Scared Straight in Vancouver

‘This is where I’m going to be if I don’t change’

Aboriginal youth visit Vancouver’s Skid Row on Scared Straight TourFifteen aboriginal youths and their adult chaperones recently participated in a 48-hour Scared Straight Tour. The youths visited Vancouver’s infamous Downtown Eastside and saw firsthand the effects of drug addiction and homelessness.

The majority of people there are drug dealers, drug addicts, alcoholics, prostitutes, homeless people and those afflicted with mental illness. According to Scared Straight Tour creator Pierre Morais, groups of kids are often greeted by residents who tell them, “Welcome to hell.”