“The Harm Reduction Gap” Book talk and signing with Dr. Sheila Vakharia
Date and Time
Feb 5, 2025 6:00 pm
Location
Takoma
235 Carroll St NW, Washington, District of Columbia, 20012
Feb 5, 2025 6:00 pm
Takoma
Join Dr. Sheila Vakharia in conversation with the National Coalition for Drug Legalization about her new book “The Harm Reduction Gap”
This event will showcase Dr. Sheila Vakharia’s first book entitled “The Harm Reduction Gap”. By highlighting the large gap in our current approach to substance use, this book is the first step for those interested in learning more about the limitations of our current approach to drug use and how to support local efforts to ensure people who use drugs and their communities can stay safe. A free copy of her book will be given to the first 10 attendees.
Book description:
Harm reduction is an approach to helping people who engage in high-risk activities to develop the skills and strategies to keep them and their communities safe. This can include the provision of sterile equipment, low-threshold and low-barrier care, and the acceptance of non-abstinence goals in treatment. In this novel guide, Dr. Vakharia discusses the shortcomings of the dominant “Just Say No” drug prevention messages and abstinence-only treatment approaches, introduces harm reduction strategies and technologies borne from people who use drugs themselves, and suggests various policy options available as alternatives to the current policies that criminalize drugs, drug-using equipment, and the settings in which people use drugs. The final chapter calls on the reader to destigmatize drug use and support efforts to reform our drug policies.
By highlighting the large gap in our current approach to substance use – the harm reduction gap – this book is the first step for those interested in learning more about the limitations of our current approach to drug use and how to support local efforts to ensure people who use drugs and their communities can stay safe.
Author:
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW is an author, a sought-after speaker, and a national expert on harm reduction and drug policy. She is currently the Deputy Director of the Department of Research and Academic Engagement at the Drug Policy Alliance, the nation’s leading advocacy organization fighting to end the war on drugs. Dr. Vakharia is a nationally recognized harm reduction expert with over 15 years of combined experience in addiction treatment, harm reduction, higher education, research, and drug policy reform.
About the organizer:
This event is sponsored by the National Coalition for Drug Legalization. The mission of the National Coalition for Drug Legalization (501(c)3) is to advance the conversation about the legalization of alldrugs through research and community service. The current drug war has had devastating effects on communities of color, the working poor, and those who suffer from medical illnesses in search of alternative medicine. Through meaningful and impactful research, the National Coalition for Drug Legalization can push for policies and laws that will save lives from drug overdoses and reduce incarcerations.
