Drag Queens to Lead Overdose Prevention Efforts in San Francisco

Just as they led safer sex education during the AIDS crisis in the ’80s, queer nightlife professionals and drag queens have been instrumental in combating today’s overdose epidemic. One of those harm reduction leaders is Kochina Rude, who educates partygoers about naloxone (the active ingredient in Narcan) and distributes the overdose-reversing drug each Saturday at Oasis’ Princess drag night.

Kochina and fellow drag queen Nicki Jizz are working with the San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) and Entertainment Commission on several community outreach events throughout August in honor of International Overdose Awareness Day, which falls on the 31st.

On Aug. 1, Nicki Jizz will appear at Queer Pop night at the Castro hotspot Beaux to teach club-goers how to use naloxone and fentanyl test strips, which can be used to test for the opioid so that drug users don’t ingest it unintentionally while partaking in another substance. Both of these tools will be available to party-goers for free on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Fentanyl is 100 times more potent than morphine and 50 times stronger than heroin, and the drug is responsible for 75% of San Francisco’s overdose deaths, according to SFDPH.

Nicki Jizz will lead a similar effort Aug. 9 at Oasis during her party, Reparations, San Francisco’s only all-Black drag show. Yvie Oddly, winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 11, headlines this month’s edition. Kochina Rude will lead another workshop during Princess at Oasis on Aug. 10; the special guest that night is Willow Pill, winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 14.

The event series culminates with a workshop hosted by Nicki Jizz on Aug. 31 during a night called Celebrating BIPOC Excellence in LGBTQIA Nightlife at Beaux, hosted by Mercedes Munro.

“Overdose education is important for everyone to know and understand because someone having the knowledge can save a life while emergency services are on the way,” said Nicki Jizz in a statement. “Overdoses can be prevented with the right education and a dose of naloxone. Since I have learned about overdose prevention, I’ve been able to put it to use and save someone from overdosing. It’s also a way to bring our community together and show that every life is precious.”

While 2023 was San Francisco’s deadliest year for drug overdoses, the city has had a 15% decrease in deaths in the first half of this year. Some experts have linked the drop to wider availability of free Narcan.

On July 29, Mayor London Breed and Supervisor Matt Dorsey announced a new pilot program called Cash Not Drugs, which will pay people who’ve been diagnosed with substance abuse disorders and are on public assistance up to $100 a month to stay sober. The Board of Supervisors will vote on the legislation in September.

Information on where to access and how to use naloxone and fentanyl test strips is available on the San Francisco Department of Public Health website.