Winnipeg’s meth crisis: community-based responses needed NOW
CMU and MSC sponsor public events and collaborative training development
The drug methamphetamine is running rampant in Winnipeg and it affects everyone, from families to workplaces to public spaces. The city urgently needs community-based action, and several organizations are uniting to bring it about.
Canadian Mennonite University (CMU) and Menno Simons College (MSC), along with numerous other organizations, are hosting a series of public events this week, titled, "Meth in Winnipeg: A Community Response."
Lectures by Dr. Edward Durgan on July 25 and 29 and a panel discussion on July 27 will provide education about the meth crisis and make space for people to share their perspectives on what Winnipeg needs to address this issue.
All events are FREE, all venues are accessible, and all are welcome. All events will also be livestreamed on the Menno Simmons College Facebook page.
"Policy makers at all levels of government have prioritized densification and high-end condo marketing in urban settings. Meanwhile academic and municipal psychiatrists have continued to emphasize genetics and viral infections as principal disease vectors for severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and substance dependence while ignoring pathogenic factors inherent in urban dwelling," says Dr. Edward Durgan. "Together they have led our culture into the worst mental health crisis in the history of western of civilization."
Durgan is an educator, psychotherapist, and researcher from Vancouver and Antioch University – Seattle. During the week, he will facilitate collaborative training development workshops in MSC's Conflict Resolution Studies department. Together with over a dozen frontline community organizations and families impacted by meth, they will equip people with tools to deal with situations involving meth and other substances in their communities.
"There are no simple answers, and our intention with these events is to contribute to solutions by building capacity in real ways so we can help reduce the harms people are exposed to on all sides of the equation," says Jobb Arnold, Assistant Professor of Conflict Resolution Studies at MSC.
"Meth addiction is a serious issue in Manitoba and across Canada and North America today, with relevance to public health, homelessness, and to families and communities," says Jon Dueck, Vice President Academic at CMU. "I think it is encouraging that CMU is part of the conversation around resilience and healing in the context of meth addiction."
Event Dates and Details
Thursday July 25 | 7:00 PM
Lecture by Dr. Edward Durgan | "History and Immediacy: Severe Mental Illness and Impoverished Dwelling in Urban Settings"
Location: Menno Simons College102-520 Portage Avenue
Saturday, July 27 | 10:00 AM
Panel Discussion | "Meth in Our Midst: Community Responses to People, Drugs & Situations"
Location: Merchant's Corner 541 Selkirk Ave.
Monday, July 29 | 7:00 PM
Lecture by Dr. Edward Durgan | "Methamphetamine: Risk, Resilience, Resistance – from Vancouver to Winnipeg"
Location: Millennium Library (Carol Shields Auditorium) 251 Donald St.
Printed from: media.cmu.ca/nr-methcrisisevent