The following letter was published by Ottawa Citizen on August 24th, 2024.
Re: Somerset West supervised consumption site to close after new provincial rules, Aug. 20.
I am pleased to see Ontario’s new requirement that supervised drug consumption sites within 200 metres of schools will have to close. I only wish that the distance had increased beyond that to protect the safety and wider environment of schools.
Opponents of the change say that there is no risk of these consumption sites to nearby people, children or businesses. Do any of these opponents have such sites near their home and or their children’s schools?
We should help provide treatment to those facing drug addiction, but not at the expense or even possibility of a threat to children or wider society. My Muslim faith, like other religions, teaches that “like for others, what you would like for yourself.” If I would not want a consumption site near my children’s school, I would never want it to be near another family’s school either.
Talha Yaad, Ottawa
