End the Unsafe Open-Air Needle Distribution Program in Santa Monica
Final Needle Distribution List
The City of Santa Monica and the County along with Venice Family Clinic have been operating the only open-air, publicly funded needle, condom and synthetic distribution program in the country. They make their distributions at Reed Park (across from a K-12 Catholic School with over 650 students), Tonvga Park, Palisades Park, the California Incline, 3rd Street Promenade and at the privately owned 7 Eleven parking lot on 7th and Wilshire. This program is attracting addicts to settle in our parks and public spaces and publicly use drugs causing a major safety concern with more needles being discarded in all areas where they are being distributed.
California Governor Newsom vetoed a bill last year by Senator Scott Weiner (D-San Francisco) that would have set up pilot programs using public funds, citing worries about "unintended consequences".
Please sign this Petition and request that the City of Santa Monica force the County to move their distribution program indoors under medical supervision with support services. The program should be moved from our Parks, the Promenade and the 7 Eleven in our Downtown.
Petition by
Sponsored by
To:
Final Needle Distribution List
From:
[Your Name]
I request that you ask the County to prevent or move their distribution program indoors under medical supervision with support services. The program should be moved from our Parks, the 3rd Street Promenade and the 7 Eleven at 7th and Wilshire.
This program has been an abject failure without the necessary collaboration between the County, the City and the Public to assure the wellbeing of our community. The City controls our parks and we should not allow for the County to play out their failed programs at the expense of the safety of our community. Any drug related program should mandate accountability and require a method to measure the success of the program. That means, people should not just gain easier access to get high but rather gain more opportunities to stop getting high and end the cycle of addiction.
We are in the midst of a drug epidemic and we need to address this matter with great urgency and care so that we are assisting those in the throes of addiction, while protecting our community from the safety issues caused by drug use, and resulting in murders, attacks, robberies and desperation on our streets.