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• ADM Brett Giroir, MD, Assistant Secretary for Health and Senior Adviser for Opioid Policy;
• RADM Jonathan Mermin, MD, MPH, Director, CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention;
• (TBC) Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA); and
• (TBC) Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

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August 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day. People across the globe have organized community events to fight, to build and to grieve for those who are no longer with us. Harm Reduction Coalition fights, builds and grieves with them. We have all lost too many parents, children, siblings, friends and neighbors. 

Overdose is the leading cause of death for people in the U.S. under 50 years old, which represents the highest rate of drug-related mortality in the world. Overdose deaths are preventable, and today we also celebrate the lives and resilience of each person who got another day when their overdoses were reversed by naloxone and other prevention programs. 

Ending the overdose crisis will take all of us. We may not see a year with no overdoses in our lifetimes, but reducing harm and healing from the multi-generational harms of the drug war will require collective action. In the last few years, we’ve seen harm reduction as a movement grow. There is more awareness and support for naloxone. And yet, so many barriers remain to getting overdose prevention resources to the people who need them. We need universal access to naloxone and harm reduction services, on demand access to evidence-based treatment, and everything in our toolkit that we know works. But that won’t be enough if we don’t also stand together to fight against racialized drug policies, heal from stigma and shame, and challenge the systemic harms faced by people who use drugs and their families. It will take all of us. 

For 25 years, Harm Reduction Coalition has been uplifting community-led initiatives from grassroots programs to political and structural advocacy campaigns to reduce overdose and improve safety and wellbeing for people who use drugs. Our overdose prevention work is centered in expanding effective treatment and care, increasing access to naloxone, and changing the narrative of people who use drugs. 

"This is about people who use drugs saving each other. If your community is wondering what you can do to reduce overdose, get naloxone into the hands of people who use drugs. Once you've done that, look at the systemic issues that are impacting people who are at risk of overdose - including policing, homelessness, and systemic racism - to change the conditions that make overdose happen to begin with." — Kristen Marshall

"As long as it's easier to get heroin or fentanyl than it is to get medication treatment for heroin or fentanyl, we will continue to see unrelenting numbers of overdose deaths. Getting kicked out of treatment programs for smoking, for example, or being tapered off medication for ongoing heroin use or cocaine use, means we as providers might have the wrong goals. The goal is not to dictate exactly what people do with and put into their bodies but to help them stay alive and engaged, make more healthy choices and achieve other life goals.” — Dr. Kim Sue 

Uplifting community initiatives: There’s no one-size-fits-all program that works for every community. We are inspired by the way people and organizations across the country have designed their own campaigns, programs and initiatives to address this crisis in their own communities. 

• The Urban Survivors Union (USU) launched the Reframe the Blame campaign to take a stand against drug-induced homicide laws. The campaign is led by people targeted and directly impacted by racist and classist drug war policy and insists that prohibition is responsible for untimely drug-related death, not individuals dealers.
• In Baltimore, Bmore Power launched the Go Slow initiative to educate the local community to save lives, reduce harm and address risk to Hepatitis C and HIV/AIDS in the community. 
• In Seattle and California, Yes to SCS calls on people who use drugs, their families, neighbors and community members to support safer consumption spaces (SCSs) to prevent fatal overdoses through evidence-based alternatives. Around the world, SCSs have been saving lives for more than 30 years, impacting drug-related deaths, public drug use and discarded needles, and the spread of diseases like HIV and Hepatitis C. Other cities, including New York, Denver, Portland and Philadelphia are leading similar local campaigns and initiatives. 
• Queering Harm Reduction (QHR) is a collective project focused on making radical, LGBTQ-oriented harm reduction information available and accessible to all. QHR maintains a library of resources at the intersection of substance use, sex, queerness, race and disability. 
• Chicago Recovery Alliance is working toward “any positive change” with a collaborative, real-time drug-checking project and other mobile harm reduction services that reduce risk and improve access to resources for people who use drugs. Other services include syringe access, harm reduction counseling and referrals into evidence-based treatment programs. 

We are inspired by the work of our partners and colleagues across the country and are committed to continuing to support and uplift their work. If you want to share how you or your organization participated in a community event or action, please tag us on Twitter (@HarmReduction), Facebook or Instagram and we will repost and share to our pages. 

Through the weekend, Harm Reduction Coalition staff will be with our families, friends and communities to honor International Overdose Awareness Day in our own ways. We encourage everyone whose lives and communities have been affected by fatal overdoses to do the same. 

