After
a few weeks ago, I took the time to think about my project. I came up with
addressing drug addiction in a way that people can feel empowered to address
their struggles and overcome that. After meeting with SA McMahon and COS Dyson
from the DEA, I decided to create an Instagram page that promotes public
services to the public for drug addiction. Since I live in Newark, I decided to
focus the page for Essex County, the location of the field office and the
majority of where the services are located.
In
my page, I took pictures from nearby services and programs and inserted links
for people to utilize and check these services out. The problem with the
programs is that they are out there but no one really hears about it. On top of
that issue, people are afraid of being over criminalized for their problems as
well. In addition to the page, I was able to gather videos of celebrities
talking about addiction and how that is a disease. The idea is to have people
hear the stories and have them motivated for them to take charge of their lives
as well.
While
I was doing this project, I learned that drugs don’t just affect the user, it
affects their families and friends. I also learned that people take drugs for a
whole variety of reasons. For example, people take drugs because of their
stress from work or school, an injury or even taking it because it is cool.
Since
I am trying to motivate people to come forward, I added motivational quotes,
questionnaires and praises of support for the addicted. After the duration of
the semester, I will surrender the page to COS Dyson so that the DEA can
utilize the page and turn the project into a reality. I am confident after the
success in Essex County, we can move on to the other counties throughout New
Jersey and get people the help they need.
I
also investigated the youth. As drugs are affecting them in Newark, I promoted
programs from the Newark Public Schools. It is important that the youth is
educated on the issue and steer clear of harmful substances that could lead to
injury or death. The Newark Public Schools have assemblies and recreational
programs that helps students avoid drugs.
There
are non-profit organizations that assists people with their addictions.
Organizations such as ASPIRA and FOCUS provides people with education,
training, and other basic principles for individuals to have a solid foothold
in society. With knowledge comes with treatment that is life saving for many.
That is the focus of my project. I want people’s lives to be saved because they
were able to get the help in time.
I
found a connection from class to my project. I looked at consumerism in a dark
way. How? The kingpins and drug traffickers are “businessmen” because they
engage in the sales and distribution of narcotics. They must worry about supply
and demand for the masses. Drugs are widely available and cheap. It is a multibillion-dollar
industry as billions of tons of drugs are smuggled into our country every year.
It is a huge problem and people are selling their souls for these kinds of
things.
Link to the page: https://www.instagram.com/drughelp1200/
Link to the Twitter page: https://twitter.com/AlexApo60516490
Fentanyl
comes in many forms such as powder, injection and pills. It is used to treat
pain and is usually prescribed by doctors. It is extremely potent and may cause
an overdose upon physical contact. It is 30-50 times more potent than heroin.
30,000 people died from fentanyl in 2017. Photo by CNN.
Opioids
are used for pain relief from injuries. It is very easy to misuse and abuse the
pills. According to CNN, there were more than 70,000 deaths from opioids in
2017.
Cited Sources:
1. Bureau
of Prisons, (2018) “Offenses” Retrieved from, https://www.bop.gov/about/statistics/statistics_inmate_offenses.jsp
2. Drug
Rehab, (2018) “Levels of Care” Retrieved from, https://www.drugrehab.com/treatment/levels-of-care/
3. Herzberg,
D., et., al., (2016) “Recurring Epidemics of Pharmaceutical Drug Abuse in
America: Time for an All-Drug Strategy” American Journal of Public Health, Retrieved from, https://draweb.njcu.edu:2081/ehost/command/detail?vid=2&sid=23f098c6-c737-41aa-b216-3a5e598068d5%40sessionmgr4007&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#jid=APH&db=aph
(106.3)
4. Newark
Public Schools, (2018) “Health & Physical Education” Retrieved from, http://www.nps.k12.nj.us/curriculum/health-physical-education/
5. Saloner,
B., et., al., (2018) “A Public Health Strategy for the Opioid Crisis” Public Health Reports, Retrieved from, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0033354918793627
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6. Sederer,
L., (2016) “Take Action Against Addiction” U.S.
News, Retrieved from, https://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/policy-dose/articles/2016-02-01/10-ways-to-combat-americas-drug-abuse-problem
7. Serrano,
K., (2018) “NJ drug deaths continue to soar as national numbers decline” Asbury Press, https://www.app.com/story/news/investigations/heroin-jersey-shore/2018/06/14/us-drug-deaths-falling-while-continuing-soar-nj/694967002/
8. The
Lancet, (2015) “Addressing opioid drug misuse in America” Retrieved from, https://draweb.njcu.edu:2075/docview/1696909997
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