2SqPegs is Annie Madden and Charles Henderson — two people whose lives and work have been deeply connected to the Australian, Aotearoa New Zealand and international drug-user movement.

For decades, we have worked from a simple proposition: people who use drugs have the right to speak for ourselves, represent ourselves and shape the policies, services and systems that affect our lives.

We have worked across peer organisations, harm reduction, drug policy, research, advocacy and community leadership. But this project starts somewhere even more fundamental - acknowledgement of the journey, politics, creativity and collective power of people who use drugs.

Feeling of being a square peg in a round hole. 

Feeling the camaraderie of close ones. 

Your crew. 

My people.

Our strength in connection and closeness. 

Community is strength. 

A fistful of drugs is our launching pad, our starting point.

This image speaks to drug user involvement, user organising and user power. 

It carries a history of resistance to criminalisation, stigma, discrimination and decisions being made about us without us.

We acknowledge the road and the journey and all that walk this way.

We’re starting with these things: a poster, a T-shirt, and a tote bag.

But the idea is bigger than merchandise.

This site can become a focal point. A place to find ideas, history, resources, campaigns, people and opportunities to participate. A place to create. A place that connects the past , the present and what comes next.

The fist is not a brand. It is a statement. Explicit.

In our hands, what we hold, what we form, what we mould.

Nothing about us without us. 

THE IMAGE

The original image was created by an Australian artist, John Carey, now living in NSW. He created this image in the early 90s. He is stoked to have his artwork surfaced. It’s too powerful to be left alone. Perhaps phoenix-like, the image is made visible again. In doing so, we make it plain that our lives matter. Together we call for an end to the war on drug users.