My name is Melissa Harricharan, and I am a member of the Peel Drug Users Advisory. I spoke at city council on July 6th, 2023 to be heard on issue of the implementation of the consumption and treatment service in Brampton and the importance of the site for community.
Many people think harm reduction and consumption and treatment sites are just about drugs, and letting people get high but at council I wanted to share my story to display the importance harm reduction can play in sobriety and stability and building community.
Back in 2010 I was deep in my addiction. I was smoking crack daily and living outdoors and doing survival sex work to fund my substance use. I had lost my way and lost my family and leaned on drugs to get me through the daily struggle of paying for my substances, doing sex work, and living outdoors. It was a cycle I remained in for years rotating between programs and services trying to find a way off the streets and into some form of housing that didn’t involve depending on clients. Entering shelters, I faced barriers and found most did not know how to support me. Many of the things I needed to do broke rules like curfew or being intoxicated and resulted in me getting banned or kicked out of shelter. I found myself in a constant rotation where I started paperwork I never finished, and I couldn’t make an appointment or keep to a schedule which left me stuck. My life was turmoil and as a result I needed to stay available to make the money needed to get the drugs that numbed all the hurt I felt for having lost my way and having disappointed my kids.
Throughout my addiction I would pop into their lives as much as I could but I felt so much shame that a lot of the time I avoided facing anyone who knew me before the drugs. I wanted to do better and be better but the stigma I experienced caused me to self stigmatize myself into not believing I was worth more than I was had. I leaned on Regeneration for support and meals and clothes but even going into that space at times I felt I wasn’t worthy of God or His love.
And then one day I met a Harm Reduction Worker handing out supplies. They didn’t ask me any personal questions or try to push me to talk about my addiction and getting sober, they just asked me what I needed in that moment and handed me a pipe. While getting the harm reduction supplies they told me they were a Harm Reduction Worker and were running a dropin for sex workers at John Howard and let me know I could pop in whenever they were there. I didn’t go in that day but I was intrigued and so the next time I saw them I went up to them and asked them a ton of questions. They told me they had been exactly where I was and that through harm reduction they were able to build a better relationship with their substance use and eventually became a Harm Reduction Worker.
Up until that point I had never met a worker that I felt understood me and my life, it felt safe, and so I latched on right away. They were awesome and easy to talk to, it felt different in a good way and so I went to them every time I needed support or someone to just vent to. Before I knew it, they had gotten me into programming and I received subsidized housing, I reconnected with my oldest kids and had a loving boyfriend that stood by my side. Things in my life started changing, they even gave me a job, and I started working as a peer for sex worker drop in at John Howard. I felt like I had a purpose again and I had started to build a life for myself.
With that stability I could finally focus on more than just survival and through the support of that Harm Reduction Worker and someone at Regeneration I entered detox and then rehab and am now 6 years sober expecting my next child, employed, housed and happy. Harm reduction isn’t just about using drugs safely (though in the face of a poisoned drug supply that has to be the first step because let’s face it dead people can’t fill out intake forms or show up to appointments). Harm reduction supports clients to figure out what they want and how they want to get there without the judgement of drug users, without expecting sobriety.
I had been offered rehab more times than I want. It wasn’t until I was able to get out of crisis and begin feeling safe that I could really begin the journey of abstinence. I was ready to go and I was aiming for success this time. Previous attempts at getting sober were huge failures. The system was just as broken as I was with waiting lists and closed programs presenting constant barriers to get sober.
That’s why I delegated at council. We need a consumption and treatment service in Brampton – it’s where I am a from, it’s where many of my dead friends are from and it’s where my adult kids live. Consumption and treatment services provide our community members a place to stay connected while they wait for either a space to open up or for them to be ready to start the journey of sobriety, a space where they know they won’t be judged, a space where they have consistent supports and teams of people they know understand them. A space free of judgement, where all types of supports are available, so they can feel safe enough to get information and explore opportunities to get into programs. Where they know they can use their drugs safely to live to see another day.
Bramalea was where I bought and used my drugs, it was the area I had many of my regulars and could always get a “date” and or find a place to hang out in and it’s an area saturated in overdoses, some of which I resuscitated and many of which have been fatal. This area needs this space. Amongst these buildings are people who feel disconnected and alone. It’s different than downtown Brampton where Regeneration has outreach, has spaces and places to hang out and going to those hot spots I knew workers and friends would eventually end up. In this area it’s all a little more hidden amongst the many buildings and parkettes and stairwells but it’s here and this community deserves the opportunities I received.
I know for a lot of people harm reduction means allowing drug use and providing equipment. Folks think it’s supporting people to use while ignoring addiction but that isn’t true. I am proof of that. Harm reduction is just as much about sobriety as it is about people using drugs in safer ways. Harm reduction was exactly what I needed when I needed it the most and without it I would likely not have survived or lived long enough to get to rehab, and I definitely wouldn’t have gotten into rehab because it was my Harm Reduction Worker who literally made sure I got there and when they kicked me out, got me to the next detox and from there got me to rehab. This community needs Harm Reduction Workers and consumption and treatment services to keep it safe. I need this service here so relapse doesn’t equal death, my kids need this service here so experimenting doesn’t end their lives and my friends need this service so if and when they decide they’re ready to explore their relationship with their substance use they’re alive to utilize those opportunities.
It’s not just about a space to use drugs and not die, consumption and treatment services with harm reduction supports and care remind people they are worthy and belong and that they don’t need to choose sobriety to matter. That’s how we build healthy communities and healthy citizens, by providing care and compassion and supports without any strings attached.