Two motions were recently passed in Hamilton City Hall that address the ongoing drug crisis and lack of safer-use spaces in the community
On Feb. 13, 2023, two motions regarding harm reduction were moved at Hamilton City Hall by Ward 13 councillor Alex Wilson and seconded by Ward 3 councillor Nrinder Nann.
The first motion called to allocate funding towards a substance abuse and addictions program and the second called for the development of an evidence-based harm reduction plan for safer use spaces in Hamilton. Both motions were passed with a unanimous vote.
Alongside the recent opioid crisis in 2020, Hamilton has seen a significant rise in opioid-related death this year, spiking conversation surrounding the potential of a drug poisoning crisis.
Kim Ritchie is a social worker with lived experience of opioid usage in Hamilton, and extensive knowledge and experience advocating for the implementation of harm reduction practices.
In an interview with the Silhouette, Ritchie explained that the climbing number of opioid-related deaths is alarming and abnormal, with Hamilton seeing 814 incidents related to opioid overdoses in 2022. For this reason, Ritchie explained that it is urgent that Hamilton address drug-poisoning and opioid related emergencies now.
“The body count is ever rising because half our clients out there and half the workers out there have complex grief and trauma for navigating direct medical crises that they're ill-prepared for or from constantly saving each other,” said Ritchie.
“The body count is ever rising because half our clients out there and half the workers out there have complex grief and trauma for navigating direct medical crises that they're ill-prepared for or from constantly saving each other,”
Kim Ritchie, social worker
In a separate interview with the Silhouette, Wilson explained that the harm reduction motions aim to respond to this significant rise in opioid cases and opioid related deaths in Hamilton. Wilson explained that current challenges within the city such as high rent costs and soaring food prices may contribute to high rates of opioid usage.
The plan to advance a whole-community harm reduction framework entails consulting experts in health and drug policy while also convening with individuals with lived or living experience with addiction and opioid usage.
“We need a new approach, and we need an approach that's based in evidence and based in saving lives, informed by those with lived and living experience,” said Wilson.
“We need a new approach, and we need an approach that's based in evidence and based in saving lives, informed by those with lived and living experience,”
Alex Wilson, Ward 13 councillor
Consulting individuals with lived and living experience is an important principle also shared by the Student Overdose Prevention and Education Network, a prevalent student organization works towards overdose prevention and harm reduction awareness.
SOPEN co-founder Olivia Mancini explained that the harm reduction and prevention work they do is rooted in listening to and uplifting individuals with lived experience with drug use to foster a stigma-free environment for learning safer-use practices and discussing the drug poisoning crisis.
Mancini, who has worked alongside Ritchie to enact harm reduction awareness and practices within Hamilton, explained that many of SOPEN’s initiatives aim to educate and de-stigmatize harm reduction and drug education among youth, such as community engagement initiatives at Hamilton’s Art Crawl. However, the mission to normalize and educate about harm reduction is not always widely accepted.
“Yeah, our focus is youth. We would like to have [harm reduction] education included in high school curriculum. It’s proven to be difficult to just do, much how sex education is controversial, it’s been hard to get into high schools,” said Mancini.
Alongside SOPEN, Wilson explained how organizations such as the YWCA are already demonstrating the feasibility of effective harm reduction plans. The YWCA has been operating a safer use space that has seen over 200 unique guests and have successfully reversed 34 drug poisonings.
Wilson explained that while community organizations are able to provide successful safer-use spaces, outside of these spaces individuals continue to overdose and lose their lives while faced with hospital delays and lack of available ambulances on the roads.
These motions are just the beginning of a longer process of acknowledging and acting upon prevalent drug-related emergencies in Hamilton. Mancini explained that with policy in place for safer-use spaces and broader-spanning harm reduction services, a tremendous weight will be taken off many frontline workers.
“If we have those funded services, it will also create cost savings to the community. It would relieve that pressure off of frontline workers, police, paramedics, the emergency department if people had access to harm reduction services,” said Mancini.
“If we have those funded services, it will also create cost savings to the community. It would relieve that pressure off of frontline workers, police, paramedics, the emergency department if people had access to harm reduction services,”
Olivia Mancini, SOPEN co-founder
Ritchie shared the same sentiment, explaining the complex grief and trauma that accompanies frontline workers, shelter workers and opioid users from navigating an influx of medical crises.
Ritchie explained that implementing harm reduction policy and work surrounding safer-use and de-stigmatization will ripple into other areas of intersectionality.
“I don't want to look one more worker in the eye and watch them sob because they just saved somebody's life, I don't want to talk to another client who just buried another friend in a poppers grave, I don't want to stand in one more meeting having to yell for the rights of people who use drugs who are somehow villainized as though it's their fault, instead of acknowledging intergenerational trauma, structural racism,” said Ritchie.
Following this motion, Hamilton residents should expect a follow-up report detailing an updated opioid response plan and recommendations to be presented at the next Board of Health meeting in June 2023.
Ritchie explained that this work is a step in the right direction, and she has hope for positive outcomes from effective and informed harm reduction.
