Jose Martinez was jobless, homeless and stuck in what he calls the “chaotic part” of his drug use in 2015, after aging out of New York’s foster care system seven years prior. Then staff at an overdose prevention site showed him kindness.
“‘The universe is about give and take,'” he recalled staff telling him. “‘So if you’re going to be living your life, using drugs or doing whatever you want to do, do something that’s going to uplift the community.’ That message right there completely changed my life.”
Martinez now works for the National Harm Reduction Coalition (NHRC), a national nonprofit promoting safer drug use. But skeptics argue harm reduction messaging has become increasingly dangerous, with billboards advising drug users to “do it with friends,” nonprofits handing out meth pipes attached to Valentine’s cards, and more.
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“I’m a drug and alcohol counselor,” Portland-area activist Kevin Dahlgren told Fox News. “And the reason why I’m against harm reduction is because it’s now changed to encouraging use.”
“That is a line that should have never been crossed,” he added.
Harm reduction is a strategy that meets drug users where they are, offering clean needles, naloxone to reverse an overdose and other supplies without pressuring people to enter treatment. Only one out of 10 people with a substance use disorder have received treatment, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and most drug users don’t think they have a problem.
Martinez said harm reduction was the “black sheep” of the public health field before gaining more acceptance in the last few years.
“Our approach was too radical for some folks,” he said.Â
Martinez used to smoke K2, a synthetic cannabinoid also known as “spice.” But he said the drug had him stealing from family, burning bridges and turned him into a “completely different person.”
“But it was more my circumstance,” Martinez quickly…
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