Breaking the "silence of the blues": local task force tackles opioid crisis head on
MINNEAPOLIS -- At any bus stop in south or north Minneapolis you can find someone smoking blues, ingesting opioids laced with fentanyl.
Breaking the silence, Minnesotans United Against Opioids is bringing several groups together, pulling resources to put a stop to the destruction of lives, families and community
Most coming to this gathering at the Minneapolis Urban League have lost a loved one to the opioid and fentanyl crisis.
"Brining these people together we hope to create a space of healing a space they know they can get the help when they come to our offices or one of the partner organizations offices," said Tezzaree El-Amin Champion, Executive Director of Encouraging Leaders.
Champion is leading the push to bring attention to a problem that is killing people in the Black and Indigenous community at a disproportionate rate.
According to the Minnesota Department of Human Services in 2021, overdose mortality became the leading cause of death in Minnesota
Six out of ten opioid pills sold on the street, contain life-ending fentanyl.
"And nobody is talking about it and that's why I say the silence of the blues because its silent in our community, nobody is talking about it and how many people we are burying everyday from the blues," said Outreach Specialist with local nonprofit "A Mother's Love," Nona Champion.
"Its in everything," said Artice Mayfield from Grass Roots. "Its kind of like suicide whatever you are putting in your mouth, you don't know, its suicidal, you are taking a chance."
It's the young people who are losing friends and family members, that's why they are leading this push for more resources and training to help save lives.
"On the outreach aspect of it, it's our job to make sure we connect the dots," said Champion, "we feel like we are young, we got a lot of energy, we know a lot of these people so we want to connect them with other partners and other people that provide those specific resources that they need."