Harm Reduction Coalition is thrilled to release the Know Overdose campaign that will be coming to the streets of San Francisco soon!

The DOPE Project collaborated with people who use drugs to develop guidance and community-specific messaging to expand overdose prevention education in a way that centered people who are most at risk, highlighting the lifesavers of San Francisco: people who use drugs.

SHAPING THE CAMPAIGN

We spent several months talking to people who use drugs in different neighborhoods and venues in San Francisco where we have seen the highest overdose rates. As part of the process, we shared photos of different campaigns that have already been developed to see what resonated with community members from examples that already exist. From there, we learned that there were a few key components that were important:

• There isn't a one-size-fits-all so the campaign needs to have different kinds of messaging for different communities
• Information and facts are still impactful and useful
• Drugs and drug equipment should be realistic (no 5cc huge syringes!),
• People in the campaign should be real people and not staged, so people can see themselves in the campaign, and
• Posters in transportation hubs, bus stations, and bars are most impactful

"This campaign was inspired, shaped, and ultimately created by people who use drugs in San Francisco. They were involved in every step of the process - from telling us what they wanted to see and how they wanted to see it, what they wanted everyone to know, what they wanted to learn, and how they wanted to see themselves and their community. These are their faces and their strategies, stories, and lives, and each person featured in this campaign has helped ensure the safety and survival of their fellow San Franciscans. This work often goes unnoticed by the community-at-large, and they do it without notice or compensation, every day. Thousands of people survive their overdoses every year in our city because of people who use drugs and harm reduction workers."
- Kristen Marshall, DOPE Project Manager

"These posters make us feel like this city has not forgotten us. That San Francisco DOES care about all its inhabitants. The images offer us a critical and essential message to those of us who find ourselves at risk in this epidemic, either with our own lives or the lives of our loved ones, that this complicated and unrelenting struggle does not have to be a lonely one."
- Miss Ian, SFDUU

KNOW OVERDOSE CAMPAIGN MATERIALS

We’d especially like to thank…. SFDUU, Glide, Urban Services YMCA and HopeSF, The Hunter's Point Family/Urban Alchemy, The Stud SF, The Luggage Store Gallery & Tenderloin National Forest, San Francisco Department of Public Health, Miss Ian, Eliza Wheeler, Katie Burk, Niyok, Johnny, Tony, Iona, Bizkit, Kelani, Katie, Priscilla, Frank C., Mark, Frank A., Andre, Ali, Ramona, Big O., Wahoo, Mike, Mattie, Bonnie & Pat, Janesta, Lolo, Blue, Sophie, Lex, Finley Kipp, and Judy Balmin. Finally and most importantly, thank you to our harm reduction community in San Francisco for entrusting us with their stories and for believing in our vision. 

This ad campaign is especially dedicated in loving memory to Pat Bolden, and to people who use drugs, everywhere.

There are a ton of reasons to support our work! Which is most important to you?

$5/month  - Build

You care about harm reduction and want to help sustain it by investing in our training institutes, biennial national conference, and various resources created for harm reduction groups around the country.

$25/month  - Build

You want to see rapid response to emerging trends in drug use, expanding syringe access, and overdose prevention in all 50 states including Puerto Rico by doubling-down on our existing work.

$50/month - Grow

You are invested in Harm Reduction Coalition’s existing work, but also want to see the movement grow by centering the leadership of people who use drugs through leadership training, training specific to organizational development, regional conferences, new online training modules, and mentorship programs.

$100/month - Innovate

You are invested in expanding Harm Reduction Coalition’s work and the movement, but also want to contribute to creative and innovative approaches to improving the health and well-being of people most vulnerable to structural violence.

Share Why You Became a Harm Reduction Champion!

This week we will be sharing stories and quotes from our new Harm Reduction Champions through our social media. Want to share why you became a monthly giver to inspire your community to do the same? Follow these simple steps:

1. Sign up to become a Harm Reduction Champion today

2. Print the sign and tell us why you support our cause or just share your story

3. Post it on all your social media channels tagging Harm Reduction Coalition (@HarmReduction, @harmreductioncoalition) and using the hashtag #harmreductionchampions. Need inspiration? Check out our Harm Reduction Champion toolkit

4. Keep an eye out on our social media to see if your story gets reposted

Perks of Working at Harm Reduction Coalition

• 20 days of paid vacation time a year that bumps up to 24 days after one year, 12 paid sick days, and 12 paid national holidays
• In addition to the above, our offices are closed from December 25th to January 1st as paid time 
• Summer Fridays! Our offices close on Fridays at 2pm local time from Memorial Day to Labor Day

