This unique program supports people who use drugs and sex workers who live or work on the streets during the COVID-19 pandemic in Budapest. One of their main goals is to help people get into Hepatitis C treatment. Watch our video and find out how!
Harm Reduction
Harm reduction is a pragmatic and compassionate approach to people who use licit and illicit drugs. As a principle it is applied in several other areas of life, for example when you fasten your seat-belts in a car to reduce the risk of injuries. Policies and services based on harm reduction respect the dignity and freedom of human beings and help them to stay healthy and alive even if they choose to continue using drugs. A very obvious example is to distribute clean needles among people who use drugs to prevent hepatitis C and HIV infections. Harm reduction programs should be part of an integrated social and healthcare system. But harm reduction is much more than just a set of services - it is a movement for freedom and social justice applied in the field of drug policy. Drugreporter is a chronicle of this movement.
TARGETS
The film ‘Targets’ is a story about the women in Ukraine who are branded as “drug addicts” and who are being destroyed by the state today. These women are targets, and a real war is being waged against them. The film is an attempt to understand why this is happening and what needs to be done to stop these deaths.
To Prevent Drug Harms, We Need More Than Fear
The Hungarian police launched an anti-drug campaign based on the story of a 17-year-old boy who jumped out from the window while high on drugs. But telling scary stories to young people will not prevent accidents. Creating an environment where young people can access reality-based education and support, can.
Between Waves: Update on the COVID-19 and Harm Reduction Situation in Europe
An update about how access to harm reduction programs changed in European cities after the lockdown measures were lifted between the first and second waves of the COVID-19 epidemic.
Peer2Peer – Reinforcing Peers’ Involvement in Outreach Work
Who are peers? Why is the involvement of peers crucial in service provision to people who use drugs and are in need? This short movie documents a study visit to Amsterdam and Antwerp, two cities with a long history of peer involvement.
Street Lawyering Program in Athens – Interview with Emmanouela Soldatou
HumanRights360, a human rights NGO, in partnership with STEPS, a harm reduction NGO, started a new program to provide legal help to people who live on streets in Athens. We interviewed Emmanouela Soldatou, the research and advocacy coordinator of STEPS about this new initiative.
Reaching the Unreached
This documentary shows the experiences of outreach workers and peers in providing critical connections to prevention, treatment, and care. Produced by Drugreporter’s video advocacy alumni, Ko Si Thu Aung.
Young People in Drug Policy Advocacy – Part 2: Global Issues, Local Dynamics
The second part of our series reveals how young people advocating drug policy reform cope with the new challenges and opportunities brought by the COVID-crisis.
Young People in Drug Policy Advocacy Part 1: Stop “Protecting” Young People From Drugs and Start Listening to Them
It’s common for governments to use ‘protecting the youth’ as a justification for punitive drug policies. The policies governments are propagating, however, are not evidence-based and show little knowledge of how young people use drugs. Read an intriguing report about youth activists who fight for drug policy reform written by our intern, Hannah Taylor!
The Oldest Harm Reduction Organisation in Bulgaria Shut Down
In June 2020, all harm reduction services with public funding stopped in Bulgaria for the second time in three (2017-2020) years. The oldest, biggest, and most experienced harm reduction organisation, Initiative for Health Foundation, shut down too. No needle and syringe programs remained open in the country. An article by Yuliya Georgieva.
