Aubri Esters
1985-2020
Co-Founder, SIFMA Now!
Aubri Esters was a peer-to-peer harm reductionist and radical activist for over 14 years. She passed away the week of June 8th.
In her own words, Aubri was someone who recovered from previous chaotic relationships to substances, was a person on long-term opioid agonist therapy and a person who used and injected drugs. She never shied away from those experiences, but rather fave them power and a voice.
Aubri cared for an organized alongside other drug users and unhoused community members. She demanded they had a seat at the table and were included in decision-making. For 8 years she operated an underground syringe exchange and unsanctioned drug consumption space in the heart of East Somerville, where she trained many peers on how to safely and effectively respond to overdoses within the space, in the larger community and in challenging situations such as in public housing or squats.
In 2016, she co-founded SIFMA NOW! the first organization dedicated to legalizing supervised consumption sites across Massachusetts. She was a member of the Massachusetts Harm Reduction Commission and the City of Boston’s Melnea Cass/Mass Ave 2.0 Task Force. She was the founder of Boston’s first drug user union and the Secretary of the Boston Users Union and the National Urban Survivors Union.
Her legacy carries on in the continued fight for increased harm reduction services and safe consumption site legislation, and through each of us at SIFMA Now!