• Cell phone reimbursement for all staff (+ internet for remote staff)
• Up to 100% covered health insurance & life insurance
• Remote team members have a designated weekly huddle to stay connected
• Our New York office is in the booming Flatiron district of Manhattan with easy access to other boroughs
• Our Oakland office is in the heart of downtown right next to all public transportation, just 3 stops on BART to San Francisco

Open Positions

Deputy Director of Learning & Engagement

Director of Capacity Building and Community Mobilization 

National Conference & Admin Coordinator

Communications Coordinator

Harm reduction, health care and drug policy reform have entered a dynamic and critical phase. The prescription opioid and heroin overdose epidemic has captured national attention, with renewed focus on transmission of HIV and viral hepatitis among people who use drugs. These trends are reshaping the policy and public health landscapes, making harm reduction more urgent and relevant than ever before. 

Join us for The 2020 National Harm Reduction Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico for the only national multidisciplinary conference focused entirely on improving the health and valuing the voices of people who use drugs. Join over 2,000 people from around the country and abroad who will convene to learn directly from people who use drugs as well as harm reduction and policy experts about innovative harm reduction strategies and progressive drug policy. 

Key Information

Early Bird Registration Deadline: Save $100 when you register before June 30!

Key Objectives for The 2020 National Harm Reduction Conference:

• Providing safe spaces for the exchange of ideas and cutting-edge practices that reduce harms associated with drug use

• Creating networking opportunities for people from diverse backgrounds committed to dismantling the racialized policies that underwrite and perpetuate oppression

• Challenging stigmatizing narratives about people who use drugs by supporting their leadership development and exposing social inequities driven by structural violence and discrimination
   

In addition to workshops, roundtable discussions, plenaries, poster presentations, and an exhibit hall, other conference highlights include:

Stay tuned for future communications:

• More conference details

• Monthly learning series to prepare for responsible travel to Puerto Rico

• Reminders for important dates

• Introductions to the artists, creators and collaborators we are partnering with to make this event possible

• Exciting announcements

• And more!

Help spread the word about #HarmRed20 on social media: Share your favorite photos from #HarmRed18 using the new hashtag and tag us!

#GivingTuesday is a global movement to celebrate year-end charitable giving. This year we’re aiming to raise funds specifically for conference scholarships for people who, without this support, are unable to attend next year’s National Harm Reduction Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico from October 15 - 18, 2020.

Every conference year, priority is given to people who use or have used drugs, living with HIV/AIDS or hepatitis C, people of color, young people, people engaged in sex work, transgender and gender non-conforming folks. But there are always more requests than we can support and we’re faced with having to reject some scholarship applications due to financial constraints, red tape, and a culture of scarcity that limits access to those who have resources. But the truth is that there are enough resources - it’s just a matter of how they’re distributed!

Will you join us at #harmred20 in Puerto Rico?

#GivingTuesday is a global movement to celebrate year-end charitable giving. This year we’re aiming to raise $6,000 for conference scholarships for people who, without this support, are unable to attend next year’s National Harm Reduction Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico from October 15 - 18.

Harm Reduction Coalition receives hundreds of scholarship requests from community members who are eager to learn about and share the work they’re doing to reverse the harms caused by the war on drugs, eliminate overdoses and infectious disease transmission, and end stigma faced by people who use drugs. Since the very first conference, we’ve provided scholarships to people with limited resources to ensure their participation because the conference is one of the few places where people — who are often ignored or villainized — can build meaningful connections and experience a sense of belonging and purpose.  

This year we’re celebrating #GivingTuesday by giving the gift of the National Harm Reduction Conference to people with lived experience. With your support, we’ll dedicate even more resources to scholarships for next October’s conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico because we want to celebrate the work of people dedicated to bringing harm reduction to their communities, especially those who often work for free and without societal support. 

But you don’t have to take our word for it.

“Attending the Harm Reduction Conference was a dream come true for me. As a person with lived experience, I had always felt "not good enough" or "unworthy" and often sold myself short. The scholarship offered to me by Harm Reduction Coalition gave me the chance to see I was not alone, that there were many people like myself, and that my voice mattered. It was the jumping-off point for my start of advocacy at a local level, knowing that I have a huge community to cheer me on, and I have since seen how my voice has become a valued one at the local, state, and national-level. I am eternally grateful for the opportunity and encourage folks to support others like myself to find their voice.”

