💔 Larry Campbell: The Mayor Who Saw It Coming

Most 23‑year‑olds today probably haven’t heard the name Larry Campbell. This post explains who he was, what he fought for — and why his warnings matter now more than ever.

Who was Larry Campbell? 👤

Larry Campbell served as Mayor of Vancouver (2002–2005). Before politics he was an RCMP officer and later served as a coroner — jobs that gave him a front‑row view of the human cost of addiction and overdose.

The Four Pillars approach

Campbell championed what’s called the Four Pillars model:

🩺 Harm reduction (supervised injection sites, naloxone, safer use options)
📚 Prevention
🏥 Treatment (detox, recovery beds, long‑term supports)
🚓 Enforcement

What made him stand out:

He was blunt: people were dying because treatment wasn’t available when they were ready for it. He pushed for "treatment on demand" and safer options for people who use drugs.

His fight for women’s detox beds 🙋‍♀️

Campbell repeatedly pointed out that there were far fewer detox and treatment beds for women than men. At one point the city had only about ten detox beds for women — hardly enough for a crisis unfolding on the streets.

"Unless detox is available on demand — the moment someone asks for help — people will slip back into using and die." — Larry Campbell (paraphrase)

Two decades later: the hard numbers 📉

The crisis never stopped. Since B.C. declared the public health emergency in 2016, the province has lost thousands of people to toxic drugs — numbers now in the tens of thousands. Little additions of beds (20 here, 25 there) are not enough when the demand is so massive.

Recent government announcements (for context):

These moves help, but they’re a trickle compared to what’s needed — especially when the death toll is measured in the thousands and rising.

Why this matters to young people ✊

If you’re 23, this crisis might feel like "just another news story." But it’s not natural or inevitable. It’s the result of choices — political and social — made over decades. People like Larry Campbell sounded the alarm years ago. The cost of not listening has been thousands of lives.

The hard truth

We can’t keep celebrating isolated announcements while thousands die waiting for help. Campbell’s full vision is still the right one: safe supply, treatment on demand, and long-term supports that work for women, men, youth, Indigenous and Two-Spirit people.

Tuesday, September 9, 2025

The Mayor Who Saw It Coming