpatient Versus Other Settings for Detoxification for Opioid Dependence,” Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2 (2005). Jake R. Morgan et al., “Comparison of Rates of Overdose and Hospitalization After Initiation of Medication for Opioid Use Disorder in the Inpatient vs Outpatient Setting,” JAMA Network Open 3:12 (2020). Jason Luty, “What Works in Drug Addiction?” Adv Psychiatr Treat 9 (2003): 280–288. Jeong E. Min et al., “Estimates of Opioid Use Disorder Prevalence from a Regression-Based Multi-Sample Stratified Capture-Recapture Analysis,” Drug and Alcohol Dependence 217 (2020). John Strang et al., “Loss of Tolerance and Overdose Mortality after Inpatient Opiate Detoxification: Follow Up Study,” BMJ 326:7396 (2003): 959–960. Ryan McNeil et al., “Implementation of Safe Supply Alternatives During Intersecting COVID-19 and Overdose Health Emergencies in British Columbia, Canada, 2021,” American Journal of Public Health, March 9, 2022, 1-8. The Canadian Press, “B.C. Cabinet Ministers in Line to Keep 10% Portion of Pay Usually Withheld in Deficit Years,” CBC, Feb 24 2022.   Credits Crackdown is produced on Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territories. If you like what we do, please consider donating to the show on Patreon. Special thanks to Professors Bohdan Nosyk and Bernie Paulie for their help. Our editorial board is: Samona Marsh, Shelda Kastor, Greg Fresz, Jeff Louden, Dean Wilson, Laura Shaver, Reija Jean. Rest in Peace Dave Murray and Chereece Keewatin. This episode was conceptualized, written, and produced by Rainbow, Sam Fenn, Alexander Kim, Alex De Boer, Danya Fast, Ryan McNeil, Lisa Hale and Garth Mullins. Sound design by Alexander Kim. Original score was written and performed by James Ash, Sam Fenn, and Garth Mullins. Crackdown is funded in part by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Social Sciences and Research Council of Canada. Share Post reddit Email

2,224 people died of toxic drug overdose in BC in 2021, says the Chief Coroner. How many months of fatal OD statistics have we seen since 2016? Fifty? Sixty? How many health and addictions ministers have passed through our lives as those numbers got bigger, only to move on after a few years? Enough. Politicians must face the music after another year of record-breaking overdose deaths. Since there’s no change, there must be consequences. Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Sheila Malcolmson and Minister of Health Adrian Dix must resign. Press Releases BC Association of People on Opiate Maintenance (BCAPOM), the Drug User Liberation Front (DULF), and the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU): BCAPOM and DULF Release 2021 Overdose Stats and Distribute a Safe Supply of Drugs (February 8, 2022) BC Coroners Service: More than 2,200 British Columbians lost to illicit drugs in 2021 (February 9, 2022) BC Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions: Minister’s, PHO statement on lives lost to poisoned drugs in 2021 (February 9, 2022) BCAPOM and DULF: Drug user activists commemorate 2021 overdose deaths by distributing a safer supply of heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine (February 9, 2022) BCAPOM and DULF: Press Conference on 2021 Coroner’s Report [Video] (February 9, 2022) Policy Recommendations All levels of government must immediately fund programs for safe and accessible supplies of all drugs, including cocaine, heroin, and crystal meth, by directly listening to user groups and people who use drugs, and covering these drugs under Provincial Health Insurance by adding them to the formularies, or allow us to create routes of access ourselves. All levels of government must immediately develop an accessible legal framework that decriminalizes, licenses, funds, and provides facility spaces for heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine compassion clubs. All government commissions on drug policy, safe supply, and decriminalization must include meaningful representation from drug user groups. Nothing about us without us. Credits Crackdown is produced on the territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations. Special thanks to Alex Betsos for help with research. We make this podcast with funds from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. And from our Patreon supporters. Our editorial board is: Samona Marsh, Shelda Kastor, Greg Fess, Jeff Louden, Dean Wilson, Laura Shaver, Reija Jean. Rest in Peace Dave Murray and Chereece Keewatin. This episode was conceptualized, written, and produced by Sam Fenn, Alexander Kim, Alex de Boer, Ryan McNeil, Lisa Hale, and Garth Mullins. Sound design by Alexander Kim. Original score was written and performed by Garth Mullins, James Ash, Sam Fenn, and Kai Paulson. Patreon link: You can find a complete transcript for today’s show, as well as photographs and links to further readings, at patreon.com/crackdownpod. While there, consider giving us a few bucks. It helps a lot. Stay safe. Keep six. Share Post reddit Email