- Tara, scholarship recipient & attendee of #harmred18

Tara is just one of many people for whom the conference was an important turning point. Maybe the conference was a turning point for you! Please make a choice this #GivingTuesday to support this gift for someone else.

Will you join us at #harmred20 in Puerto Rico?

Letter from our Executive Director

This year the National Harm Reduction Coalition is celebrating 25 years of standing up for the rights and well-being of people who use drugs. We’ve grown so much in 2019 — 56% of our team are new and based in different parts of the country including Alabama, California, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Tennessee, and Texas, making us a truly national organization!

As we enter our 26th year we are THRILLED to share our 2019 Impact Report that highlights the seeds we’ve sown that will begin blossoming in 2020 and years to come. Y’all are definitely gonna want to stay tuned!

On behalf of the entire staff and Board of Directors, thank you once again for your support and collaboration. The progress we're making wouldn't be possible without you. We're excited for the evolution of the National Harm Reduction Coalition and invite you to continue walking with us along this journey.

The end of 2019 will close out a decade and our 25th year at National Harm Reduction Coalition! The harm reduction movement has seen a lot of growth this year and we have many reasons to celebrate together. In a movement impacted by shared loss, taking time to reflect on our wins together can be restorative. 

To share some of the work we have accomplished in the last year, National Harm Reduction Coalition put together our Annual Impact Report to present 19 Highlights of 2019. 

Major 2019 milestones included: 

• We launched our inaugural grant-making program, HepConnect, as the largest single grant opportunity to specifically fund harm reduction programs in U.S. history. 

• Faith in Harm Reduction partnered with unions of people who use drugs and regional harm reduction programs to co-create community power building advocacy, healing, and justice events in 10 states. 

• We launched Harm Reduction Champions, a new community of monthly donors — and had over 65 new monthly recurring donors across the country in the first two months! 

• The DOPE Project created a new citywide overdose prevention and naloxone access campaign in San Francisco called Know Overdose that was designed and built for and by people who are most at risk of overdose. 

• We partnered with Drug Policy Alliance and in less than two years, we won over $15 million to create the first designated funding opportunity in California to harm reduction staff support in 10 years. 

• We announced the location of #HarmRed20 to be in San Juan, Puerto Rico from October 15-18, 2020 and we are working with community partners to ensure we host responsibly and offer education to prospective attendees.

National Harm Reduction Coalition works for the movement. Celebrate our collective wins and support our ongoing work to improve access to harm reduction programs and services across the country. 

Want your own copy? Donate $25 or more TODAY to receive a printed copy of the Annual Impact Report booklet after the new year. Whether you support the National Harm Reduction Coalition with a financial gift, sharing your time, or spreading the word we wouldn’t be celebrating 25 years of life-saving and system-changing work without your support. 

Letter from our Executive Director

This year the National Harm Reduction Coalition is celebrating 25 years of standing up for the rights and well-being of people who use drugs. We’ve grown so much in 2019 — 56% of our team are new and based in different parts of the country including Alabama, California, Kentucky, Maryland, New York, Tennessee, and Texas, making us a truly national organization!

As we enter our 26th year we are THRILLED to share our 2019 Impact Report that highlights the seeds we’ve sown that will begin blossoming in 2020 and years to come. Y’all are definitely gonna want to stay tuned!

On behalf of the entire staff and Board of Directors, thank you once again for your support and collaboration. The progress we're making wouldn't be possible without you. We're excited for the evolution of the National Harm Reduction Coalition and invite you to continue walking with us along this journey.

The end of 2019 will close out a decade and our 25th year at National Harm Reduction Coalition! The harm reduction movement has seen a lot of growth this year and we have many reasons to celebrate together. In a movement impacted by shared loss, taking time to reflect on our wins together can be restorative. 

To share some of the work we have accomplished in the last year, National Harm Reduction Coalition put together our Annual Impact Report to present 19 Highlights of 2019. 

Major 2019 milestones included: 

• We launched our inaugural grant-making program, HepConnect, as the largest single grant opportunity to specifically fund harm reduction programs in U.S. history. 

• Faith in Harm Reduction partnered with unions of people who use drugs and regional harm reduction programs to co-create community power building advocacy, healing, and justice events in 10 states. 

• We launched Harm Reduction Champions, a new community of monthly donors — and had over 65 new monthly recurring donors across the country in the first two months! 

