Break In Case of Emergency Parallel emergencies: the poison drug crisis and climate breakdown (w/ Garth Mullins)
Sep 8, 2025
Garth Mullins, a prominent harm reduction activist and broadcaster, discusses the overlapping crises of climate change and the overdose epidemic. He emphasizes the necessity for solidarity among social movements to tackle systemic issues. Mullins critiques drug prohibition and highlights the importance of community organizing, advocating for compassionate emergency responses to both crises. The conversation underscores the need for radical reforms and the role of grassroots movements in fostering genuine change and resilience in society.
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From User To Organizer
- Garth Mullins recounts his own long history as an opioid user and later as an organizer in VANDU.
- He says shame delayed his organizing until he realized his lived experience belonged in movement work.
Use Direct Action To Win Harm Reduction
- Use civil disobedience, mass protest, and coalition building as tactics to force policy change on drug harms.
- Garth describes needle exchanges and supervised sites beginning as illegal acts to create political pressure.
Crisis-Born Organizing Skills
- Organizing under emergency conditions creates specific skills: mutual aid and self-reliance.
- Garth says drug user movements developed a 'nobody's coming to save us' ethic that can strengthen broader struggles.
