The War on Drugs is a failure. The past generation has proven that there can be no victory in it simply by firing more bullets and imprisoning more people. Drug addiction is a disease born of trauma, struggle, hurt, and violence. The strategies employed are not and have not been working to reduce rates of addiction since Reagan first coined the term.
Despite this failure, short-sighted powerhungry politicians continue to rally their bases on both sides with promises of being tough on drugs. Just like every other war, they are the ones profiting from the destruction of innocent lives. Them and multi-national pharmaceutical corporations such as Opana and Lily. Pharmaceuticals played a heavy hand in creating the opioid epidemic that is burning through every socioeconomic class.
Pueblo is on fire in the frontlines of this war. Unfortunately, our City Council has decided to ignore the science and voices of the community. They are taking a stance of intolerance and disdain for those using proven methods to help those suffering from addiction. They are choosing to throw fuel on the fire, for their own political clout, rather than support those doing the work to put it out.
On April 22, they had the first reading of their proposed ordinance to ban Syringe Service Programs (previously referred to as needle exchanges) within the City of Pueblo. The ordinance is a direct effort to hinder health workers who doing proven work to reduce the harm this epidemic is causing. In the face of this disregard for the needs of people there was a show of resilience, hope, and compassion.
The second reading and vote on Gomez’s proposed ordinance will be May 13th at 7p.m. at 1 City Hall Place. There will be a public forum where Council is required to listen to anyone and everyone who signs up to speak. A sign-in sheet circulates between 5 and 6 pm.
Flashes of purples – mauve, plum, and lilac were worn in the Chamber audience. Purple symbolizes Overdose Awareness. Community members arrived dressed to support health care workers and to pay homage to the ones lost in this horrific war.
The People were armed with facts from organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and love for their Puebloans no matter their status.
As Councilman Roger Gomez (District 4) brought forward the ordinance which will ban Syringe Services Programs (SSPs), the people pushed back against the outdated rhetoric and blatantly false statements made by he and other Council Members. People spoke of the good work that the two primary harm reduction organizations, Southern Colorado Harm Reduction Association (SCHRA) and Access Point Pueblo, do to improve the health of our community.
They spoke about how the (CDC) applauds SSPs as community-based prevention programs that reduce the number of needle stick injuries and cases of blood borne pathogens in the communities in which they operate. Purple clad warriors and medics explained that SSPs are an important piece to harm reduction organizations that provide a wide range of services. They are a doorway to substance treatment, personal hygiene, vaccination, blood testing, and wound care and medical treatment for numerous other ailments.
Organizations such as SCHRA and Access Point Pueblo provide a wide range of services and will be put into jeopardy with the passage of this ban. They are an important distribution center for critical antioverdose medications such as Naloxone which has saved over 100 lives in our community since January 2024 alone. According to Colorado University Anschutz Medical Campus, 150+ die everyday from synthetic opioids like fentanyl in Colorado. The science is clear that harm reduction strategies are key to slowing the spread of blood borne pathogens and reduce overdose deaths. Not to mention that people who utilize these services are 5 times more likely to enter drug treatment and three times more likely to get clean.
These facts are in direct conflict with the language that is being used by Pueblo City Council. In their arguments and proposed ordinance, they stated that SSPs enable drug users, create more biohazardous litter, and increase crime. All of which have been proven false by scientific studies conducted across America. The only thing SSPs increase is the health of our communities by providing much needed treatment rather than further prosecution.
Public safety is serious, and the litter of used needles is a serious public safety concern, which is why we need comprehensive realistic strategies that reduce the number of needle stick injuries. Studies done by the CDC have proven this to be a fact, not an opinion born out of fear, discrimination, and misunderstanding.
According to the CDC it is fact that comprehensive SSPs are safe, effective, cost efficient, do not increase illegal drug use or crime, and play an important role in reducing infections. SSPs are linked with an estimated 50% reduction in HIV and HCV incidences. Since January of this year over 6,529 syringes have already been safely collected: (255,797 collected in 2023.) That’s 6529 needles that would be on the streets if these resources were not be able to function.
Public health safety should not be political, but rather, it should be based on the science and facts. However, City Council made it clear they are not interested in learning the history and science. Instead, they are more interested in appearing tough on crime in an election year while directly interfering with the health care needs of our community. Furthermore, it was clear was no understanding or plan as to how the ordinance will be enforced, or who it will impact. As we have already see with the Camping Ban recently passed.
The ordinance states that distributing or participating in an SSP program will be a class 2 municipal offense resulting in fines, with threat to up charges to a class 1 if habitually offended. The public needs more answers before supporting this. For example; How does this impact health care workers or pharmacies? Council needs to consider real facts and what happens downstream once the river is dammed. Three of the 6 people who signed up tonight addressed the ban on the syringe programs, addressing issues and their counter productivity.
One woman spoke of her walk from Mineral Palace Park to City Council that night. She purposely walks the alleys and side roads and corners to see what she could see. It wasn’t millions of needles as Gomez stated being found at doorsteps and parks. She found only one. At the park, she came across a man in an orange vest picking up trash. He told her know that it wasn’t needles that he sees although he does find them. An average about five every Monday, he said little shooters of alcohol bottles are what he cleans up.
Banning needles doesn’t take care of our drug epidemic, it only hides the underlining problems. The war on drugs won’t end while our leaders remain in denial.
