April 22, 2017
Dear Mr. President,
Today we need to talk about something hard – heroin. Do you know about this stuff? People tell me a hit of heroin is cheaper
than a happy meal at McDonald's…can you believe
that?! I can't actually fact check that
myself but here are the facts that I can report:
-the number of deaths from heroin nationwide
was about 2,000 in 2002. In 2015 it was
14,000 (a 700% increase).
-heroin deaths have increase more
than 26% annually over the course of the last 13 years. This is, literally, exponential growth.
-in 2012 259 million prescriptions
were written for opioids which is more than
enough to give every adult in
America their own bottle of pills
-heroin usage has increased among all demographic groups (sex, age, race,
income)
-in a 2014 survey of people in
treatment for opioid addiction, 94% said that they chose to use heroin because
prescription opioids were "far more expensive and harder to obtain". Heroin was easy and cheap.
My daughter was exposed to heroin in-utero. She is 21
now. She's beautiful and kind and
funny. But she is also completely fucked
because guess what…heroin destroys your brain. Yup,
it's true. She has an overall IQ of
around 100 (pretty average) but a 3rd grade reading level (on a good
day) and don't even get me started on her numeracy. Let's just say it's bad. Remember those fried egg, anti-drug
commercials from the 70s that said, "This is your brain." Crack egg.
Sizzle, sizzle. "This is
your brain on drugs." Well, it
turns out that's a pretty accurate description of a brain on drugs.
My daughter is 21 now so she was at the crest of the heroin
tidal wave that has now engulfed most of the nation. But there are tens of thousands of children
following along behind her. Tens of
thousands of children who will never meet their potential. Children whose lives
will be forever handicapped and limited and they will need educations and jobs,
homes and healthcare. I think we will
look back in 30-40 years and call them the lost generation. And there are a LOT of them Mr. Trump. So put on your big boy britches and make a
plan worthy of the greatest and wealthiest country on Earth because as Whitney
Houston so poignantly pointed out, children ARE in fact the future. And from where I'm sitting the future looks
pretty bleak.
Today a funeral is being held for my friend's ex – the
father of her 10 year old daughter. He
died from an overdose and had been a long-time user. That means he wasn't the most reliable
father. Certainly not very responsible
either. But he WAS a father; a living,
breathing person who was kind and loving and generous and who had a daughter that
loved him very much. Now he is gone, just
another statistic. Just one more of the
150 people who die each and every day from heroin and opioids. Another death that leaves behind friends,
families and children who must pick up the pieces and continue on as best they
can, with hearts that will never feel whole again. Millions of people united
by grief and tragedy.
These are hard times Mr. Trump. This is a problem that is still growing and
must be addressed aggressively and comprehensively. For once, do the right
thing even though it's hard: rather than spend $25 billion on that stupid and
unnecessary wall, apply that money to addiction and treatment programs. That's how you can really make America great
again.
Sincerely,
Amy Beaton
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