Losing a Child to Overdose Drove These Parents to Fight for More Humane Drug Laws

Featuring

[Moderator] Stacey McKenna, Resident Senior Fellow, Integrated Harm Reduction, R Street Institute

Aimee Dunkle, Member, Board of Directors, Broken No More and Grief Recovery After Substance Passing (GRASP); Executive Director, The Solace Foundation of Orange County

Tamara Olt, MD, Obstetrician-gynecologist; Executive Director, Broken No More and GRASP; Co-founder, Jolt Foundation 

Overview

When a loved one dies of an overdose—and when we worry about protecting our families and communities from the ongoing overdose crisis—it is tempting to divide people into innocent victims and dangerous (often outsider) perpetrators. But such stark lines are inconsistent with the realities of how people acquire and use drugs. What’s more, this perspective crowds out more nuanced conversations and real solutions to the overdose crisis. It also suggests that only those deemed “innocent” are worthy of having their lives protected or saved. This has real-world implications, including making people afraid to call for help in the event of an overdose (or to seek treatment for themselves) and taking attention away from the complex, evidence-based solutions that actually save lives, including harm reduction tools and approaches. 

Join us to hear from parents about why and how they have channeled their loss of a child to overdose into support for evidence-based, harm reduction-informed solutions to the overdose crisis.