Community members stand against involuntary care outside Prince George Courthouse

Over two dozen people were out front of the Prince George Courthouse this afternoon protesting increased involuntary care in BC.

This comes after the BC NDP announced they would look at expanding the care for those with brain injury, mental illness, and severe addiction.

Co-Organizer, Grace Burke says history shows decisions like these don’t help.

“If you look at the Heroin Treatment Act in 1978, it was a law in BC that called for the forced treatment who use heroin, and it was scrapped, because it was unsuccessful. People relapsed when they got out.”

Burke says instead of expanding this care, they want to see investment into voluntary treatment, as people continue to wait for expensive and inaccessible treatment.

A lot of the narrative surrounding involuntary treatment is being used to dehumanize the homeless and drug users, and justify the overdose deaths in the community.

Burke has lost people to drug poisoning, and sometimes wonders who will die next.

She notes it doesn’t just affect people who are actively using, but can affect those taking unregulated recreational drugs for the first time.

She believes this is a reactionary and political decision, and not one rooted in science or experience.