2021 was a year of very ominous weather reports. There were unprecedented heat emergencies, wildfires, and Biblical floods. Meanwhile COVID-19, income inequality, and the overdose crisis continued to become more and more grim. What would it feel like to endure all of this as a young person? What would it be like to try to build a life through the chaos? To find out, we asked Rainbow, a young woman in her 20s, to record big and small moments from her life for 40 days. This is Rainbow’s story.   Learning Outcomes Crackdown episodes are frequently used as educational tools by teachers and community organizers. Please let us know if your class or group listens to our work! Episode 28 is especially useful for exploring the following themes: Navigating systems of care as a young person in Canada. Supportive housing. Romantic relationships and structural vulnerability. Stimulant use and productivity. Safe supply prescribing.   Works Cited CBC News. “2021 now deadliest year for illicit-drug overdoses in B.C.” CBC News. December 9, 2021. CBC News. “B.C. Bracing for Increase in COVID Hospitalizations Amid 5th Wave.” December 29, 2021. Fast, Danya. “Going Nowhere: Ambivalence about Drug Treatment during an Overdose Public Health Emergency in Vancouver.” Medical Anthropology Quarterly 35, no. 2 (2018): 209-225. Fast, Danya. “‘We Don’t Belong There’: New Geographies of Homelessness, Addiction, and Social Control in Vancouver’s Inner City.” City and Society 30, no. 2 (2018): 237-262. Fast, Danya, Thomas Kerr, Evan Wood, and Will Small. “The Multiple Truths about Crystal Meth among Young People Entrenched in an Urban Drug Scene: A Longitudinal Ethnographic Investigation.” Social Science and Medicine 110 (2014): 41-48. McNeil, Ryan, Taylor Fleming, et al. “Navigating Post-Eviction Drug Use Amidst a Changing Drug Supply: A Spatially-Oriented Qualitative Study of Overlapping Housing and Overdose Crises in Vancouver, Canada. Drug and Alcohol Dependence.” Drug and Alcohol Dependence (2021). Nosyk, Bohdan et al. “Evaluation of Risk Mitigation Measures for People with Substance Use Disorders to Address the Dual Public Health Crises of COVID-19 and Overdose in British Columbia: a Mixed-Method Study Protocol.” BMJ Open (2021): 1-15. Stacey, Jocelyn. “The Year the Climate Emergency Came to British Columbia.” December 13, 2021.   Suggested Additional Readings For more discussion theorizing about romantic relationships and drug use, see: Bourgois, Phillippe and Jeff Schonberg. Righteous Dopefiend. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2009. Proudfoot, Jesse. “Drugs, Addiction, and the Social Bond.” Geography Compass 11, no. 7 (2017): 1-11.   Credits Crackdown is produced on Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh territories. If you like what we do, please consider donating to the show on Patreon. Special thanks to Lee and Reith Charlesworth. Our editorial board is: Samona Marsh, Shelda Kastor, Greg Fresz, Jeff Louden, Dean Wilson, Laura Shaver, Reija Jean. Rest in Peace Dave Murray and Chereece Keewatin. This episode was conceptualized, written, and produced by Rainbow, Sam Fenn, Alexander Kim, Alex De Boer, Danya Fast, Ryan McNeil, Lisa Hale and Garth Mullins. Sound design by Alexander Kim. Original score was written and performed by James Ash, Sam Fenn, and Garth Mullins. We produced this episode in Partnership with Professor Danya Fast. It was funded in part by Frayme and the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada. Share Post reddit Email