• National Harm Reduction Coalition created a new citywide overdose prevention and naloxone access campaign in San Francisco called Know Overdose that was designed and built for and by people who are most at risk of overdose. 

• We partnered with Drug Policy Alliance and in less than two years, we won over $15 million to create the first designated funding opportunity in California to harm reduction staff support in 10 years. 

• We announced the location of #HarmRed20 to be in San Juan, Puerto Rico from October 15-18, 2020 and we are working with community partners to ensure we host responsibly and offer education to prospective attendees.

National Harm Reduction Coalition works for the movement. Celebrate our collective wins and support our ongoing work to improve access to harm reduction programs and services across the country. 

Want your own copy? Donate $25 or more to receive a printed copy of the Annual Impact Report booklet after the new year. Whether you support the National Harm Reduction Coalition with a financial gift, sharing your time, or spreading the word we wouldn’t be celebrating 25 years of life-saving and system-changing work without your support. 

Harm Reduction Coalition Selected to Lead $15.2 Million California Harm Reduction Initiative 

The national Harm Reduction Coalition has been selected by the California Department of Public Health, Office of AIDS to lead the California Harm Reduction Initiative (CHRI — pronounced “cheery”) with funding from the California Budget Act of 2019. The initiative will support an expansion of services and staffing at syringe service programs (SSPs), as well as technical assistance for many programs that have been operating with little to no staffing support for years. 

This funding will support the addition of Harm Reduction Care Navigator positions for SSPs to hire a dedicated person to effectively reach people who are not in treatment, provide health education information including overdose prevention and link people to syringe access, overdose prevention, drug treatment and healthcare services. 

In California, and across the United States, accidental overdose is the leading cause of death for people under 50. 

“CHRI is a critical investment in harm reduction services that we haven’t seen for more than a decade in California,” said Monique Tula, Executive Director of HRC. “Ending HIV, hepatitis and overdoses among people who use drugs won’t happen without sustainable funding. In one of the defining crises of our time, public officials in other states must demonstrate the same commitment for expanding harm reduction programs because lives depend on it.” 

The initiative is funded for four years under the California Budget Act of 2019, with $12.6 million to support staffing at SSPs and $1.8 million for technical assistance and program administration. The national Harm Reduction Coalition will lead subcontracting eligible California SSPs and provide technical assistance to organizations that will be expanding staffing under CHRI. 

“Harm Reduction Coalition has a proven track record as a technical assistance provider in a broad range of harm reduction topics, from overdose prevention to best practices for syringe services programs,” said Dr. Marisa Ramos, Interim Chief of the California Department of Public Health’s Office of AIDS. “The recent success of their HepConnect project, which has awarded more than $5.3 million in grant funding to 44 projects in five states, has given HRC extensive experience in directly supporting harm reduction organizations. We are excited to partner with them on this important initiative to improve the quality, capacity and reach of syringe service programs in California.” 

Harm reduction providers have been building trusting relationships that position them to provide unique care and service to people impacted by lack of access. 

“Since 1995, we have evolved from a simple syringe exchange to a drug user health organization. Until this funding, we have never been compensated for this vital public health work. This funding will change everything and bring recognition and awareness to harm reduction as a vital modality,” said Annunziata van Voorene, MSW, LCSW of Any Positive Change Lake County. 

“For more than a decade, we have been unable to have face to face contacts with 65% of the people we serve, depriving them of essential connections and linkages to medical, behavioral and treatment services available in more populated areas of the County,” said Libby Guthrie, Executive Director of the Mendocino County AIDS/Viral Hepatitis Network. 

The California Syringe Exchange Programs (CASEP) coalition led a multi year campaign to secure this money in the California State Budget. The support from the state legislature and Governor Newsom has created an opportunity for deep investment in harm reduction effort in California. For historical context, please review the release: “California Funds Staff at Syringe Service Programs for the First Time in 10 Years.” 

“At the national Harm Reduction Coalition, we are so excited that after many years of offering technical assistance, training and support on policy advocacy in California, we can offer what programs said they have needed most to reduce the social and health harms of drug use in their communities: People to do the work,” said Savannah O’Neill, Capacity Building and Community Mobilization Manager at HRC. “As partners on CHRI, we are committed to ensuring these resources fund programs who have been on the front lines supporting the majority of people who use drugs through syringe and naloxone access, engaging in outreach and providing linkage to care often with minimal, if any, staffing support.” 

