THUNDER BAY — Lying down in front of trace outlines of their bodies in chalk, activists painted a morbid picture of the future they fear will come with the closure of the Path 525 safe consumption site next March.
On Monday, more than 100 people gathered at city hall, taking inspiration from the die-ins of the HIV-AIDS movement, according to organizer, Ken Miller.
“It was to symbolize the lives that were lost by inaction by the government or by community, by just inaction in general, because there were so many people dying. And now we're seeing that happen again with overdose and drug poisoning,” said Miller.
The protesters also held up hundreds of purple balloons, symbolizing the lives saved in the city through the consumption and treatment services (CTS) at Path 525, operated by NorWest Community Health Centres.
“There are 465 balloons,” said Miller. “That is the amount of overdoses reversed at our local CTS site at NorWest.”
A couple of those balloons are for Vanessa Tookenay.
Tookenay is a former client of Path 525. She has been in recovery for about three years, but prior to that she overdosed twice while at the Path 525 facility.
“I would go to path to use. They provided me a safe place not only to use, in providing me harm reduction supplies, but they helped me and guided me and gave me options for recovery,” she said.
“They connected me with community resources and they supported me in my day to day life, which wasn't always easy.”
Seeing all the purple balloons is beautiful, said Tookenay, a reminder of all the lives saved.
“I just really hope that people can open their minds," she said. “And look at what (Path 525) does and think about the consequences of what it will do if the services are shut down.
“Seeing everybody here today seeing all the balloons, seeing the marks of chalk… How do you know that that's not going to be your kids?
“If these services aren't there who saved all of these lives, what happens when you need these services and they're not there?”
The closure was a provincial decision, but the die-in was held at city hall, said Miller, in part because MPPs are away at Queen’s Park and also because the activists hope city council will join them in advocating for safe consumption services.
“Kitchener and Waterloo both had similar resolutions from their city council, in favour of the CTS site, essentially saying why it's so important and also how they plan to advocate for the longevity of the program in those in those areas.
“And so we're here today asking that our city council does the same,” said Miller.
Miller also invited Coun. Brian Hamilton to speak at the event.
In his speech, Hamilton called himself an ally.
“My stance is that Thunder Bay needs this program," he said. "We absolutely need the program.”
Hamilton said he hadn’t seen the resolutions, and couldn’t commit to endorsing them yet, but said he would be taking a look and raising the matter with the city’s intergovernmental affairs committee.
“When it comes to advocating for things for the province, we really have to be strategic with our asks, Hamilton said. “The province is our friend. Maybe we have differences of opinion on some things but ultimately, we have to work together.”
“This is about creating a path forward for recovery, for individuals,” said Hamilton.
Every segment of the city is affected by the opioid crisis, he said.
“Ultimately, we need every tool available to us to help people on that path to recovery. I believe Path is a critical tool.
“It's an all-hands-on-deck approach. The status quo will not hold.
“I think the citizens are extremely frustrated with the current state of affairs and we really have to move forward in a positive and a collaborative way,” Hamilton said. “I think this protest really exemplifies that collaborative approach.”
