The city of Philadelphia has been struggling for several years with a new substance with devastating effects: xylazine. Nicknamed the “zombie drug,” it plunges people who consume it into a prolonged state of unconsciousness, in addition to creating strong dependence and irreversible physical damage. The duty went there to document the social impact of this drug, which is starting to make its way into the country. Third of five texts.
In the middle of McPherson Park, nicknamed “needle park” because of the users who inject “needles” there. tranq » and other drugs for years, stands a magnificent century-old library with its wide steps and gilded columns. A “safe space” amid the chaos of the Kensington neighborhood in Philadelphia.
“With drugs and violence plaguing the neighborhood, there aren’t many places for kids to play. The library is one of the few safe places where they can come and play and be kids,” says Bryan Belknap, who has long led youth programs at the McPherson Library.
The needs of children in this area of Pennsylvania’s largest city are immense, he explains. “There are a lot of stressors in the neighborhood, but young people don’t necessarily have access to healthy ways to manage their stress, like playing in a safe park, for example. So, many develop coping mechanisms that are not healthy. »
He stops when he sees a group of teenagers crossing the grassy park, littered no longer with needles, but with orange syringe tips. He goes to meet them to invite them to a culinary workshop. He no longer works at the library, but continues his mission to help young people through a new program aimed at creating a safety net around them, breaking isolation and broadening their horizons.
Bryan Belknap is well known to young people in the neighborhood. “We called him the “Pied Piper”, in reference to the famous children’s story,” says librarian Judith Moore with a laugh. The kids were always asking us, “Is Mr. Bryan there?” It was he who started making slime with children in the library, it made it very popular. »
“Read for chips”
Librarian Judith Moore works along the same lines as Bryan. Its goal is to provide a “safe space” in a neighborhood where children do not have access to a public swimming pool or a recreational center. “It’s really a children’s library, even if we have adults and families too, but it’s a known place where young people who live within the perimeter of the library can come alone. »
And the programs abound. Every day, after school, the library offers activities for young people: cinema, chess club, board and video games, yoga, cooking classes, scientific experiments, arts workshops and story times. Without forgetting the manufacturing of slime, this sticky paste still popular with children. “They come to the library rather than being on the street. It entertains them and educates them a little at the same time,” summarizes Judith.
They are also entitled to an after-school “snack”, which is more like a real meal, a necessity for those who cannot eat their fill at home.
During the summer, the place also offers a reading program, which the children have renamed “read for chips.” The friendly librarian herself takes the children’s orders to buy the kinds they prefer.
End of camps in the park
But to get to the library, you must first cross the “needle park”. When passing the Dutypolice officers were carrying out surveillance, repelling by their presence users who are used to giving themselves injections.
Not so long ago, dozens of campers took up residence there. “For about a year, there have been no more camps in the park,” notes M.me Moore with relief. It’s good for children who can play without seeing people pipping nearby, even if it’s all over the neighborhood. »
However, despite the good weather, there was practically no one in the small fenced play area in the middle of the large grassy park, where a few users were slumped on the benches. “When there are too many people in the park, we don’t come,” explains Lisandra Claudio, a 27-year-old mother who grew up in the neighborhood and who took advantage of the tranquility of the park to allow her children to evacuate their excess energy.
She now lives in an adjacent neighborhood, which she considers safer, but regularly returns to the area to visit her mother. “I wouldn’t want to raise my children in this neighborhood, it’s too dangerous. I don’t feel safe there,” she confides.
Overdoses and naloxone
Employees of the public institution are among the first librarians in the country — if not the first — to have received training to administer naloxone, a medication that helps prevent opioid-related overdoses. It was at the suggestion of one of them that the team requested it in 2015.
“While we were waiting for the administration’s response, we had an overdose in the toilets, it was terrible,” says Judith, who cannot hold back her tears as she remembers this event.
At the time, very few people knew about naloxone, and employees had to use it more often than not. “At the beginning, we used it a lot, but not anymore,” she explains. Today, all consumers and those who work with them carry naloxone. “It still happens on occasion that people come to us asking for Narcan [nom commercial de la naloxone], but we no longer use it ourselves. »
A library employee is now permanently stationed in front of the bathroom door, to discourage people from injecting drugs there and to ensure that no one overdoses there.
But the bathroom, where the toilet paper is chained to a metal bar to prevent it from being stolen, remains accessible to park users. “They come, but not when they are under the influence,” specifies the librarian. They use the toilet, charge their phone or come to protect themselves from the rain. And that’s perfect. »
This report was financed thanks to the Transat-International Journalism Fund.The duty.