Join us for this important conversation for Support Don't Punish Day 2022 presented by Moms Stop The Harm.
SUPPORT DON'T PUNISH is a global advocacy campaign to raise awareness of the harms that are being caused by the criminalization of people who use drugs. It is time to leave behind harmful politics, ideology and prejudice. It is time to prioritize the health and welfare of people who use drugs, and their families and communities.
Moderated by Petra Schulz (Chair and Co-Founder) and Tyla Savard (Stronger Together Canada)
Guest Speakers:
Lucien Broste is a person with lived experience in the foster care system, problematic drug use, and incarceration. Now a resident of Saskatoon, SK., where he works in the construction industry, is a musician in the band Truth and Agony (you can listen and download their music on many music platforms) and writes about his experiences “on the edge”. You can find his MSTH blog submissions here: https://www.momsstoptheharm.com/blog.
MSTH supports people with lived experience and hopes that many other people will be inspired by Lucien to write about their own experiences as people who have experienced the harms associated with drug use and the criminalization that unfortunately comes with that use in our current environment.
Willamena (Willi) McCorriston, Regional Director, SK As the mother of a daughter who became justice-involved because of her substance use disorder, Willi quickly became educated on the devastating outcomes of the War on Drugs. Criminalization is a very isolating experience, and no mother should have to stand alone in a time of such a misunderstood and painful experience.
Marie Agioritis, Saskatoon, SK lost her son Kelly to a Fentanyl overdose in January of 2015. Since Kelly's passing his mother was driven to make a difference. She didn't want our children lost to this epidemic to be defined by their addiction, or their death. She has told his story nationally through numerous media sources and has influenced decision makers in Ottawa to move forward with much needed change to keep our communities safe.
Michelle Cleary-Haire knows that successful students become successful adults. She has been teaching for almost twenty years as a high school English teacher and is the English Department Head at Ascension Collegiate in Bay Roberts, NL. Michelle joined MSTH because too many people are dying due to an unsafe street drug supply and she wants to prevent her daughter and every other mother’s child from dying a tragic, unnecessary deaths. Michelle believes in the mandate of MSTH and wants to promote that mandate in the Atlantic province of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Dr. Jamie Livingston is a criminologist who studies and teaches about issues of social inclusion and social justice for people with mental health and substance use issues, with an emphasis on those who are involved with the criminal justice and legal systems.
