1 November, 2021
Every year on International Drug Users Day, people who use drugs all over the world celebrate our history and affirm our rights. INPUD was formally launched on International Drug Users’ Day 2008 by drug user rights activists seeking to create an international platform where members of our community could confidently and proudly advocate for the health and human rights of people who use drugs globally. Every year since, we have marked this day with a celebration of our diverse, vibrant communities’ accomplishments, while also acknowledging our work is more critical than ever.
This year’s celebration of International Drug Users Day was marked by a social media campaign, #PowerOfPeers, as well as a statement demanding that the community of people who use drugs are fully resourced and funded and provided with the space to participate in decision-making process, and a call for full decriminalisation of drugs with no sanctions.
This year’s celebration was also commemorated by UNAIDS, who put out a call for action against the criminalization of people who use drugs and for community-led harm reduction programmes.
#PowerOfPeers: Celebrating Community Achievements
Our theme for International Drug Users Day 2021 was #PowerOfPeers, because as we have seen all to well the past few years, it is always peers who step up for our communities in spite of criminalisation, stigma and discrimination we face every day.
The following graphics were shared on social media for IDUD 2021 which convey some of these key accomplishments:
