Doctors for Decriminalization is a coalition of Canadian clinicians that recognizes the harms associated with the criminalization of substance use, which disproportionately impacts our society’s most marginalized populations, and advocates for responsible and evidence-informed drug and substance policy with the goal to improve the health of all Canadians.

Criminalizing the possession and use of drugs takes a punitive stance toward substance use disorder, and has proven grossly ineffective in addressing rates of substance use and the harms associated with it. Consequences of criminalization include poorer health outcomes, increased risk of overdose deaths, and a plethora of costs associated with involvement with the carceral system including difficulty gaining employment, homelessness, and stigmatization. Despite similar rates of substance use across the board, racialized communities are disproportionately affected by these harms.

We call on the Federal Government to take a health and human-rights based approach to substance use by decriminalizing the possession and use of drugs and treating substance use as a public health issue. We also call on the Federal Political Parties to include the decriminalization of drugs on their campaign platforms.

For more information:

www.Docs4Decrim.org

http://csam-smca.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Policy_Brief__CSAM_in_Support_of_the.3-1.pdf

docs4decrim@gmail.com

Signatories:

Quinten Clarke
Erin Lurie
David Martell
Leah Genge
Jennifer Ng
Danielle Kaardal
Matthew McArthur
Pamela Czart
Will Allen
Youssif Sewidan
Peter Youssef
Mary Boulos
Jacqueline Vincent
Victoria Turnbull
Taryn Lloyd
Sarah Forbes
Atin Sethi
Tiffany O’Donnell
Karen Wang
Monty Ghosh
Tomoko McGaughey
Kat Butler
Carlie Penner
Sarah Elliott
Tim Holland
Alisha Coe
Jessie Brazier
Daniel Lazzam
Neil Arya
Renee Amiro
Janice Chisholm
Michael Gniewek
Matthew Kutcher
Sandy Buchman
Ross Upshur
Devin Magennis
Christine Campbell
Thomas Brothers
Keith Baglole
Ajantha Jayabarathan
Christine Campbell
Shasta Moser
Chelsey Sheffiekd
Philip Berger
Christopher O’Grady
Brent Young
Martha Carmichael
Katharine Birkness
Lena Dolman
Breanna Hargreaves
Alexander Levit
Micah Peters
Sonika Kainth
Christine Saveland
Joe Loung
Timothy Guimond
Montana Hackett
Sam Campbell
Ketan Vegda
Elizabeth Munn
david zitner
Ali Damji
Doris Li
Susan M. Atkinson
Meera Grover
Kate Colizza
Monika Dutt
Christin Hilbert
Emma Gibbons
Natasha Bansley
Sarah Gander
Saad Ahmed
Jonathan Reggler
adam thompson
Kara Schneider
Kara Schneider
Marie Clare Hopwood
Christy Sutherland
Osmaan Sheikh
Jake Gambling
Timothy Gash
Patty Wilson
Shane Hawkins
Andrew Horne
Tracey Day
Louise Moodie
Jessica Jokinen
Donald Versluis
Jane Luft
Sally Carver
Maciej Mierzewski
Jessica McDowell
Yuki Lai
Devon Wilton
Andrew Mikhail
Katie van Kampen
Cristina Zaganelli
George Kachkovski
Isabel Thomas
Niamh Cashell
Rhianna Davis
Madelaine Beaumont
rebecca morrison
Mark Scott
Caitlin Geary
Steve Darcy
Shana Johnston
Kali Gartner
Kali Gartner
Tanya Hauck
Emma McDermott
Maxine Maretzki
Françoise Guigné
Hasan Sheikh
Jesse McLaren
Jennifer Hulme
Jennifer Bryan
Sepideh Behroozan
Joel Lexchin
Matthew Sheppard
Alice Cavanagh
Rachel Talavlikar
Michael Tibout
Donna Friedman
Frank Cashman
Kate Hayman
Marlene Cashman
Genevieve McCallum
Lucy Manchester
Barbara Watts
Adriana Di Stefano
Sara Porisky
Ashley Cox
Andrew Warren
Dafydd Davies
Christy Bussey
Susan Ripley
Lana Saciragic
Mamta Gautam
Elizabeth Whynot
Tom Skinner
Alyson Holland