Community Alliance Weighs in on Stanislaus County Syringe Exchange Case

Check out this article printed by Community Alliance, a progressive organization based in Fresno. It is yet another valuable perspective of both the reality facing volunteers and the future of authorization in Stanislaus County. Any and all voices are welcome and appreciated in this struggle! Read the complete article below.

Community Alliance: "Modesto Harm Reduction Activists Still Facing Jail"


*And to clarify, this blogspot address noted in the reference section of the article is not the working of Brian Robinson. Off the Streets Project and this blog are maintained by a group of community outreach volunteers who actively support syringe exchange for our community.

Benefit Show in Fresno Rolls On Despite Wet Weather

Rain kept the gathering small, but about 20-30 people showed up to enjoy the Modesto Needle Exchange Legal Defense Fund Benefit Show on December 12. Performers included Watercolor Paintings, Johnny Young, Fern, and Taylor Price. Fresno Needle Exchange volunteer and California Prison Moratorium Project organizer Ashley Fairburn spoke on behalf of the Modesto Needle Exchange defendants. Fairburn spoke about the well-documented effectiveness of syringe exchange in reducing the costly spread of HIV and Hepatitis C, both prevalent in the Central Valley, and connecting those who use drugs to treatment services. She also spoke about the criminalization of the Modesto volunteers' public health interventions in Stanislaus County, and the ongoing failures of the Drug War, citing several examples from both here and abroad. About $112 was raised and great discussions about the efficacy of syringe exchange were had.

Thank you to the organizers, performers and attendees - and all supporters of needle exchange programs, harm reduction approaches, and using facts over politics.

Benefit Show in Fresno December 12 @ 7PM!!!

Thanks Ashley!!!

A Clean Syringe Costs Just Pennies ... Literally

In 2007 the budget for Fresno Needle Exchange was $47,000 - and was 100% funded by grants and donations.

No taxpayer money was used to run this program. None. Zero. Zilch.

But on the flipside, how much money do you think this program has saved in lives, suffering, and public dollars over the 15 years it has been in existence? Is it even calculable? Doesn't Mastercard refer to that as "Priceless"?

Central Valley Injection Drug Epidemic: WE'RE #1!!!

NEW YORK-A study published in the Journal of Urban Health (Sept. 2, 2004) indicates that rates of injection drug use in California’s Central Valley are among the nation’s highest. Researchers concluded that Fresno has the highest number of users of illegal injection drugs per capita of any large U.S. metropolitan area, above second-place Baltimore. To read the complete article on the Drug Policy Alliance Network website, click here.