Criminal The Liverpool Exchange
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Nov 10, 2023 In this podcast, the hosts discuss Liverpool's heroin epidemic in the 1980s and the efforts to combat drug addiction. They explore the controversy surrounding the needle exchange program and highlight the importance of harm reduction and safe spaces for drug users. The episode also includes information about the Criminal podcast's tour and membership program.
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Medical Approach Kept Heroin Contained
- The UK treated addiction as a medical issue, allowing doctors to maintain addicts on prescribed opioids.
- This kept heroin use contained for decades until youth drug culture and market changes expanded use.
Addiction Follows Existing Hardship
- Addiction often follows people who are already struggling, not vice versa.
- Substances typically relieve existing pain or social disconnection rather than create it from scratch.
Fear Of HIV Drove Rapid Harm Reduction
- Liverpool organizers learned about HIV outbreaks among injectors in the U.S. and Scotland and panicked about local spread.
- That fear motivated pragmatic harm-reduction measures like needle exchange before official approval.