Groups Across Country Are Using “DIY” Harm Reduction Kits to Mobilize Communities and Offer Solutions to Combat the Overdose Crisis
(New York City, USA)—For International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD) on August 31, public health organization Vital Strategies and hundreds of organizations and across the country are mounting community memorial events and rallying support for harm reduction services to stem the tide of overdose, which has claimed more than 100,000 lives for three consecutive years.
“August 31, Overdose Awareness Day, is an important time to honor the lives of family and friends who we have tragically lost to overdose, now the leading cause of death for people under 50 in this country,” said Tony Newman, Communications Director at Vital Strategies’ Overdose Prevention Program. “Inspired by the AIDS quilt, the Support Harm Reduction campaign is turning grief and anger into action by mobilizing communities across the country to build support for harm reduction, the proven public health solution to the overdose crisis.”
The week of IOAD will feature diverse events across the country, ranging from rallies and vigils to events at firehouses to community centers, health clinics and harm reduction centers.
For the second year in a row, Vital Strategies is mailing out more than 200 “DIY Boxes” to groups in over 10 states. The DIY Boxes offer a menu of campaign content and products to organize events, including: digital resources like an online overdose memorial, localized state videos on the overdose crisis and harm reduction interventions to reduce deaths and suffering, in addition to various physical items to display and distribute. At each site, campaign supporters will generate visibility through tables, banners, and leaflets, and will work with local media outlets to build public awareness. A sample of events to be held include:
- Newark, New Jersey: The Newark Public Library will set up a table with DIY Box materials so patrons can learn more about harm reduction, and will also hand out naloxone and fentanyl test strips free of charge. In addition, the library will be encouraging people to fill out the “I support harm reduction because..” cards to help create a future display.
- Louisville, Kentucky: Grassroots organization VOCAL-KY will be hosting their 3rd Annual Overdose Awareness Day Rally and March on Saturday, August 31. During the event, the Big Four Walking bridge will be lit up in purple for the evening, and the rally will feature speakers including harm reduction advocates and community partners. Moreover, attendees will be able to get naloxone, fentanyl test strips, HIV/HCV testing, links to services, and information on ways to get involved.
- Clinton, North Carolina: The United Katehnuaka Longhouse is organizing a community social centered around overdose prevention and awareness at the Coharie Tribal Center in Sampson County on August 29th. The social will bring together Native people from across the region for an evening of traditional song and dance, speakers on the overdose crisis in their communities, and honoring of loved ones who have passed due to overdose.
Campaign proponents believe that every community in the U.S. should have access to harm reduction services. Harm reduction is a non-coercive approach that empowers people who use drugs to reduce the risk of death and disease. The Support Harm Reduction campaign calls for support and access to five specific interventions: Naloxone to reverse opioid overdoses; Drug checking resources such as fentanyl test strips; Safer drug use supplies such as sterile syringes; Overdose prevention centers for supervised use, and; Methadone and buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder.
The International Overdose Awareness Day national action is part of an award-winning “Support Harm Reduction” multimedia campaign that highlights key interventions proven to save lives, but which remain difficult to access for most people in the United States. A central component of the Support Harm Reduction campaign is an interactive online memorial honoring the lives of people who have died from a drug overdose.
Campaign Background
The Support Harm Reduction campaign launched in February 2022 with a full-page print ad in The New York Times, featuring 200 people on the front lines of the overdose crisis working in harm reduction. Three video ads featuring overdose prevention advocates whose lives were saved by harm reduction, aired 6,000 times in and around Washington, D.C. on a range of channels including CNN, BET, ESPN and on YouTube, Hulu and podcasts garnering 44 million impressions to date.
For more information about the Support Harm Reduction campaign, visit: https://www.supportharmreduction.org
About Vital Strategies
Vital Strategies is a global health organization that believes every person should be protected by a strong public health system. Our overdose prevention program works to strengthen and scale evidence-based, data-driven policies and interventions to create equitable and sustainable reductions in overdose deaths. Work across seven U.S. states is supported by funding from the Bloomberg Philanthropies Overdose Prevention Initiative, launched in 2018, and by targeted investments from other partners.
Learn more here.