This month we’re bringing you an episode of the podcast Yard Tales, where Garth was recently a guest. Crackdown’s musical wizard James Ash is also featured on this one. Yard Tales is a show about forbidden spaces hosted by Luz Fleming. Some stories feature border crossings, life altering events, the need to express one’s self at all costs, and that moment in life when a decision has to be made and a line has to be crossed. You can find out more about Yard Tales and listen to more episodes at https://www.yardtales.live/. Share Post reddit Email

Editorial Statement on the Criticism of Suboxone Since 2017, the BC government has been massively expanding access to a prescription medication called Suboxone that provides far less euphoria than methadone or heroin. On episode 27 of Crackdown, we tell the story of Crackdown Editorial Board Reija Jean as she tries to become a “Suboxone person.” Can she kick dope with the help of a “cop baked in?” Note: Beans the cat is healthy and happy. Don’t worry about Beans. Interviewees Reija Jean Dr. Danya Fast Policy Recommendations Nothing about us without us – drug users should be given power over the design and implementation of the pharmaceutical policies that dominate their lives. We are the experts and we deserve a real seat at the table. Drug users should have a real choice – not limited by the moral or political concerns of their physicians: Suboxone, Methadone, Dilaudid, prescription heroin, safe supply fentanyl, whatever. End the war on euphoria. Suggested Reading Danya Fast, “Going Nowhere: Ambivalence about Drug Treatment during an Overdose Public Health Emergency in Vancouver,” Medical Anthropology Quarterly 35:2 (2021): 211. David Moore. “Erasing pleasure from public discourse on illicit drugs: On the creation and reproduction of an absence,” International Journal of Drug Policy 19 (2008): 353–358. Helena Hansen, Caroline Parker and Jules Netherland. “Race as a Ghost Variable in (White) Opioid Research,” Science Technology and Human Values 45:5 (2020): 848-876. Nancy Campbell and Anne Lovell. “The history of the development of buprenorphine as an addiction therapeutic,” Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 1248 (2012): 124-139. Valerie Giang, Thulien M, McNeil R, Sedgemore K, Anderson H, Fast D. “Opioid agonist therapy trajectories among street entrenched youth in the context of a public health crisis.” SSM Popul Health. 11 (2020):100609. Works Cited Alan Cowan, Braude MC, Harris LS, May EL, Smith JP, Villarreal JE. “Evaluation in nonhuman primates: Evaluation of the physical dependence capacities of oripavine-thebaine partial agonists in patas monkeys,” in Narcotic Antagonists (1974): 427–438, Raven Press, New York. British Columbia Centre on Substance Use and B.C. Ministry of Health. “A Guideline for the Clinical Management of Opioid Use Disorder,” (2017). B.C. Coroners Service. “Illicit Drug Toxicity Report: Fentanyl-Detected Suspected Illicit Drug Toxicity Deaths, 2012-2021” (2021). Danya Fast, “Going Nowhere: Ambivalence about Drug Treatment during an Overdose Public Health Emergency in Vancouver,” Medical Anthropology Quarterly 35:2 (2021): 211. David Moore. “Erasing pleasure from public discourse on illicit drugs: On the creation and reproduction of an absence,” International Journal of Drug Policy 19 (2008): 353–358. Helena Hansen, Caroline Parker and Jules Netherland. “Race as a Ghost Variable in (White) Opioid Research,” Science Technology and Human Values 45:5 (2020): 848-876. John Lewis. “Nathan B Eddy Award Lecture: In Pursuit of the Holy Grail,” Proceedings of the 60th Annual Scientific Meeting of The College of Problems of Drug Dependence, Inc. (1998): 7-13. Marteau D, McDonald R, Patel K. “The relative risk of fatal poisoning by methadone or buprenorphine within the wider population of England and Wales.” BMJ Open 5:5 (2015):e007629. Megan Kurz, Jeong Eun Min, Laura Dale, Bohdan Nosyk. “Assessing the determinants of completing OAT induction and long term retention: A population-based study in British Columbia, Canada” Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction Issues of Substance Conference (2021): F6.3. Nancy Campbell and Anne Lovell. “The history of the development of buprenorphine as an addiction therapeutic,” Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 1248 (2012): 124-139. Valerie Giang, Thulien M, McNeil R, Sedgemore K, Anderson H, Fast D. “Opioid agonist therapy trajectories among street entrenched youth in the context of a public health crisis.” SSM Popul Health. 11 (2020):100609. Credits Crackdown is produced on the territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations. We make this podcast with funds from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. And from our Patreon supporters. Our editorial board is: Samona Marsh, Shelda Kastor, Greg Fess, Jeff Louden, Dean Wilson, Laura Shaver, Reija Jean. Rest in Peace Dave Murray and Chereece Keewatin. This episode was conceptualized, written, and produced by Sam Fenn, Alexander Kim, Alex de Boer, Danya Fast, Ryan McNeil, and Garth Mullins. Original score was written and performed by Garth Mullins, James Ash, Sam Fenn, and Kai Paulson. Donate to Crackdown on Patreon at patreon.com/crackdownpod. It helps a lot. Share Post reddit Email

