[Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that this post contains the name and details of an Aboriginal person who has passed away].
Professor Kate Seear, leader of the GLaD program, recently delivered a keynote for the annual professional development forum of AADANT (the Association of Alcohol and other Drug Agencies, Northern Territory). The forum was held in Darwin in May, 2024.
Speaking to alcohol and other drug professionals from across the Territory, Kate’s talk proceeded in four parts: First, she provided an overview of stigma – what it is, how it works, and why it matters. Second, she outlined the human rights landscape in Australia. Third, she examined how and why stigma is connected to human rights in Australia through a detailed discussion of an important court case decided in 2023 in the Victorian Coroners Court: the inquest into the death of Veronica Nelson. Fourth, she considered some practical resources that might assist practitioners in their stigma reduction work.
As Kate explained, there is growing talk of the need to reform drug policy and law via human rights. There is also talk of the need to address stigma in drug policy and law. What is often missing from these discussions is a clear understanding of exactly how these things link together and what it means for everyday practice. Kate argued that the Coroner’s decision in the inquest into the death of Veronica Nelson provided an important and powerful articulation of these connections and that it is a landmark case that has the potential to influence policy, law and practice across the country.
This is because the case demonstrates that:
- Stigma matters
- Stereotypes and assumptions about AOD consumption matter
- Sweeping generalisations about what will be ‘good’ for people who use AOD can be unjustified and unlawful
- People who use AOD must have access to equal treatment and care
- Practices that are humiliating, shameful or demeaning (for example in the context of people withdrawing from AOD use in custody) might be unlawful
- We need to get better about how we treat people who use AOD in all settings.
Kate highlighted the value of utilising resources for stigma reduction, such as La Trobe University’s recently developed ‘stigma toolkit’ and accompanying implementation guide, which GLaD was involved in, alongside colleagues from La Trobe University’s Drugs, Gender and Sexuality (DruGS) program. The Lives of Substance website, produced by colleagues from La Trobe in collaboration with researchers, policymakers and people who use drugs, is another valuable resource that can be used in efforts to reduce stigma and promote the rights of people who use AOD, including their right to equal treatment and care.
Kate has undertaken a more detailed analysis of the inquest into the death of Veronica Nelson, and this will be published in a forthcoming book called Judging Drugs, edited together with Dr Simon Flacks from the University of Sussex. The book will be a major output of Kate’s Australian Research Council-funded Future Fellowship, which you can read more about here.