“And that's why I love harm reduction, it demands that we hang up our capes and we sit down in humility with other people's pain, and we start asking what they need instead of pushing change. There's no gaslighting in it. There's no heroism. It's humility and empowerment and education and understanding, and I really do feel that this is a foundation for momentum moving forward,” said Ritchie.
More information on City of Hamilton harm reduction policy plans can be found in the recent Board of Health reports.
WGEN’s Culture of Consent event educated students about consent and sexual violence misconceptions
cw: discussion of sexual assault
According to a 2018 survey conducted by the Council of Ontario Universities, 22 per cent of respondents from McMaster University indicated that they had experienced sexual assault since the start of the 2017-2018 academic year. Additionally, overall survey respondents indicated that the perpetrator was an acquaintance in 26 per cent of cases and a friend in 25 per cent of cases.
According to a 2018 survey conducted by the Council of Ontario Universities, 22 per cent of respondents from McMaster University indicated that they had experienced sexual assault since the start of the 2017-2018 academic year. Additionally, overall survey respondents indicated that the perpetrator was an acquaintance in 26 per cent of cases and a friend in 25 per cent of cases.
In response to the high rates of sexual violence on campuses, student leaders from universities across Canada released a sexual violence prevention report in August 2022 addressed to universities and the provincial and federal governments. The calls to action include creating education plans and implementing trauma-informed practices, focusing on survivors’ voices in institutional policy making and prioritizing a national standard for addressing campus sexual violence in the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence.
Events like the Women and Gender Equity Network‘s "Building a Culture of Consent" are part of addressing the prevalence of rape culture and sexual violence on campus. The event ran on Jan. 18 as part of the McMaster Student Union Wellbeing Week. The event aimed to educate students on the topic of consent, dispel common myths surrounding it and provide sexual assault resources.
Rijaa Khan, a fourth-year student in applied psychology and human behaviour and an events executive at WGEN, believes that there is a strong need for students to be educated about consent, particularly due to the misconceptions that can contribute to rape culture.
“A common myth that people believe in is this idea that sexual assault only happens in alleyways or dark places by strangers. That was one of the main myths that [WGEN] had to tackle because a lot of the time, according to statistics, sexual assault happens by someone that someone knows,” said Khan.
During the WGEN event, students created a Clothesline for Resistance, with designs on paper t-shirt cut-outs that reflected their main takeaways from the event. Some examples of the designs included messages such as, "Rape is 100 per cent the rapist's fault", emphasizing the importance of holding perpetrators accountable for their actions and rejecting victim blaming.
Khan also discussed the importance of bridging the disconnect between sexual violence resources and students' knowledge about them.
“A lot of people don't even know how to file a complaint or report that something has happened to them because they don't know the [sexual violence] resources that McMaster offers . . . If we talk more about consent and rape culture, the resources can reach more people who need it,” said Khan.
“A lot of people don't even know how to file a complaint or report that something has happened to them because they don't know the [sexual violence] resources that McMaster offers . . . If we talk more about consent and rape culture, the resources can reach more people who need it,”
Rijaa Khan, WGEN Events Executive
Khan highlighted that WGEN has a Safe(r) Space program that provides students with peer support. The initiative aims to create a safe space for individuals that are seeking help, including survivors of sexual assault. WGEN also focuses on being a resource for survivors and connecting them to other sexual assault support resources in the Hamilton community.
Additionally, WGEN will be hosting a weekly survivors community group, open to students who are survivors of sexual, gender-based, and/or intimate partner violence.
Khan advocated for students to actively learn about consent and statistics on how sexual assaults can occur, in order to change their perception of sexual violence in university settings.
“I think constantly challenging your understanding of rape culture is really important. A lot of [students] formulate these ideas of rape culture and how sexual assault can happen based on the media. Another common myth is that everyone who gets sexually assaulted actually reports [the assault]. Very few survivors actually report and when they do, a lot of the time it gets dismissed by our legal system,” said Khan.
Khan encourages students to follow WGEN’s Instagram to learn about resources surrounding sexual violence support and education.
C/O Christian Braun
Please introduce yourself.
I am Glenda van der Leeuw. I am a student counselor with McMaster Student Wellness Center and a registered social worker.
Last summer, you ran a program called "You Belong in the Room" [with McMaster University’s Student Success Centre]. How was it?
I decided to facilitate "You Belong in the Room" for Black students to create a safe space for them and talk about imposter syndrome from a Black lens. [In the program] we talk about how that sometimes hinders our drive and, often, how our confidence is really harmed when we have self-doubt . . . We're really trying to stress with students that yes, of course the system is broken. We can all acknowledge that. [But] what do we do from here? In order for those systems to be corrected, dismantled or fixed, there needs to be leadership spaces for racialized people in those spaces.
Another part of the program and my work was learning how to manage the stressors from discrimination. I hope to empower our students [to] learn to love and value their own identity. I'm hoping this group will give a lasting confidence, highlight their value and the unique strengths they bring. Altogether, it also relates to courage. Recognizing your own value can be the instant courage when we’re afraid to take action. It motivates students to seize opportunities and encourages them to step out of their comfort zone to transcend the lack of diversity and racism that's keeping them down.