Here’s a little bonus content. In November of 2019, Crackdown held a panel at the American Anthropological Association Conference in Vancouver. As drug users, we’ve gotten familiar with what it feels like when anthropology is done to us, when we are its subjects – its Guinea pigs. But in this panel we talk about what it looks like when anthropology is done with us, in partnership. Garth talks to Crackdown Editorial Board members Jeff Louden and Laura Shaver, and Crackdown Science Advisor Ryan McNeil, about Methadose. Then, Garth leads a discussion with Danya Fast, Research Scientist at the BC Centre on Substance Use and Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at UBC; Helena Hansen, Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at NYU Grossman School of Medicine; and Andrea López, Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Maryland. Share Post reddit Email

On Episode 26 of Crackdown, we look at crystal meth and the need to adapt to an unrelenting world. Share Post reddit Email

While overdoses in BC are climbing to unprecedented rates, some doctors still refuse to provide drug users with access to pharmaceutical versions of illicit drugs. Instead, many doctors view addiction as a chronic disease to be treated by limiting euphoria, prescribing “safer” analogues, or surveilling their patients. On episode 25, Garth interviews Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Professor, Nancy Campbell, about the so-called “Brain Disease Model of Addiction” (BDMA). How did this idea rise in prominence and what does it misunderstand about the reasons why many people use drugs? Works Cited Campbell, Nancy. 2007. Discovering Addiction: The Science and Politics of Substance Abuse Research. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press. ———. 2008. The Narcotic Farm: The Rise and Fall of America’s First Prison for Drug Addicts. New York: Abrams. Fast, Danya. 2021. “Going Nowhere: Ambivalence about Drug Treatment during an Overdose Public Health Emergency in Vancouver.” Medical Anthropology Quarterly. Fast, Danya, and David Cunningham. 2018. “‘We Don’t Belong There’: New Geographies of Homelessness, Addiction, and Social Control in Vancouver’s Inner City.” City & Society 30 (2): 237–62. Harlow, Harry. 1959. “Mother Love.” Carousel Film & Video, CBS Television Network. Olsen, J.P., and Luke Walden. 2008. “The Narcotic Farm.” ITVS. Preminger, Otto. 1955. “The Man with the Golden Arm.” United Artists. Rasmussen, Nicolas. 2010. “Maurice Seevers, the Stimulants and the Political Economy of Addiction in American Biomedicine.” BioSocieties 5 (1): 105–23.. Tatum, A. L., and M. H. Seevers. 1931. “Theories of Drug Addiction.” Physiological Reviews 11 (2): 107–21. In Memoriam On this week’s show, we remember our friend and comrade Hawkfeather Peterson’s son Edward Biggs, who died suddenly this month. Hawkfeather says, “he was only 22 years old. He hadn’t even begun to live life.” Rest in peace Edward. Janis Warren was a harm reduction worker and the lead singer of the band Lashback. She died of a fatal overdose in May. Rest in peace Janis. Gerrald Peachey–who most of us knew as Spike–was a drug user and a force within the movement. In 2018, he ran for city council with the campaign slogan “Put a Spike Through City Hall.” Rest in Peace Spike. Credits Crackdown is produced on the territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations. Thanks this week to Nancy Campbell and Steve Pierce for their help locating and digitizing the archival footage you heard on this month’s show. Thanks, as well, to Steve for recording our conversation with Professor Campbell. Our editorial board is: Samona Marsh, Shelda Kastor, Greg Fess, Jeff Louden, Dean Wilson, Al Fowler, Laura Shaver, Reija Jean. Rest in Peace Dave Murray and Chereece Keewatin. This episode was conceptualized, written, and produced by Sam Fenn, Lisa Hale, Alex Kim, Danya Fast, Ryan McNeil, and Garth Mullins. Original score was written and performed by James Ash, Sam Fenn, Kai Paulson and Garth Mullins. Share Post reddit Email

