Our Alberta advocates together with their allies from Albertans for Ethical Drug Policy rallied for #safesupply at the Alberta legislature, on the opening day of the fall session. About fifty people braved frigid Alberta temperatures and stayed warm with chants, including “safe supply or we die” and “If you are not angry, you are not paying attention.”

Coinciding with the re-opening of the Alberta Legislature, this rally is a call for the government to take urgent action on the ongoing drug poisoning crisis that continues to kill more Albertans aged 25 to 39 than any other cause of death. Many of our moms carried poster-size images of the children they lost, others brought signs and photos.

To highlight the need to prevent harm and death that comes from toxic street drugs we handed out a safe regulated supply at the rally and provided a sample to all MLAs. While our sample, consisting of caffeine, would not make the best cup of coffee, we hoped it might support some critical thinking.

Interestingly our media release about giving out samples promoted the Sargent in Arms of the legislature to send out an email to every MLA warning that “members of a pro-safe supply organization may … be passing out an illegal substance”. They further warned that the package should not be accepted or handled. We appreciate the extra attention but can reassure all members of the Alberta legislature that, if we had actual safe substances, like those provided by the Drug User Liberation Front (DULF) in Vancouver to members of their compassion club, we would not be so irresponsible to give those to people who do not need them.

Albertans for Ethical Drug policy issued a joint statement that provides further background information, and calls for urgent action from the government of Alberta, including:

Rescind the Opioid Transition Services (NTS) program and restore the legal mandate of physicians and their governing body to determine guidelines for prescribing.
Replace the NTS with evidence-informed access to regulated substances in models co-designed by people who use drugs.
Expand supervised consumption services, including those promised in Edmonton and Calgary, and reopen closed sites.
Offer rapid, barrier-free access to medical detox and evidence-based treatment.
Provide data on the effectiveness and safety of substance use treatment programs regarding access to treatment, regulation of treatment, critical incidents and performance evaluation.

Drug poisonings kill more Albertans aged 25 to 39 than any other cause of death, and the barriers to evidence-based services will keep it that way.

Signed by Albertans for Ethical Drug Policy, including the following organizations:

4B Harm Reduction Services
Alberta Alliance Who Educate and Advocate Responsibly (AAWEAR)
Alberta Nurses Coalition for Harm Reduction (ANCHR)
Alberta Public Health Association
Bear Clan Patrol Edmonton
Canadian Association of People Who Use Drugs (CAPUD)
Canadian Drug Policy Coalition Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy (CSSDP) Calgary and Edmonton Chapter Chapter
EACH+EVERY: Businesses for Harm Reduction
Friends of Medicare
Health Science Association of Alberta (HSAA)
Moms Stop the Harm (MSTH)
Street Cats
Workers for Ethical Substance Use Policy (WESUP)

Sample of our media coverage:
Albertans call for urgent action on drug poisoning crisis in 'dying for access' rally, Edmonton Journal. Story by Anna Junker, Photos by Larry Wong