'Drugs are killing our young people': South Sudanese community mourning opioid-related deaths
Edmonton’s South Sudanese community held a rally at the Alberta legislature Friday to bring awareness to deaths in the community due to opioids.
The protestors called for supervised consumption sites in Alberta to be given better resources. A member said their community has lost two to three members a month due to overdoses since the pandemic began.
"Drugs are killing our young people and we feel that this situation is going to eliminate our population in this country,” said Mawien Akot, a South Sudanese Edmontonian.
“We ran away from warlords in South Sudan only to die here from drug lords… and that’s unacceptable."
There needs to be specific resources to deal with the needs of the South Sudanese community, according to Akot.
“Any of the programs that are done without consideration to our history or our root-cause problems, cannot effectively address the situation in our community,” said Akot.
Another part of the system that needs to be fixed is halfway houses, according to protestors.
One of the protesters told CTV News Edmonton that her son went to a halfway house as part of treatment, but he died from an overdose while there.
“My son was looking to change and for a safe place… they told me no drugs, no alcohol, no weapons… when I heard he died from a drug overdose I collapsed,” said Victoria Gimis.
“When we left South Sudan and came to Canada they told us we were coming for a better life… there is no better life in Canada, we lose our children every month, every year.”
“Even the facilities and the programs that are supposed to help us, are not helping,” said Akot.
The South Sudanese community hopes the gathering Friday also begins to break down drug-related stigma in their culture.
“The stigma of being labeled as a family with a drug overdose is quite significant to our community,” said Akot. “This is a big challenge that we need to overcome.”
In a statement to CTV News Edmonton, a spokesperson for Mike Ellis, associate minister of mental health and addictions, said he reached out to the South Sudanese community Friday morning to arrange a meeting.
“Minister Ellis wants to hear any input from the South Sudanese community in Edmonton – and any other Albertans – about how addiction impacts them,” said Steve Buick, spokesperson for the minister.
“The Minister will also ask the community for help in encouraging their community members to use the range of services available, including take-home naloxone kits, services that will protect them while using substances, and treatment and recovery options.”
GOVERNMENT SUED
Two Alberta advocacy groups, Moms Stop the Harm and the Lethbridge Overdose Prevention Society, filed a lawsuit against the province over recent changes to supervised consumption sites. The groups said mandating healthcare cards at the sites will discourage people from using them, potentially leading to more overdoses.
“There is a lot of stigma, shame and blame involved in using substances,” said Petra Schulz, co-founder of Moms Stop the Harm. “That’s why my son, who died in 2014, was hiding his substances from us and relapsed and died alone.
“We need to stop this.”
The new regulations, which aren’t set to come into effect until September, go beyond the requirements in any other province in Canada, according to Schulz.
NDP Health Critic David Shepherd added that the government needs to “invest at all points in the system.”
“It’s regrettable that people would have to sue their government to get appropriate action to protect those that are simple trying to access services that can save their lives,” said Shepherd.
CTV News Edmonton reached out to the provincial government for comment but has not heard back.
With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Ryan Harding
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.