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Barcelona Declaration

On International Women’s Day 2019, we declare that the War On Drugs is a war on Womxn Who Use Drugs

The War On Drugs is racist, sexist, classist and heterosexist, and disproportionately affects womxn of colour, youth and womxn in poor communities.

As womxn, trans and gender non-conforming people surviving this war, we reject the widespread stigma, discrimination and criminalisation we face in our daily lives. We call for complete reform and transformation of the current system of prohibition. We call for an end to the ignorant and negative rhetoric.

Drug treatment services are gendered, classed, sexualised and racialised. Drug ‘treatment’ itself is based on spurious and outdated research, and allows unbridled and unregulated power over the individual. We reject these methods and the ideologies underpinning them.

Global and systemic oppressions violate our rights, as womxn, trans and gender non-conforming people who use drugs, and situate us in multiple, interconnected, vulnerable positions, which lead to numerous harms:

  • As womxn who inject drugs, we have a higher prevalence of HIV and Hepatitis than men. Despite this, we don’t appear in data and endure discrimination and exclusion from social and health services. The few resources we have tend to be masculinised and inaccessible as well as often not meeting our needs, interests or expectations.
  • We are disproportionately impacted by structural violence and social control from the State (policing, limited access to legal aid, extortion, long prison sentences, rape, extrajudicial murder and capital punishment).
  • The majority of womxn in prison are sentenced for non-violent drug related offences. Womxn of colour, ethnic minorities, non-binary or trans, and the homeless are particularly targeted. In several countries, we face detention in compulsory, unregulated ‘treatment” centres , often for indefinite periods with little or no access to judicial processes. Incarceration in closed settings creates a context for increased human rights violations, such as rape and extortion.
  • We often experience endemic violence  and exclusion within our own communities and families. Not only are we more likely to be assaulted by our partners, but we are less likely to have recourse to justice and protection
  • We suffer intrusion into our bodily and physical integrity, maternal and family life and domestic space. We face routine violations of our sexual and reproductive health rights, by both community and state such as coerced sterilization  and pregnancy termination.
  • Stigma that assumes womxn who use drugs cannot take care of their children and misinformation on the effects of drug use feeds into strong pressures to end pregnancy. When we don’t terminate our pregnancies, there’s a strong possibility we will lose  custody of our children.
  • Those of us who are sex workers, and especially trans womxn and womxn living with disabilities cope with an unacceptable and compounded web of stigma, discrimination and social exclusion.

Despite living with these and other multiple forms of violence daily, Womxn Fighting back Against the War On Drugs are resourceful, enterprising, creative and strong. We possess remarkable resilience. We fight back against prohibition with solidarity, mutual support and leadership, building our networks from the grassroots to the global, from immediate action to long-term strategies to end this war on womxn who use drugs. We embrace intersectional and anti-prohibitionist feminism that integrated queer/trans-inclusive and non-ableist approaches, racial justice and the right to use drugs and experience pleasure. We work to reclaim our bodily sovereignty, including rights to the full range of sexual and reproductive health, gender-sensitive health services, and rights to use drugs. We do not ask for charity but for solidarity.  We demand to live in safety and freedom.

This declaration is an invitation to join forces with womxn like us, womxn who demand an end to the War on Drugs and the negative impact it has on all our lives.

“Let us all cause some trouble and begin to change the world with and for women who use drugs with our powerful conceptual armaments in hand.” Elizabeth Ettorre

Our bodies – our choice, our rights, our voice.

#narcofeminism #femdrug

The following groups / organisations support this declaration:

  1. Eurasian Harm Reduction Association (EHRA)
  2. Women and Harm Reduction International Network (WHRIN)
  3. COUNTERfit
  4. Metzineres. Environments of Shelter for Womxn who Use Drugs Surviving Violences
  5. XADUD. Network of Womxn who Use Drugs
  6. REMA. Network of Anti-Prohibitionist Women
  7. ARSU – Grup de Dones
  8. FAAAT think & do tank
  9. Pla d’accions sobre drogues de Reus
  10. European Institute for Multidisciplinary Studies on Human Rights and Science | Knowmad Institut
  11. Iglesia Evangélica Protestante de El Salvador (IEPES)
  12. Youth RISE
  13. Association for Women’s Rights in Development (AWID)
  14. International Network of Women who use Drugs (INWUD)
  15. PeerNUPS
  16. Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy
  17. Género y Drogodependencias (Madrid)
  18. Perempuan Pengguna NAPZA Indonesia dan Deklarasi Jenggala
  19. Agência Piaget para o Desenvolvimento – APDES
  20. CASO Portugal
  21. European Network of People Who Use Drugs – EuroNPUD
  22. NGO Re Generation
  23. Youth Organisation For Drug Action
  24. WeCanna-Weedgest
  25. REMA
  26. PeNUPS
  27. Life Quality Improvement Organisation FLIGHT
  28. AFEW International
  29. Društvo AREAL
  30. “Harmreduction network” association.
  31. CA PRIMA
  32. En Plenas Facultades
  33. Delhi Drug User Forum
  34. Association Margina
  35. ARAS – Romanian Association Against AIDS
  36. AKUT Foundation, Hungary
  37. ALE “Kazakhs Union of People Living with HIV”
  38. Eurasian Women’s Network on AIDS
  39. Hepminus
  40. Crew
  41. Kosmicare Association
  42. COUNTERfit Harm Reduction Program (Canada)
  43. Jane Lane
  44. ASAUPAM
  45. ARSU
  46. Toronto Overdose Prevention Society
  47. Help Not Harm
  48. AIVL
  49. PeNUPS
  50. Frontline AIDS
  51. GAKNI – Gerakan Advokasi Kebijakan Napza Indonesia (Indonesia Drug Policy Advocacy Movement)
  52. Nepal for Public Health
  53. Indonesia Drug Policy Reform
  54. GO “All- Ukrainian network of Ukrainiane Users”
  55. Global Inklusi Perlindungan AIDS
  56. Confederación de federaciones cánnabicas (ConFAC)
  57. New Taskon padang
  58. Federación de asociaciones Cannàbicas de Cataluña (CatFAC)
  59. Italian Network of People Who Use Drugs – ItaNPUD
  60. Perempuan Bersuara
  61. Gerakan Advokasi Kebijakan NAPZA Indonesia (GAKNI) / Indonesia Drugs Policy Advocacy
  62. Forum Akar Rumput Indonesia (FARI) / Grass-Roots Indonesian Forum
  63. Aksi Keadilan Indonesia (AKI) / Indonesian Justice Action
  64. Persaudaraan Korban NAPZA Bogor (PKN Bogor) / Bogor Drug User Community
  65. Drugs Policy Reform (DRP) Banten, Indonesia
  66. Forum Droghe (IT)
  67. TaNPUD
  68. SALVAGE
  69. Salamander Trust
  70. Stop Overdose Now
  71. CF “VIRTUS”
  72. Real People Real Vision
  73. Asia Catalyst
  74. Romanian Harm Reduction Network
  75. EHPV
  76. CHECK!N
  77. LGBT organization Labrys
  78. Club “Svitanok”, Ukraine
  79. RELEASE
  80. SANANIM
  81. Rights Reporter Foundation
  82. Komunitas perempuan pengguna napza Pekanbaru (comunity women who use drugs Pekanbaru)
  83. Steps
  84. EATG (European AIDS Treatment Group)
  85. PREKURSOR Foundation for Social Policy
  86. Harm Reduction International
  87. STOP AIDS, ALBANIA
  88. Odyseus
  89. Kosmicare Association
  90. Sexism Free Night
  91. Sex Worker Advocacy and Resistance Movement (SWARM)
  92. Andrey Rylkov Foundation
  93. InMouraria-GAT
  94. Drug Policy Network South East Europe
  95. NORML France
  96. Women in Europe and Central Asian Regions plus (WECARe+)
  97. Élixir
  98. Canadian Drug Policy Coalition
  99. 4yourvoiceportugal
  100. Legalize Belarus
  101. SimplementeOpinión
  102. India HIV/AIDS Alliance
  103. Estonian Association of People who Use psychotropic substances „Lunest“
  104. SALVAGe
  105. TaNPUD
  106. Women Who Use Drugs Malaysia
  107. Polish Drug Policy Network
  108. Indigo Harm Reduction Services
  109. NGO Volunteer ( Tajikistan GBAO)
  110. CATNPUD. Catalan Network of People who Use Drugs
  111. NGO “RIGHT OF EVERYONE”
  112. New Generation Humanitarian NGO / Armenia (NGNGO)
  113. Občianske združenie Prima
  114. NGO “April Project”
  115. ICEERS Foundation
  116. Eurasian Network of People who Use Drugs
  117. Asian Harm Reduction Network Myanmar
  118. Romanian Harm Reduction Network
  119. ECOM – Eurasian Coalition on Male Health
  120. ОФ “Ранар” Кыргызстан
  121. Healthy Options Project Skopje2. 
  122. Legalize Belarus
  123. White Noise Movement
  124. Energy Control
  125. HOPS – Healthy Options Project Skopje
  126. TEDA MAT recovering community based organization working with mat recovering users and active drug users malindi Kenya.
  127. The National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girld
  128. Giulia
  129. LSD foundation
  130. Pivotal Homes Group
  131. Association Prevent
  132. Indian Drug Users Forum
  133. NORML FRANCE
  134. Centro de Orientacion e Investigacion Integral (COIN)
  135. Asociación Costarricense para el Estudio e Intervención en Drogas (ACEID)
  136. Science for Democracy
  137. Associazione Luca Coscioni
  138. AGRRR – Association Guyanaise de Réduction des Risques
  139. Intercambios Asociación Civi
  140. StoptheDrugWar.org
  141. South African Network of People Who Use Drugs (SANPUD)
  142. SA Drug Policy
  143. TB HIV Care
  144. West Africa Drug Policy Network (WADPN)
  145. International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC)
  146. Equis: Justicia para las Mujeres
  147. Centre on Drug Policy Evaluation
  148. Health Poverty Action
  149. HPLGBT
  150. Young Feminist Movement Namibia Trust
  151. Public Association ‘Women’s Network of Key Communities’ Kyrgyzstan
  152. La Casa del Centro, Clinica de Heridas
  153. Non-govermental organisation Stigma
  154. Modus Vivendi asbl
  155. Sur Replicante
  156. John Mordaunt Trust
  157. Fay Dennis (researcher at Goldsmiths, Uni of London)
  158. Gruppo Abele
  159. Womxn’s Voice (Indonesia)
  160. Southwest Recovery Alliance