Pubdate: Fri, 06 Jan 2012
Source: Province, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2012 Donald MacPherson
Contact: http://www2.canada.com/theprovince/letters.html
Website: http://www.theprovince.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476
Author: Donald MacPherson

THEORETICAL FAILURE

Good lord, our local newspaper believes that the lax attitudes about 
drug use among a cabal of community leaders is the cause of all the 
drug-related ills of Down-town Eastside.

This outlandish theory has little evidence to support it. The 
Down-town Eastside is tolerant of a wide range of behaviours.

But, believe me, the residents and some of these same leaders in the 
Downtown Eastside were some of the first to sound the alarm back in 
1993 when 200 citizens of Vancouver died of drug overdoses.

After all the achievements that have been acknowledged in the DTES, 
it is somewhat disingenuous for The Province newspaper to suddenly 
blame a complex societal phenomenon on the very people that have 
worked so hard to make things better for all in this city.

Vancouver could be a great city, and ultimately will be judged on how 
it continues to work toward an equitable and comprehensive approach 
to addressing the complex issues of mental health, addiction and 
homelessness in our city.

Crack-pipe programs are just another piece of the puzzle that makes 
Vancouver's approach the envy of many other jurisdictions.

Donald MacPherson, Canadian Drug Policy Coalition
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D