What Could Harm Reduction Look Like in Manitoba? (Not Just Winnipeg)

Harm reduction is founded in public health, community, and social justice. Health, safety, and freedom from discrimination are all rights enshrined in Canadian, Indigenous, and international laws and protocols. They have also become highly politicized points of policy here in Manitoba – with sharp distinctions between urban and rural realities. The focus on political calculation rather than health and wellness has led to an increasing amount of neglect, hospitalizations, and deaths of fellow Manitobans – particularly in the wake of the COVID pandemic.

Join us on Thursday, April 20th at 12 noon for a roundtable to learn from practitioners, scholars, and advocates (and those who identify as a combination of all three) involved in harm reduction throughout the province. Please join Dr. Marcia Anderson (Ongomiizwin), Tristan Dreilich (Manitoba Harm Reduction Network– Selkirk), Dr. Shawna Ferris (Women and Gender Studies, University of Manitoba), Levi Foy (Sunshine House), and Shohan Ilsley (Manitoba Harm Reduction) in a discussion to help us imagine what harm reduction could look like in Manitoba (not just Winnipeg). This roundtable will be facilitated by Kohkum Leslie Spillett.

The event will be held in Manitoba Hall at the University of Winnipeg. There will be a light lunch provided by Daanook; please register so we can ensure there will be enough for all.  Everyone’s health is important to us; masks are welcome.

The event is co-organized by the Centre for Social Science Research and Policy (UM), the Centre for Human Rights Research (UM), Ongomiizwin, and University of Winnipeg’s Global College.