Pubdate: Tue, 31 Jan 2017
Source: Metro (Vancouver, CN BC)
Copyright: 2017 Metro Canada
Contact:  http://www.metronews.ca/vancouver
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3775
Author: Trish Kelly
Page: 5

COMMUNITY POLICING WRONG APPROACH TO FENTANYL CRISIS

Last week, Vancouver city council made some decisions about how our
city will use $3.5-million raised through a 0.5 per cent property tax
increase to address the fentanyl crisis.

While most of the money will go to supporting front line efforts,
including funding a three-person overdose response team stationed at
Firehall No. 2, more than $200,00 is earmarked to open and maintain a
Strathcona Community Policing Centre.

It's an idea that is opposed by front-line community groups and could
make the overdose problem worse.

I'm pretty surprised that the city proposed the idea of increases to
community policing as a way to deal with the opioid crisis, and I'm
simply amazed that in the face of so much community-based opposition,
they decided to pass it.

So many people wanted to speak on the issue at the council meeting on
Jan. 24, that a second day of speakers had to be scheduled. Most came
to speak against the community policing centre, though the chief of
police and head of the neighbourhood's business improvement
association spoke in support. Many community members who did not
understand that you must register in advance to speak to city council,
requested to speak, but were not allowed.

The city report suggests that community policing centres act as hubs
for local residents who voluntarily patrol their neighbourhood, and
the centre itself could be used for overdose prevention training and
other supportive acts like needle cleanups. Community groups say it
can't help, because people addicted to illicit drugs avoid police.
They say that patrols of concerned citizens linking themselves to
police will not be seen as a safe go-to for anyone in the midst of an
overdose.

Vancouver Coastal Heath's chief medical officer spoke to council and
noted that any approach to harm reduction needs to look at
decriminalizing illicit drugs and reducing the stigma associated with
being an addict. People who are stigmatized feel they must conceal
their problematic behavior and they are more likely to die from an
overdose.

Does anyone have an example of when policing anything lead to reduced
stigma for that behaviour?

Perhaps those behind the proposal thought that a mere $200,000 of $3.5
million in spending would go unnoticed. Perhaps they thought they
could throw Strathcona home and business owners a bone after last
year's decision to land two new injections sites in the neighbourhood
caused outrage amongst the better offs of Strathcona.

The community policing spending is a small part of the city's overall
budget to address the fentanyl crisis, but it shows a lack of will to
address the root causes, and it shows the city is still willing to
push the marginalized to the margins to placate the privileged.
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MAP posted-by: Matt