Yellowknife (Jun 14/06) - Those who derive their national perspective from the pages of the Toronto Star may now believe that one in twenty Yellowknifers are addicted to crack cocaine.

Entitled, "Diamonds are forever; prosperity isn't," the June 7 article, written by freelance writer Marc Kielburger, paints a grim picture of life in the Northwest Territories capital.

Accompanying the piece is a photograph of a group of people loitering outside the defunct Right Spot sports bar with the caption, "People gather in an area of Yellowknife locally known as the 'Gaza Strip', where local RCMP and addicts say crack cocaine is easily and openly available. Experts say one Yellowknifer in 20 is a crack addict."

After reading the story, Mayor Gord Van Tighem says it isn't the first time the Star has portrayed Yellowknife in a less than positive light.

"Well historically they haven't painted a rosy picture," Van Tighem noted, adding he's never heard of 50th Street referred to as the Gaza Strip, a troubled region in the Middle East between Egypt and Israel.

"I remember their last article, the fellow wrote the story after sitting on a bench and interviewing people he met at 50th (Ave.) and 50th Street so the story is only going to be as accurate as the sources."

"I've never heard it referred to as the Gaza Strip," said RCMP Cpl. Ken Cooper, a six-and-half year veteran of policing in the north.

"Sure it has its problems but because of the bars that's where the action is and that's where people are drawn."

Kielburger, who is also co-founder of a group called the Free the Children network, was unavailable for comment.

However, a network spokesperson told Yellowknifer that statements regarding 50th Street and crack addiction statistics were taken from a year-old Star story about Yellowknife, then added to Kielburger's piece.

"This was written to highlight the affects of a boom-economy on the family structure (in Yellowknife), and (the Gaza Strip and crack addiction references) are not his words," the spokesperson said; the article was one part in a series Kielburger has written, "Exploring the impact of global issues on young people," according to a Star disclaimer appearing at the bottom of each story.

Calls to the Star to provide sources for both the Gaza Strip comparison and the "expert" opinion on crack addiction were not returned.

Speaking to the "expert" opinion that five per cent of Yellowknifers were addicted to crack was Damien Healy, communications manager for the Department of Health and Social Services, who dismissed it outright.

"I read the Toronto Star article, the line that says 'experts say one in 20 is addicted' is not accurate," he said, pointing to the health department's 2006 Addictions Survey.

In it, 1.8 per cent of NWT residents 15-years or older reported "trying" crack the year previous to the survey - about 570 in total for the entire territory.

As some survey respondents may not admit to illicit drug use, Yellowknifer sought out other "expert" opinions.

"One in twenty would make a lot of crack addicts," said Dr. Ross Wheeler, a mental health and addictions specialist at Stanton Hospital.

"There's probably a thousand people who've tried it.

"We see a fair traffic with crack cocaine, but it's really impossible to tell. That sounds like a high number, though."

David Harder, who started the Crackbusters program in Yellowknife three years ago working with people attempting to beat crack addiction, also disputes the numbers but doesn't downplay the problem. "The reality is we've got a major crack problem, we just happen to be in a boom and our downtown is very visible so you see it," he said. "So it seems worse than it is."

According to Harder, Crackbusters is enjoying a 25 per cent success rate among its nearly 400 participants. And as for the Gaza Strip comparison, Harder had some choice words.

"Gaza Strip? Never heard that before but that's pretty rude for Palestinians and Israelis I think."