​St. Stephen “the good” wins despite Minister Austin

Word that the St. Stephen community organization, Neighborhood Works, has come forward to run a 24-hour drop-in centre for the homeless in the town is heartwarming. It is a strong initial response to New Brunswick Safety Minister Chris Austin’s heartless comments about St. Stephen’s plea for help.

Minister Austin had dismissed as “frivolous’ the town’s declaration of emergency which it had made after Adam Nickerson, was found in a local park, and later died in hospital. Austin wrote to the town immediately to overturn the declaration and did not publicly express any sympathy to the Nickerson family.

For her part, Liberal Leader Susan Holt stepped up to counter strongly Austin’s comments in the Legislature: “I am stunned that the minister has just gotten up and blamed the people of St. Stephen.”

Austin also made the following incredible statement: “All these issues that we’re facing today are based on Trudeau policies, leftist agendas that are degrading our society, that we’re seeing right across the country.’’ No doubt St. Stephen Mayor Allan MacEachern and councilors were surprised to learn that they are plugging into “leftist agendas” in their concern for the homeless. In fact, Mayor MacEachern and the council’s approach to this tragic event could not have been better.

Austin is correct in saying homelessness is a complex problem, but this minister and the government of Premier Blaine Higgs advocate measures which would make this social and health problem even more complicated and difficult to overcome. These would require addicts to receive treatment against their will.

Many families of addicts, as well as numerous experts in addiction treatment, argue that forcing addicts to undergo treatment is not the answer.

Since Adam Nickerson’s death, members of his family have said they have been left in the dark, looking for answers. They acknowledge that Adam’s problems with drug use had become interwoven with periods of homelessness. The family has been deeply affected by the tragedy and deserves the continued compassion from the community.

Yes, there are many sides to the homelessness issue. In St. Stephen, encampments have been set up in multiple locations within the municipality. The response from citizens cannot be summed up as NIMBY (Not in My Back Yard), although there are NIMBY aspects, such as the fear of crime, or concern about the presence of used needles.

With the response of the Town Council and Neighborhood Works, the generous nature of the citizens of St. Stephen has been clear. This is shown in the concern expressed by Joanne Raye, a neighbour of one of the more recently established encampments in the Town. This is the so-called “covered bridge,” structure, complete with plastic door coverings, blankets, and a space heater. Interviewed on CBC radio, Raye expressed only compassion for the plight of real people living or dying in such terrible circumstances.

Minister Austin could learn much from Citizen Raye.