Canada's capital, Ottawa, has been having issues with homeless drug addicts. In a small area about 1km down the street from the parliament building they have several homeless shelters, a liquor store, a safe injection site, and a safe supply (free drugs) clinic. This has created an area that is an absolute dump and as expected there's strung out addicts everywhere, higher crime, more needles on the ground and no one that lives there is happy. If you want to see some homeless dude sticking needles in their peepee or a crazy person robbing stores then this is the place to be
This is the area:
This is what the homeless shelter looks like in 2023 street view, there's even paramedics helping with an OD
Over the last year or so this has been an ongoing topic of discussion on /r/ottawa and over the last month there's been a post every day or two that's 200+ comments of people arguing about whether or not criminals should be arrested or if addicts need more free drugs to stop them from killing themselves.
There are generally two groups fighting.
1. The pro compassion people that say to trust the science and safe injection works. This includes a city councilor who calls the criminal addicts neighbors.
2. The pro law and order people who don't want to be harassed every day.
I'm too lazy to write this up so please quote your favorite parts, there's a ton of seethe.
Animal tranquilizer in street drugs raises alarms (204 comments)
22 suspected overdose deaths in Ottawa in first 4 weeks of 2024: OPH data (178 comments)
PSA: Growing concerns around the toxicity of the unregulated drug supply(119 comments)
Child brought to CHEO after putting syringe in mouth at Ottawa park: paramedics(638 comments
I have called OPS about once a month for the past year because of yelling and screaming right outside my door. People have vandalized our corner store and left needles and garbage in a driveway I share with my neighbours. I really can't take it anymore.
Today's letters: Drug use is making Centretown less and less safe (430 comments)
Troster: Remember, people who use drugs are also our neighbours (377 comments)
You don't even need to sort by controversial for this one, even /r/ottawa knows this is a
Ottawa, Why? This hurts small businesses! (289 comments)
Looks like insurance isn't covering this one
As drugs overwhelm this downtown block, is safer supply the problem or the solution? (263 comments)
Bonus: The homeless shelter opened a second location somewhere else and go figure it's a shithole
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At least here in Winnipeg we have the yearly winter culling, imagine how bad it would be without it...
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That would be Vancouver
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Or the east coast. Our winter was soft this year.
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Is there that many junkies out there? Vancouver's been junkie central since the 80s.
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I don't think it's near that bad. We must be resilient to the economic stagnation by now over here. We dont have near as big of population centers where they'd go less noticed. And culturally we aren't as cucked. We're north of Maine, BC has the misfortune of being north of California and Washington State. They never stood a chance.
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