On August 28, people gathered at Place Émilie-Gamelin to mark International Overdose Awareness Day, an event highlighting both the impact of the overdose crisis and the advocacy work surrounding it. Organized by the Association québécoise pour la promotion de la santé des personnes utilisatrices de drogues (AQPSUD), the gathering brought together several community and harm reduction organizations.

Local 514 spoke with intervention workers and members of organizations such as AQPSUD, les Soeurs de la Perpétuelle Indulgence, and Moms Stop the Harm about the realities on the ground.

They emphasized the importance of harm reduction measures, safe consumption sites, and sustainable funding to address the crisis. While the long-term goal for many remains the legalization of drug use, immediate concerns centered on Bill 103, tabled by the provincial government. The legislation aims to regulate supervised consumption sites, but advocates warn it could restrict existing services and prevent the opening of new ones, leading to more harms and eventual deaths.

The fight against stigma was also a central theme. Soeur BibiCyclette de la Sativaparlà, of les Soeurs de la Perpétuelle Indulgence, spoke about the weight of judgment: “We get a lot of judgment from society. ‘Oh, he’s a damn junkie,’ ‘Oh, he’s filthy.’ After hearing it so much, people start judging themselves. They feel ashamed, ashamed of using, of being a sex worker, of loving someone of the same sex. That’s the reality,” they expressed, referring to how stigmatization and criminalization may lead to more issues, many of them long-term.

They later added: “Nobody chooses to be unhappy in life. Nobody chooses to become a regular, dependent user. Harm reduction is possible—and it saves lives. Support us. Let us live. Talk to your representatives. It’s important.”

Through testimony, advocacy, and resource-sharing, the interviewees underscored the urgent need for political support and community-driven solutions to the overdose crisis.