Through a Blue Lens

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Through a Blue Lens was a highly controversial documentary about drug addicts on Vancouver's Eastside. The film is significant and controversial because it blames social problems in the area on drug abuse, and it is has been repeatedly condemned by numerous social activists.

1 Film Production
2 Use of the Film
3 Critism of the Film
4 Information about the Film

[edit] Film Production

"Through a Blue Lens" was produced by the Vancouver Police Department and was directed by Veronica Mannix. The film follows interactions between police officers and drug addicts, and documents the extreme poverty and suffering many addicts endure.

[edit] Use of the Film

The film has been shown at numerous high schools around the Vancouver area in an effort to scare young people away from doing drugs. It is questionable how effective the film is at detering drug use

[edit] Critism of the Film

The film has been repeatly condemned by socialists and many academics in Canada because it lacks evidence and logical reasoning to reach its conclusion that drugs caused the social problems depicted in the film. Critics argue that welfare reform and the lack of affordable housing, not drugs, are the real cause of the problems. They argue that drug use is a symptom, not a cause, of social dysfunction.