ICYMI: May Edition
In Case You Missed It: What we did in May
Helping service providers across Canada combat structural stigma in health services
In 2021, Health Justice was featured in a project of the Mental Health Commission of Canada with a number of change-making organizations for taking real, concrete steps to address structural stigma related to mental health and substance use.
Last month, members of the Health Justice team continued this work by participating in workshops hosted by the Commission entitled “Structural Stigma in Health Care: Foundations for change.” We used our expertise to help shape the next steps for a “How-To Guide” for mental health and substance use organizations across Canada so they can take action to combat structural stigma. This work will support more equitable and effective services by reducing discriminatory assumptions about people with mental health and substance use-related health issues that are often baked in to law, policy and practice.
How we talk about things matters
In May we released our “How we talk about things matters” blog post to raise awareness about the way people with mental health and substance use health issues are being discussed. Currently, many public debates and community conversations repeat assumptions about people with mental health or substance use health issues, often unintentionally. In the post we offered some ways to help shift the way we discuss these topics, which you can see here. Along with the blog post, we created some graphics with some of the information that is in the blog post, and posted them on our social media.
We have also released an infographic that summarizes the blog post that you can view below.
To keep up with what we’re up to, check out our socials below!
ICYMI: Other News
BC passes new law aimed at eliminating systemic racism in provincial government services
In early May, BC passed a new law called the Anti-Racism Data Act, which aims to identify and eliminate systemic racism in government programs and services. The law was in part driven by a BC Human Rights Commissioner’s report called The Grandmother Perspective, which provides suggestions about how the government can use disaggregated data to address systemic discrimination and advance human rights by making systemic inequalities visible through data collection. The report also addresses concerns that come with data collection related to marginalized groups and offers a framework for disaggregated data collection that is “grounded in “the grandmother perspective” offered by Gwen Phillips of the Ktunaxa Nation.” This framework is centered on the “importance of relationship.” An example of these gaps in data collection in BC currently is the failure to monitor the disproportionate impacts of coercive mental health and substance use health treatment under the Mental Health Act on Indigenous and racialized communities.
Decriminalization of possession of up to a cumulative 2.5 grams of certain illicit substances in BC
Possession of up to a cumulative 2.5 grams of opioids, cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA within BC will be decriminalized starting on January 31, 2023. BC originally had been asking for possession of up to a cumulative 4.5 grams to be decriminalized. Public health experts and those who use substances have pointed out that 4.5 grams would not be enough to reduce the harm that criminalization has caused and the decision on the amount was based on what police suggested. Health Canada has said that a third party will be examining the exemption once it is in place and "its details could change as evidence is gathered and analyzed."
100 new complex-care housing spaces coming to Greater Victoria
While this happened back in March, it is still ongoing so we decided to include it this month. The BC government announced 100 new complex-care housing spaces for Greater Victoria which are expected to be running by 2023. Back in January, complex-care housing facilities opened in Vancouver, Surrey and Abbotsford. Complex-care housing seeks to provide services for those with overlapping “mental-health and substance-use challenges, traumatic and acquired brain injury” so they can get support where they live.