Drug recriminalization shows how shallow the government’s dedication is
While not perfect, the BC NDP’s policy was better than nothing, and now might become nothing
With an election in five months, the BC NDP is trying to cover crime and public safety, one of the issues the opposition has hammered them on. (Pexels/Alex Koch)
The B.C. government has failed on an incredibly important front. It has failed its cities, residents, and vulnerable segments within its population.
Last month, Premier David Eby announced a reversal of B.C.’s drug decriminalization strategy with the public use of small amounts of certain hard drugs being “recriminalized,” citing public safety as the main factor for this policy u-turn.
One year into what was supposed to be a three-year project to address the nation-wide drug addiction and overdose crisis in B.C. specifically, the provincial government has bowed down to pressure from its opposing party, Vancouver Police Deputy Chief Fiona Wilson’s testimony to the House of Commons health committee, and — quite likely — the usual cadre of concerned citizens’ advocacy groups who are worried about the price of their backyards more than anything.
Like many such policies, this reversal will very obviously impact unhoused people and other users who are in precarious shelter situations since they do not have the “luxury” of being able to consume in private spaces.
There are concerns that need addressing. Certain public spaces such as transit stops, playgrounds, public parks, hospitals, and so on are genuine places where drug consumption and the improper disposal of hypodermic needles can be safety issues. Not all public spaces permit anything to happen.
Interestingly, B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth was “disappointed” when the Court of Appeal upheld the B.C. Supreme Court’s pause on a provincial restriction against drug use in public spaces, and B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson citing that “irreparable harm will be caused if the act comes into force” in the written decision on Dec. 29.
All of this points to the fact that this, like so many other things in life and politics, are a complex issue with no one, easy answer.
In the House of Commons, the Conservative Party has been adamant about pinning the blame for the drug crisis on the Liberal Party’s “radicalism” at the expense of Canadian lives. Despite figures such as Deputy Chief Wilson and RCMP deputy commissioner Dwayne McDonald not necessarily disagreeing with recriminalization or the efficacy of safe supply drugs, that does not stop the reactionary narrative of drug users being a large-scale, existential threat to everybody.
That has always been the right-wing strategy, but Pierre Poilivre has amped it up since becoming leader of the Official Opposition and, as the polls show, this emotionally evoking strategy has been a winning one.
Harm reduction advocates have understandably criticized Premier Eby’s decision as a policy backslide that will impact many lives. Since the declaration of the overdose crisis, 14,000 people have died, and the political establishment has done very little — perhaps the bare minimum if they have been feeling particularly productive.
The “business as usual” mindset, combined with somewhat progressive policies with little follow up or other supporting policies, is easily mislabelled for some sort of “far-left” radicalism by those whose preferred method to dealing with drug use is the factually refuted but emotionally cathartic, much to the frustration of anyone who actually cares about effective and substantive solutions.
This, ultimately, comes down to social priorities. In a society that prioritizes short-term solutions and property values over human lives, one cannot help but question just how committed the BC NDP is to the cause. The fact that they implemented this policy to begin with shows that there is interest from the governing party, but the speed with which they relented to criticism signifies the overall weakness of their fidelity.
