Vancouver nurse says he received a warning after emailing colleagues about DULF

"We Stand With DULF" is written on a sign being held by a supporter of the Vancouver compassion club. The head offices of the Drug User Liberation Front were raided by police on Oct. 25, prompting outcry from safe supply advocates. (CTV)

A registered nurse employed by Vancouver Coastal Health says he received a warning from the health authority after he sent an email to colleagues about how they could support an unsanctioned compassion club that used to operate in the city’s Downtown Eastside.

Fraser MacPherson sent the email on Nov. 2 to about 20 health care practitioners that often care for vulnerable community members in the DTES.

He told CTV News he sent the note because he thought his colleagues would be interested in some of the actions created to support the Drug User Liberation Front after its office was raided and two of its members were arrested in October. 

In the email reviewed by CTV News, MacPherson wrote, “If you, like me, see the detrimental impacts that criminalization have on our clients who use drugs and see the value of drug users groups like DULF who are putting pressure on public officials to take meaningful action on the toxic drug crisis, then I urge you to consider signing the national letter, complete the email template, and show up in solidarity this Friday.”

CO-FOUNDERS ARRESTED

Last year, DULF launched a pilot program where it tested cocaine, heroin and methamphetamines and then provided them to a group of about 50 members to take safely.

Following the arrest of two of its co-founders, Jeremy Kalicum and Eris Nyx, Insp. Phil Heard with the Vancouver Police Department said, “While DULF’s acts were intended to reduce the impacts of the toxic drug supply, we have always warned that anyone who violates the Criminal Code or the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act should expect to face enforcement and criminal charges.”

MacPherson said 24 hours after he sent the email, he received a call from his manager, telling him it was an inappropriate use of his work email.

“What shocked me about this, was that this was a program that had been supported in the past, and now there’s been a bit of a political shift and it’s no longer popular to support this program,” he said. “So now, people like me who are trying to amplify what this group is doing are being told to not do that.”

‘THERE’S MORE RISK TO SPEAKING PUBLICLY’

The raids came after weeks of pressure from the opposition BC United for the government to investigate the activities of DULF, saying in a news release in September that it was “unacceptable that public money is being used to purchase illicit drugs” on the dark web. https://bc.ctvnews.ca/dulf-saves-lives-hundreds-rally-in-support-of-vancouver-compassion-club-1.6630883

VCH had a contract to provide DULF with $200,000 in annual funding for drug-testing, but confirmed to CTV News that it terminated that contract, effective Oct. 31, at the direction of the B.C. government.

In a statement to CTV News, VCH said it supports the rights of its employees for free speech and freedom of expression. The statement continued, “While it is standard to remind employees of these policies when needed, those reminders are not considered disciplinary action.”

MacPherson said his manager never referenced a workplace policy during the phone call.

“It was a very specific attempt to stop me from speaking with colleagues about the work of this one group,” he said.

This isn’t the first time Macpherson has lent his voice to causes that are important to him.

In April, he was one of dozens of VCH employees who signed a letter denouncing the health authority’s silence after hundreds of tents and people were removed from the DTES. At the time, the City of Vancouver said the neighbourhood had become unsafe due to violence and fires.

“I definitely feel like there’s more risk to speaking publicly,” MacPherson said.