Pubdate: Mon, 18 Apr 2016
Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)
Copyright: 2016 The Globe and Mail Company
Contact:  http://www.theglobeandmail.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/168
Author: Geordon Omand
Page: A5
Cited: http://www.mumsdu.com/

MOTHERS OF DRUG VICTIMS TO CARRY CHILDREN'S VOICES TO UN

Nearly four years after her daughter died of an opioid overdose, Donna
May will share her story of loss and learning at the United Nations.

Ms. May's daughter Jac, 35, died on Aug. 21, 2012, after overdosing on
pain medication prescribed to help her cope with a flesh-eating
disease she'd contracted after years of addiction and life on the streets
=2E

"From the time she passed away until [now], all I've done is advocate
for drug policy reform and to have other people receive the education
I was given so they don't face the situation the same way I did. And
that's my daughter's legacy," Ms. May said in an interview from
Mississauga.

Ms. May and three other mothers whose children lost their lives to
drugs have been invited by the Canadian government to attend a
three-day United Nations session that begins Tuesday aimed at
addressing the world's drug problem. Ms. May is slated to speak at a
side event on the final day of the conference.

Other groups from around the world are expected to travel to New York
to ask that the UN and governments end the war on drugs.

Last year, the women helped found the group Mothers United and
Mandated to Saving the Lives of Drug Users, or mumsDU for short.

It advocates for harm reduction and drug-policy reform, and has since
expanded to include about 400 parents of children whose deaths are in
some way linked to drugs.

"There are too many victims to the war on drugs," Ms. May
said.

"And it's not just the victim that you see. We are the victims,
[too]."

Fellow co-founder Jennifer Woodside of Vancouver lost her 21-year-old
son Dylan Woodside two years ago after he took oxycodone laced with
the powerful painkiller fentanyl. He was one of the earliest to die in
a series of fentanyl-linked deaths that is still claiming lives across
Canada.

"This is a big epidemic. =C2=85 These are everyday people with everyday
stories," Ms. Woodside said. "I think we've got our head in the sand
if you think it can't affect you."

Her personal goal for the coming UN session is to give her son a voice
and to make sure he didn't die in vain, she said.

MumsDU has made inroads in its advocacy, successfully lobbying the
government to make the overdose-reversal medication naloxone available
without a prescription.
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MAP posted-by: Matt