BJP NYC 11: Pregnancy and Substance Use in NYC: An Introduction to Harm Reduction

Season 1 Episode 11 features an interview with Nathalia Gibbs and Dana Kurzer-Yashin from the National Harm Reduction Coalition. In this week’s episode we dive into a harm reduction 101 crash course where we get into the definition, history and current landscape of harm reduction policies and practices. We then apply this information to better understand how pregnant people who use drugs are navigating prenatal care, childbirth, and the child welfare system; and how New York City and State can better support people who use drugs. This episode is a follow up to Season 1 Episode 10 where we discussed how the war on drugs fuels the child welfare system’s presence in the lives of pregnant and parenting New Yorkers.

About this week’s guests:
Nathalia Gibbs (They/She) is a queer black doula, organizer and passionate believer in harm reduction serving as LGBTQ and Harm Reduction Coordinator where she is currently working on building the Lighthouse Learning Collective.

Dana Kurzer-Yashin (she/her) is the Overdose and Harm Reduction Trainer developing and administering trainings on  harm reduction, safer drug use, trauma informed care and de-escalation and more.

National Harm Reduction Coalition is a national advocacy and capacity-building organization that promotes the wellbeing and dignity of people and communities affected by drug use. Their efforts advance harm reduction policies, practices, and programs that address the adverse effects of drug use including overdose, HIV, hepatitis C, addiction, and incarceration. Recognizing that social inequality and injustice magnify drug related harm and limit the voice of our most vulnerable communities, they work to uphold every individual’s right to health and their competence to participate in the public policy dialogue.

References During the Episode:

• Pregnancy and Substance: A Harm Reduction Toolkit
• The National Harm Reduction Coalition’s podcast The Gold Standard
• More info about Dr. Miska Terplan
• Orgs: 
  • Voices of Community Activists and Leaders (VOCAL-NY)
  • National Advocates for Pregnant Women (NAPW)
  • AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power ACT UP
  • Lower East Side Harm Reduction Center

Created and Hosted by Taja Lindley
Produced by Colored Girls Hustle
Music, Soundscape and Audio Engineering by Emma Alabaster

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For more information visit BirthJustice.nyc

This podcast is made possible, in part, by the Narrative Power Stipend - a grant funded by Forward Together for members of Echoing Ida.

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