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35 fatal overdoses in Richmond so far this year
09/28/2017 6:55 AM by John M
A look the regional opioid crisis by K.Burnell Evans:
A woman who drew her last breath behind Franklin Military Academy in the city’s East End was among the 80 to die of an opioid overdose this year in the Richmond region.
School was out for the summer. She was pregnant.
“I just can’t get it out of my head,” said Del. Delores L. McQuinn, D-Richmond, whose district encompasses the school. “It is my hope and my prayer that we can get to the bottom of this.”
As we celebrate early attempts to revitalize the Nine Mile corridor, can we also pressure our representatives to to have a drug treatment center for those in the East End?
This issue was raised by someone at the 7th District Meeting this week, and Rep. Newbille said that there were no conversations of that sort and seemed a bit taken aback. I’m baffled that with all this concern about economic development, and drug-related crime in the East End that we have had no serious conversations about having treatment centers located in the East End so addicts don’t have to go to Scotts Addition or West Franklin to outpatient clinics.
As heads up, there is a treatment center on East Franklin. The future bus plan should end within easy walking distance.
https://newseason.com/clinics/richmond-treatment-center/
East ender, you make a good point
I’d like us to support better living in the east end. There are a lot of (heroin) addicts up here in the north central Oakwood area.
I’m all in favor of people taking responsibility for living right themselves, but addiction is real, and we, the functional employed tax paying people wind up carrying the weight of their sick ness. (Thefts, drug dealer violence, etc)
So let’s address the problem head on and deal with addicts and addiction
Dr Newbille, why is there no drug addiction treatment effort embedded in the 9 mile revitalization plan?
Looks like big pharma and the medical industry are doing their part in economic development. And phasing out the dreaded drug cartels.
A heroin overdose behind Franklin Military Academy. It’s no surprise to anyone. The RPD knows that there are active heroin dealers on N 37th St., N 36th St., and N 38th St., and frequently walk, bike, and drive the area behind Franklin Military Academy down to the projects on Government Rd. Get the dealers off the street and out of the area so this will stop.
I know the area pretty well. I’ve lived on 37th street my entire life. Those people you speak of on those streets are mainly drug addicts not dealers. Most of these overdoses are due to pharmaceuticals not street drugs. These people you speak about have been addicts for decades, the dealers don’t live around here. A lot of assumptions have to do with stereotyping. You probably think I’m a dealer or addict because I lived here before you and you may see me walking and talking with some of these people. Yet I’m not just known them my entire life. Crack cocaine destroyed our community. Church Hill was a safe, happy, neighborly place. Where everybody knew everybody. Families were well connected. There was always an event or gathering at Bill Robinson or Chimborazo park. You couldn’t get away with any mischief because by the time you got home, someone in the neighborhood had contacted your parent or grandparent, Aunt, Uncle or cousin..lol. The gym was always open, Rec & Park had dances for the teenagers. Businesses were flourishing. The late 80’s came through with destruction for the people of Churchill. The War against drugs yet not for the people it affected and to still be here and treated by new neighbors like we are all low life is irritating. People don’t even speak when they walk by. Like you not there. We are the survivors, that still pay taxes, witnesses to all the destruction and the now. I go in Union Market and get funny looks. It doesn’t bother me because I’m not going anywhere. Yet I believe if people stopped judging others and classifying people, it may help progression for a more humane attitude towards other humans. Sadly “Victory to the oppressor,as always”..I pray God will heal the minds and bodies of all those affected by drug abuse, those being oppressed and the silent oppressors..for they no not what they do….peace and blessings
And those are not projects at the bottom of government Rd. They are low income apartments that you have to have a job and pass credit and background checks for..smh
You see there were houses and businesses down the Fulton bottom. Churches and schools. My Great grandparents house was on Orleans St. The steps are still there, right across from Rocketts Landing. There is a lot of untold history and assumptions about the people who lived here. These were beautiful, hard working people..Who loved their communities and built them up, to watch them torn down and destroyed. My great grandmother was an orphan, she owned stores in Church Hill, she was loved and respected. Her name is in relation to the oldest black owned business still in Church Hill. You won’t see her name on any buildings But that’s another story. Truth is everybody is not who you may assume or what you assume they are. People don’t start using drugs to become what it makes them. Unfortunately, it leads to destruction. People don’t smoke cigarettes to get cancer either, yet these things are out here for people and they destroy the best minds and spirits. People are just people with different backgrounds and options..You never know which side you may be on..”For we can do nothing against the truth but for the truth”…Corinthians
Plove,
Thanks for your comments. I think many would agree that the War on Drugs was and has been a failure on many fronts. While addiction as a disease is real and needs better attention and focus than our politicians have given it, drug use not only effects the addict, his/her family but whole communities for the worse.
Drugs don’t only make addicts but they make dealers. I’ve seen it firsthand as a longtime resident on Chimbo/Oakwood. Guys (and girls) I know choose to hustle and sling when they know how bad the effects of drugs can be. I’ve spoken to some of them, and you know what, they show no remorse. I’ve offered some of them help to get into the technical school downtown so they can get a trades job, and they tell me that they would rather hang in front of the corner store. I’ve offered tutoring for GED classes and I get cursed.
I get looks when I go to Union too, but you know what, getting nasty looks and cursed at from folks in the neighborhood because I’m not in the “game,” condone dealers hanging in front of my house, or tolerate drive-bys by one dealer against another on my street, bothers me a whole lot more.
Where I live, near Mari’s corner store, it’s people in and with the oldest families, 7 times out of 10, who are selling heroin, pills, cocaine, crack and guns.
And until new people moved in, they were straight running things. They won out over decent folk, plain and simple.
We need to recognize both the glory and the manners of the past are gone. It’s the hustlers vs the yuppies out here. The yuppies can’t tell the church cousin from the crack cousin from the lawn care cousin… (or which two are the same person) but the hustlers will try, and sometimes succeed in turning out your 12 year old.
I don’t need the respect of strangers; I work to keep the respect of family and friends. But friendly or rude (and sadly in this day, rude does seem to get it done) I am thankful for the protection brought to our neighborhood by a new set of community values. Don’t our kids also deserve a place where helping a 13 year old get a gun and a job running heroin is held as special sort of sin, or at least a straight crime? I think they do, and I guess I’m old enough now I don’t care whose feelings get hurt to get there.
They say All it takes for evil to triumph is for good people to let it. We have a chance to have a better neighborhood again, even though it will never be what it was. To get to be part of that New neighborhood we have to speak truth about criminals in our midst instead of protecting them and saying they are from out of the neighborhood.
And we need to get help for our addicts. Dr. Newbille, why is there no drug treatment facility as part of the 9 Mile redevelopment? Sounds like you want it more 8 Mile to me.