Hello everyone,

Please see our letter to Windsor City Council Below

It has recently come to our attention that there are plans to put forward a motion to rescind the council's previous decision to approve a Consumption & Treatment Service at 101 Wyandotte Street East. This is after two presentations to city council, substantial hours of time and resources into community development for a decision made over a year ago. This is a human rights issue.

This will be our third time defending healthcare accessibility services for people who use substances where twice we have already seen approval by Council over the last year. The proposed motion being put forward is not about good governance or continued dialogue about where to receive services but an overtly hostile action toward people living with substance use who require connection to overdose prevention, support, education, treatment, and compassionate care TODAY!

In giving the community only two days' notice one of two things must be true; there is awareness of the injustice at play, and/or a lack of regard for the community's wishes. Respectfully, both of these lie at the core of your duties as a Council - at every issue.

Since first council presentation on January 17th, 2022, have been presented with;

1) An extensive 400-page document CTS Site specific document coordinated by the Windsor Essex County Health Unit that outlined a very fulsome process of community engagement and why the locations selected were ideal.

2) Information from community service providers indicating support

3) Increased overdoses in our community at your doorsteps

There has been a tremendous amount of time and opportunity for Council to educate themselves on the issue and site, so one can only perceive this is willful ignorance and a discriminatory move by a group to politically satisfy their own personal bias (that have since been disproven by research already indicated) and/or personal political agenda/gains

It has been six years since the beginning of this process and we have worked diligently as a community to fulfill the due diligence of the CTS process which included the municipality and county and hundreds of hours of community engagement, education, and discussion.

Somehow, Council may be ready to circumvent the process as a means to an end. Council asked for consultation and reports and received what they requested. We all deserve better from a handful of council members who continue to propagate stigmatization. I want to acknowledge and honor the 438 human beings who have lost their lives in our area since 2018 and who have died from drug poisoning. 438 people that we are aware of, as this number is likely higher. These losses can be prevented NOW. Health Care, Social Services, enforcement & justice, municipal services, media and the community at large all acknowledge this. At best, this motion will further delay a CTS, potentially resulting in more loss of life.

Councillor Agostino, Ward 3 who is bringing the motion forward stood before our agency and the community on World AIDS Day on December 1st, 2022, and commended the work we do in the community now bringing the motion forward to rescind the previous approval by council. Please note you will be setting in motion a decision that will exacerbate the existing issues in our community and further marginalize this population that requires support and care.

In short, this is not only about preventing loss of life and supporting the community - it is about evidence-based healthcare. The evidence supports this location. Lastly, this is not only about the aforementioned, but about standing in integrity as a council and not reversing previous commitments made. In that way, this is about so much more.

Regards,

Michael Brennan, Executive Director

Naomi Levitz-Shobola, Board Chair

Pozitive Pathways Community Services