Since “You Belong in the Room” has ended, have there been other, similar programs?
We’ve established the Black X-scape. It’s a support group for students that centers mental health. It's only been running for the last couple weeks and it's a drop-in. When I first facilitated “You Belong in the Room,” I saw these conversations needed to be furthered. So, we created this space where students can reclaim their mental health and have discussions about the barriers they're experiencing. It's all students, a lot of shareable knowledge. That comfort, that support is really valuable. Our wellness is so important, especially when we're experiencing racism. We need a space to talk about these things and unpack them. That's where community really steps in. Community support is so, so important to thriving. It's where we learn, feel safe and also where we can acknowledge how to navigate these spaces. I'm learning from my past and sharing it with the students in a way we can reflect so they can take away something from these experiences and use it to their own advantage.
What are your goals, both personal and related to your work?
I always strive to reach my own potential. I have my own imposter syndrome and underlying doubts. We talk about the upper limits that, sometimes, we are afraid to reach. We each have to reflect on our upper limits, our fears and how we can confront them. So, I think I want to do some speeches talking about that in conjunction with anti-Black racism. In terms of the students, the students are just amazing. That's really what I want to do with my own role: use my experiences and create a platform for them to share and express whatever they would like. I'm hoping with Black X-Scape, students will further explore what they need and be able to showcase their skills.
Have there been any experiences that really stand out to you?
We talk about celebrating your achievements, something that really internalizes confidence. It prepares you for the next challenge. When you reflect back on all of your skills, your assets, what prepared you for this moment. When I think about that, I feel overall just happy with myself and my drive despite the struggles and barriers I’ve overcome. This last year at McMaster has been a whole new journey for me. I'm really excited to see what McMaster has in store, to expand on the potential and go from there. Not to mention, I’ve really enjoyed learning from my Black elders. Listening to them has created positivity for me and informs how I’m moving forward, understanding my role as a learner and as a leader, developing further understanding and honouring our identities. That's what I aim to do in my space: honouring students' intersectionalities, their whole identity. It's so important to live completely in your own identity and be confident.
C/O Mike Highfield
Nim Agalawatte introduces Sounds Gay!, a new queer-dedicated musical space
It is no secret the city of Hamilton lacks dedicated queer spaces. The 2018 assessment of Hamilton’s 2SLGBTQIA+ community, Mapping the Void, found many did not feel a strong sense of queer belongingness in the city and wanted to see more initiatives.
In the early 2000s and mid-2010s, the Hamilton core was home to several gay bars: The Embassy, The Werx, Rainbow Lounge, M Bar, The Windsor and The Steel Lounge. However, all of them have since closed their doors.
To help fill the void, new queer-focused spaces have been slowly appearing in the past few years, including Queer Outta Hamilton, House of Adam and Steve and Fruit Salad.
One of the latest queer-friendly spaces in the city is Sounds Gay!, a live music performance event hosted by Nim Agalawatte, which had its first event in November 2021 and second in December 2021.
Sounds Gay! aims to fill a gap in the current queer space landscape. There is no denying gay bars and nightclubs play an integral role in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. Historically, these places served as safe havens for queer individuals. However, it is also important to recognize the need for more low-pressure inclusive spaces.
“The main reason I started [Sounds Gay!] was I was noticing a lot of queer events were focused on dancing or drag shows and it wasn’t very much like music performance stuff,”
Nim Agalawatte
Agalawatte is a Hamilton-based musician, bassist and synth player for the Basement Revolver, 2SLGBTQIA+ advocate and member of the Hamilton Music Advisory Team. They became more aware of the gap after performing as part of Hamilton Pride last year and being one of two non-drag performances.
The positive response to both events of Sounds Gay! reaffirmed the need for diverse queer spaces. Attendees appreciated the friendliness and how welcoming the space was. Tickets were made more accessible as well by using a sliding scale ticket system. Upcoming Sounds Gay! dates have not been planned yet due to the rise in COVID-19 cases, however, Agalawatte is looking forward to continuing them this year.
For Agalawatte, not only was their opportunity to perform affected by the pandemic, but they also lost an important part of their support system.
“A lot of months, I’ve been out of work which kind of does two things: one, not having my regular schedule and things I’m often working on and two, not being able to be around people who often gives you drive and support. I’ve definitely felt down periods and found it hard to motivate myself to work on music,” said Agalawatte.
However, they noted interesting opportunities and new forms of community also arose out of the lockdowns and the pandemic. Agalawatte was able to work on new music remotely with Shanika Maria, queer Black singer-songwriter, for her new recording project Shn Shn. Digital spaces have also become a new place of community gathering.
“I find there has been a light within the pandemic where people, because they’ve been extra lonely or maybe feel more isolated, have found newer forms of community. There [are] a lot of people reaching out on social media or finding each other through the internet and musicians from different parts of the country are also quite connected,” said Agalawatte.
While continuing to create more safe queer events in Hamilton through Sounds Gay!, Agalawatte hopes to support new musicians in Hamilton and open opportunities for those who have not had access to a comfortable and safe stage. Currently, they are promoting their band’s latest album, Embody, and continuing to work on their solo music as well.
