Harm Reduction as Justice: Policy, Courage, and Survival

GLIDE’s Center for Social Justice and Harm Reduction Program presented the free virtual event Harm Reduction as Justice: Policy, Courage, and Survival. Comprised of a range of public health strategies, Harm Reduction is designed to lessen the negative social and/or physical consequences associated with various human behaviors, both legal and illegal. GLIDE’S Harm Reduction Programs centers on the dignity and humanity of people who use drugs, who we love unconditionally, and aim to serve with respect and compassion.

Harm Reduction as Justice features the voices of those who have overcome challenges, illuminates what Harm Reduction is and is not, and identifies policies that help or continue to harm.

Hosted by Juliana DePietro, Director of Harm Reduction Services, GLIDE
Juliana DePietro joined GLIDE as Director of Harm Reduction Services in late 2020. She oversees GLIDE's syringe access services, mobile, and on-foot community outreach teams, HIV/HCV/STI testing programs, and community navigator program. Prior to joining GLIDE, Juliana spent several years working in service to unhoused people and people who use drugs in Portland, OR. DePietro holds a Master’s in Public Health from Harvard University.

Panelists include:

Wes Saver
Wesley Saver joined the Center for Social Justice in 2019. As the Policy Manager, he oversees the local and state policy agenda, which includes a broad portfolio of priorities to address systemic inequities facing the GLIDE community. Originally from Chicago, as an advocate, educator, human services provider, and organizer, he has over a decade’s track record of serving systemically marginalized communities in California, Illinois, and North Carolina, particularly youth and families most impacted by circumstances of poverty, homelessness, and the criminal justice system.

Del Seymour
Del Seymour has been a member of the Tenderloin community for the past 30 years. Nicknamed the “Mayor of the Tenderloin,” he founded the Tenderloin Walking Tours and Code Tenderloin to present the TL in a favorable setting and address economic inequity in the area. A military veteran turned philanthropist, he knows the challenges of the TL very well — he was chronically homeless for 18 years and was a former drug user and seller. Seymour has worked closely with GLIDE and the Center for Social Justice.

John Negrete
John Negrete is a lifelong Californian who has lived both rural and urban lives. John has had a long and complex relationship with drugs and homelessness but currently is housed and working as a program manager for GLIDE's Harm Reduction Services. He has also served as an educator, advocate, and activist for Native peoples and places in California.