All photos by Donovan Mahoney
The physical footprint of Vancouver's Downtown Eastside isn't that large, but its impact reverberates well beyond its geographical borders. In many ways the neighbourhood is the apex of Canada's opioid crisis, a symbol of its destruction but also a pioneer in harm reduction and progressive drug policy. All week we've been looking at how we got here, what we need to do to fix the crisis, and meeting the frontline workers keeping users safe. But so often in talking about the damage of addiction we miss the humanity that drives it. So we spent a day in the DTES talking to the people whose lives are most impacted by the opiate crisis.
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Eryk, 33
Former Tent City
Jeannette, 24
InSite
Les, 53
Grand Union Hotel on Hastings
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