Today is the international day against drug abuse and illicit trafficking. The war on drugs has killed, imprisoned and oppressed enough, at huge cost to taxpayers the world over. Time to embrace #harmreduction & #decriminalisation of people w use drugs. #supportdontpunish

My reflections on decolonizing the #COVIDー19 vaccine in Africa Is a Country: “The Black African body appears to be good enough to be experimented on, but not worthy of receiving simultaneous access to the COVID-19 vaccine as Europeans.” Open Society Health africasacountry.com/2020/06/decolo…

Harm reduction thinking, affordably priced medicine, minimal police involvement, and other key lessons from HIV for the COVID 19 response. My blog here: opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/10-less…

Around the world, would-be strongman leaders have used the COVID-19 pandemic to advance illiberal and divisive policies. It's time for the global community to call out this behavior and to defend the progress made by civil society and democracy advocates. osf.to/3fLIlYn

Harm reduction thinking, affordably priced medicine, minimal police involvement, and other key lessons from HIV for the #COVID19 response by Daniel Wolfe osf.to/3fohaCA

Lockdowns to counter the spread of COVID-19 have overlooked side effects: worsening the HIV epidemic and destroying HIV care across Africa. Sex workers are particularly affected, facing hardship, sickness, and even death. osf.to/37hDJWA

“Trans people should be able to seek medical care when we need help without being turned away or denied treatment because of who we are.” - Kris Hayashi of TransgenderLawCenter osf.to/30Qbyx5

“To Black trans men, I see you, I see us.” osf.to/3gXBsV8

If responding to COVID & policy brutality are at the forefront of your mind, and if decarceration & police divestment are goals you are working toward, take a look at this piece. Drug war is a direct contributor and ending it should be your priority: talkingdrugs.org/racism-and-pol…

Fantastic and timely new report by Leo Beletsky 🌈 and #Affordable4Who(m) - time to let science driven interventions do their work for all our health-related crises. 'The Role of overdose prevention sites in corona virus response'
tjcinstitute.com/research/the-r… #covid19 #overdose

Sex workers should have the same right to protections as all other workers, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. osf.to/2Wgfm6J

COVID-19 Harm Reduction for People Who Use Drugs ow.ly/ApNU30quDzh MT TalkingDrugs

Methadone to be handed out without prescription during Covid-19 crisis | Jamie Grierson for The Guardian #methadone #COVID19 theguardian.com/politics/2020/…

“To slow the spread of COVID-19, it is critical that we stop bringing more people into the system, and release all those who should not be there in the first place.” - Kasia Malinowska in njdotcom osf.to/2RnhgB0

One sensible response to COVID19 - decriminalize personal possession and empty prisons of people who should not be there in a first place. Prisoners are one of the leading vulnerable groups

And this fantastic advice, drafted by International Network of People who Use Drugs and published by TalkingDrugs in French, Spanish, Italian and Polish.

People will use drugs, but please, read this and take the necessary steps to reduce harm to yourself and others if you choose to do so.

talkingdrugs.org/covid19-harm-r…

Efforts to contain SARS-CoV-2 reveal gaps in public health and safety net plus outdated rigidity of opioid treatment program regulations for methadone. These need to change now to limit spread and save lives; & should stay changed! ⁦Ximena Levander, MD MCR FACP⁩ statnews.com/2020/03/17/cov…

We're looking for a full-time researcher to play a key role in our global mapping of health responses to drug use... apply by 12 January 2020!
hri.global/contents/1966
#harmreduction
#Vacancy #JobAlert

Black Americans less likely to get the opioids they need for pain and now more likely to be forced to taper off painfully. And more likely to be drug tested. #structuralviolence #NoMoreDrugWar