On Episode 24, Garth talks with the best-selling writer and activist Desmond Cole about how police use Canada’s drug war as a pretext for violence against Black communities. Share Post reddit Email

After 113 years, things might be changing in Vancouver as the city looks to decriminalize the simple possession of drugs. In episode 23, Crackdown takes a look at the birth of the drug war in Canada. Share Post reddit Email

On episode 22, Dr. Kimberly Sue, Medical Director of the Harm Reduction Coalition, answers our questions about COVID19 and the politics of vaccination. Share Post reddit Email

This is Canadaland’s episode #347 from November – The Brayden Bushby Trial And Pity Porn Share Post reddit Email

Activist Kali Sedgemore and anthropologist Danya Fast tell a story about the government’s desire for control—the way its attempts to detain and manage drug users often backfire. Share Post reddit Email

The next episode is delayed a few weeks. In the meantime, here’s what we’ve been up to. Share Post reddit Email

In 2015, Crackdown editorial board member, Jeff Louden, was on morphine pills for chronic pain. When Jeff’s doctor cut down his medication, he turned to the street to outrun dopesickness. Five years later, Garth investigates what happened to Jeff. Share Post reddit Email

Garth interviews Tim Slaney. Tim is a harm reduction worker at the supervised consumption site in Lethbridge, Alberta – one of the busiest in the world. And the government is shutting it down. Share Post reddit Email

The first thing that the plague brought to Vancouver was exile. In March, People vanished. The city looked like a ghost town. But on the Downtown Eastside, the sidewalks were still packed… Share Post reddit Email

As BC faces its worst ever month for fatal overdoses, Laura Shaver takes Mallinckrodt, the College of Pharmacists, and the Ministry of Health to Court. Share Post reddit Email

Dave Murray was a veteran drug user activist. He was a mentor to the next generation of organizers like me. He’s pretty much the reason why there is a prescription heroin program in Vancouver today. And he was our friend. Share Post reddit Email

The government has finally agreed to provide us with a safe, medical alternative to black market drugs. On Episode 15, we dig deep into the new policy and tell the story of advocacy that made this possible. Share Post reddit Email

Since the first coronavirus case was confirmed in British Columbia, around 150 people have died from a contaminated drug supply. Four people have died from COVID-19. Now we face both crises at once. Share Post reddit Email

We follow Tanis Rose’s journey through four recovery homes to tell the story of a broken system and one family’s struggle to stay together. Share Post reddit Email