‘Kensington Blues’ gives devastating portrait of addiction in Philly

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Not a Pretty Picture –

March 16, 2019 – The 2017 toll was a record for opioid deaths in the city. Although overdose deaths may have dropped last year, Philadelphia is still grappling with how to tackle opioid use. City officials are trying to raise awareness of medication-assisted treatment for opioid use. The city’s attempt to establish the nation’s first supervised injection site faces opposition from the Justice Department.

“As a citizen, I am deeply concerned that not enough is being done to help those who are suffering,” Stockbridge writes. “This exhibition is a call to action.” At its heart are Stockbridge’s unsparing images of people affected by opioid use. Taken beneath underpasses, in abandoned lots and rundown rooms, they portray the raw reality of people experiencing homelessness, trauma and loss. Stockbridge’s photos are accompanied by interviews, journals and videos that tell the stories of residents whose lives have been changed by Fentanyl, heroin and other substances.