This post was originally published on Sacramento Observer
By Genoa Barrow
Deaths from opioid overdoses are down 24% nationally, but African Americans aren’t seeing the same results.
A new campaign, “You Have the Power to Save Lives,” has been launched to address persistent disparities in overdose deaths for Black communities. At the heart of the campaign is promoting the increased need for and availability of naloxone. Naloxone, usually administered nasally, is the generic term for Narcan.
Supported by public health group Vital Strategies, the campaign focuses on seven U.S. cities – Louisville, Kentucky; Durham, North Carolina; Newark, New Jersey; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Detroit; Milwaukee; and Philadelphia. The campaign has partnered with local governments and community groups to increase the availability of free naloxone, especially in Black communities. The campaign urges residents in participating cities to put power in their own hands by getting and carrying naloxone.
Overdose rates in Black communities have been rising for the past 10 years, but have skyrocketed since 2020. In many states where recent data is available by race, Black communities suffer higher fatal overdose rates than white populations.
According to the National Black Harm Reduction Network (NBHRN), drug overdose is the leading cause of preventable death for Black adults in the United States, more than gun violence or car crashes. Data also shows that Black men aged 54 to 73 are four times more likely to die from overdose than other men in their age group.
“While we’re seeing a precipitous decline in overdose deaths overall in the country, we continue to witness significant disparities in overdose deaths between Black and white populations in much of the country,” said Dalia Heller, Vital Strategies’ vice president of overdose prevention initiatives.
“This campaign is an opportunity to build on that work by increasing awareness and improving access to naloxone in cities where Black communities have been hit hard by the overdose crisis and are experiencing disproportionately high rates,” Heller continued.
“The urgency of Black overdose cannot be understated,” said Tracy Gardner, NBHRN’s executive director. “We have a disproportionate impact of overdose in our communities, and there is this simple tool that has been both underutilized and unavailable.
“We have the power to save our own lives. We’ve always had to save our own lives, and this can’t be any different.”
Reversal drugs have been available, but not always distributed adequately, she said. The campaign also addresses the taboo nature of substance use.
“There’s the stigma of the war on drugs and its disproportionate impact on us, the criminalization, the stigma that was created around drug use, the prosecution over public health,” Gardner said. “All of that is factored into why we are struggling in many of the same ways that Native Americans are as populations that have been specifically designated by public policies to cause harm in our communities.”
The overdose crisis has been devastating to Black families and communities, said Keli McLoyd, director of the Overdose Response Unit for the City of Philadelphia.
“Everyone should carry Narcan and/or naloxone and be prepared to use it. We need it in homes, cars, convenience stores, churches, libraries, and barber shops,” McCloyd said. “Where we keep our aspirin and our Pepto, we should also keep our naloxone.”
Marshea Browner, director of community health services at the Detroit Health Department, says the drug should be as common as epipens for allergies.
“The lifesaving medication can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose in minutes. Many of us have friends, neighbors and relatives who are at risk,” Browner said.
“Fentanyl is widespread in the drug supply and people can unknowingly be exposed to it without realizing the drug they took contained it. But fentanyl overdoses are preventable. This campaign is not just about taking lifesaving action. It’s about empowerment.”
Anita Garrett, a Milwaukee woman who lost a son and nephew to fatal overdoses, is featured in campaign ads.
“My son was in a house full of people and naloxone was not available. All the people in the house ran from the house because they feared prosecution from the Milwaukee Police Department,” Garrett said. “My son’s life could have been saved if they were educated and had the resources.”
Her nephew, she said, had a reversal drug in his car, but didn’t know how to use it.
“These are senseless deaths. They could have been prevented,” Garrett said.
The men’s deaths literally had a sobering impact on Garrett, who has been clean for nearly two decades.
“I lost my son 16 years ago and since then I have been on a mission to try to save lives, to let the Black community know the things that they need to know to prevent deaths,” she said. “It’s not hard.”
Garrett gets emotional in speaking her truth, but does so to help others.
“I go to a lot of places and I tell my story. I’m not ashamed to say I’m a recovering addict. I’m not ashamed to say I lost my son to drugs because I don’t think any mother wants that phone call to say your son or your daughter or any family member died over an overdose,” Garrett said. “That’s why I’m on this campaign, and that’s why you see my picture on these posters: the pain that I feel in my heart about losing my son and my nephew. Anytime I hear somebody died over an overdose, it just brings chills to my body. We can stop this.”
Kimberly Douglas lost her 17-year-old son, Bryce, to a fentanyl poisoning overdose nearly two years ago.
“Losing Bryce to a drug overdose created a profound and unimaginable grief, a permanent ache and a gaping hole in my heart,” Douglas said. “It’s compounded by guilt, regret and so many unanswered questions. The pain extends beyond Bryce being gone to the dreams and future that will never be his.”
Douglas is building a support group for Black moms who’ve lost children to overdose.
“I struggled to understand why and how this happened, while grappling with societal stigmas. Internalizing the blame is really isolating, which is why I’m constantly seeking to draw strength from other Black mothers confronted with this horrible ordeal and the aftermath,” Douglas said. “It’s been clear that Black families are not comfortable addressing substance and mental substance use and mental health issues because of the stigmas.
“Our instincts are to sweep it under the rug like they never happened, but it must stop. We need to open up, and Black women need to talk to each other to help one another. Our voices are powerful, and our narratives can impact others if shared. Like Miss Anita’s son, my son Byrce will never walk through the front door again. But we can ensure that more sons and daughters make it home so the families don’t have to feel the pain that we are experiencing.”
Locally, Sacramento County gives out Narcan for free. The county also lists schools, faith-based organizations, veterans groups and a number of community organizations like Harm Reduction Services and Voice of the Youth among its partners in the effort to get the product in the hands of more people.Learn more about the new campaign at YouCanSaveLives.org. For more information on local efforts, visit sacopioidcoalition.org.
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