Australian Drug User Org Peak Body Launches Website

The Australian Injecting and Illicit Drug Users League, (AIVL) the national peak organisation representing illicit drug users announced today the launch of their new website –
http://www.aivl.org.au
Annie Madden, AIVL Executive Officer said “this is a great achievement for AIVL and a major milestone for the illicit drug users’ movement in Australia. AIVL is the only national organisation that is run by and for users and the AIVL website is providing us with a way to let many more illicit drug users know that we exist.”
AIVL currently operates a National Hepatitis C Education Program and a National Policy Program from its office in Canberra. “The new website provides us with the opportunity to showcase our work and ensure that as many current drug users as possible are getting access to our education resources and hearing about our policy and advocacy initiatives” added Ms Madden.
Like many small community based organisations AIVL intends to continue building and developing the site over the next twelve months but encourages illicit drug users, service providers, researchers and other interested parties to explore the amazing array of information, resources, submissions and interactive forums that are available on the current site.
Ms. Madden concluded by saying, “We are extremely excited to be able to launch this site today. Illicit drug users experience a great deal of discrimination in the community and are often stereotyped as irresponsible people who are not interested in making positive contributions to the community. aivl.org.au is not only a credit to AIVL as an organisation but is also a concrete example of the positive contribution that drug users can make if they are supported and encouraged to do so.”
For further comment please contact:
AIVL can be reached 02 6279 1600 - or contact your local drug user org (the numbers are on the site) to get copies of any of the resources shown on the site.

The first impression from looking at the site is somewhat different to the impression I got when I first saw Bluelight.
Bluelight - let's PARTY hard, take drugs to HELP party RECREATIONALLY, and be SAFE doing it being the main issue on bluelight.
AIVL - "junkies unite", stop spread of desease etc. obviously a site which will probably help many, but somehow, a little removed from what a lot of people would be interested in here in my opinion.

Having made many, many posts on bluelgiht about different activities of the Australian drug user movement i can assure you that there is a lot of interest in the activities of AIVL and our member organisations, and that non-opiate using drug user activists play a critical role in many of our activities (our policy officer Nicky Bath was a founding member of Dance Drugs Alliance UK, and one of very few self-delcared users to address the international party drugs conference in Italy last year.) i received literally dozens of emails from bl-ers after i announced the Users' News search for first-person stories about party drug experiences.
AIVL is also about to initiate the first ever research program into amphetamine injection designed almost entirely by amphetamine users, and implemented solely by amphetamine users (the excellent Johnboy has been advising on this process).
its our belief that ultimately for users of any drug to be able to fully protect their health they need to be able to access medical-quality drugs at afforadble prices, and legally.
its only through united political action that brings together users of many different drugs that will be able to achieve that goal.
in the meantime, of course, sites like bl provide an amazing opportunity for users to share vital information and build a sense of community.
the aivl website is certainly no substitute, and is not designed to be visited daily or weekly like bl is.
but, i believe, popping in monthly may prove very valuable for those interested in user activism and harm reduction.
hey, we can't please everyone all the time, and your criticism is welcomed... i just wanted to make oour intentions, and our commitment to psychostimulant users clear

Point taken... I'm sure the site is a valuable contribution...
I just don't myself feel particularly passionate about the whole drug legalisation/acceptance issue particularly because 90% of people I know are fucked up because of drugs, and not because they are not educated but because that's just what drugs do when not used on occasional recreactional basis. But I guess I'm way OT and will probably start a big arguement now...
[ 07 January 2003: Message edited by: Runner ]