This week Puerto Rico experienced a series of devastating earthquakes, and the federal Department of Health and Human Services has declared a public health emergency. The already fragile infrastructure of the island, still recovering from the damage caused by Hurricane Maria, is once again experiencing incredible hardships. More than two-thirds of the island is without power, and Costa Sur, the largest power plant which generates more than a quarter of the power for the island, is inoperant and most likely will not be back up and running for at least a year. The earthquake epicenter was in the south of the island, and this is where people need the most help and support. 

While an earthquake is a natural disaster, the current situation in Puerto Rico is also a product of more than a century of colonialism and exploitation imposed by the United States on the Puerto Rican people and their resources.

In 2016, Puerto Rico’s financial crisis resulted in a federally-appointed fiscal control board taking charge of the government budget and debt. The fiscal board immediately imposed severe austerity measures and raised taxes, which were already high, to restructure the island’s $123 billion debt. These austerity measures made living conditions much more difficult and dangerous, especially to those most vulnerable: women, elders, and people impacted by structural violence and struggling with poverty. Those already marginalized by stigma and criminalization have the least access to support.

In October, our harm reduction community will gather in San Juan, Puerto Rico, for the National Harm Reduction Conference. We share this message as a call to action to support the people of Puerto Rico. If you are able, consider joining our staff in donating to specific community-based organizations:

Coalición de Coaliciones would like donations to be made thru their PayPal (there is a donate button on their page).

Migrant Health Center would like to receive donations of materials and products. Below you will find a list of what they need and the contact information where folks can send it.

They would appreciate donations of the following articles:

• Personal hygiene
• Sleeping bags, cots, inflatable mattresses
• Towels and bedsheets
• Camping tents
• First aid materials

Migrant Health Center

Dirección: 324 Km 11.9 Bo Montalva 23, Guanica, Puerto Rico 00647
Contacto: Sra. Jeanette Alicea

For more information about the current situation, read this comprehensive article by Remezcla. 

Esta semana, Puerto Rico ha vivido una serie de terremotos devastadores, y el Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos de Estados Unidos ha declarado una emergencia de salud pública. La estructura de la isla, ya frágil y aún en recuperación después del daño causado por el huracán María, pasa una vez más por tiempos increíblemente difíciles. Más de dos tercios de la isla siguen sin electricidad y Costa Sur—la central eléctrica más grande que genera más de un cuarto de la electricidad en la isla—está inoperante, y lo más probable es que no se restaure y opere de nuevo en por lo menos un año. El epicentro del terremoto fue al sur de la isla, y es allí donde la gente necesita más ayuda y apoyo.

Aunque un terremoto es un desastre natural, la situación actual en Puerto Rico es también producto de más de un siglo de colonialismo y explotación impuestos por Estados Unidos sobre el Pueblo puertorriqueño y sus recursos.

En 2016, la crisis económica de Puerto Rico resultó en una Junta de Control Fiscal nombrada a nivel federal para encargarse del presupuesto y la deuda del gobierno. La Junta de Control Fiscal inmediatamente impuso múltiples medidas de austeridad y aumentó los impuestos, que ya estaban altos, para reestructurar la deuda de la isla por $123 mil millones. Estas medidas de austeridad causaron que las condiciones de vida se hicieran más difíciles y peligrosas, especialmente para las personas más vulnerables: mujeres, adultos mayores y personas impactadas por la violencia estructural y la pobreza. Las personas ya marginadas por el estigma y la criminalización tienen la menor cantidad de acceso al apoyo.

En octubre, nuestra comunidad de reducción de daños se reunirá en San Juan, Puerto Rico, para la Conferencia Nacional de Reducción de Daños. Compartimos este mensaje para hacer un llamado a la acción con el fin de apoyar al Pueblo de Puerto Rico. Si usted puede, considere unirse a nuestro personal en donar a organizaciones de base comunitaria específicas:

Coalición de Coaliciones agradece que los donativos se hagan a través PayPal (en su página web podrán encontrar un botón de donativo) 

Migrant Health Center prefiere recibir donativos de materiales y productos de primera necesidad.  A continuación, encontraran una lista de artículos que pueden donar y la información contacto a donde enviarlos:

• Artículos de higiene y primera necesidad
• Casetas de campaña
• Catres, mattress inflables, sacos de dormir
• Toallas y sábanas

Migrant Health Center

Dirección: 324 Km 11.9 Bo Montalva 23, Guanica, Puerto Rico 00647
Contacto: Sra. Jeanette Alicea

Para más información acerca de la situación actual, vea este artículo completo (en inglés) publicado por Remezcla.