John Kerry's ritzy blue city neighborhood rocked as drug addicts ‘overrun' cobblestone streets
During a Boston City Council meeting in October 2024, Beacon Hill resident Katherine Kennedy said she hasn't seen this level of illegal drug use in Beacon Hill, according to Boston 25. According to Realtor.com, the average home price in Beacon Hill is $2.3 million.
"Prior to this year, I've never seen the Boston Common, Cambridge Street or the Esplanade get this overrun with drug paraphernalia or folks in crisis," Kennedy said.
Kennedy added, "As a mother of two small children, this is very scary."
The mother of two now carries a sharps container, meant for needles, in her diaper bag.
A 2024 report compiled by the Boston Public Health Commission reported that there was a 47.1% increase in drug usage mortality rates between 2020-2022 compared to 2017-2019 in the Beacon Hill, Back Bay, North end and West End communities, which are near each other. Similarly, data compiled by the Boston Police Department indicates that there was an 8% increase in overall theft incidents in 2025 compared to the five-year average in the area, including Beacon Hill.
In 2022, Democratic Boston Mayor Michelle Wu helped launch a needle exchange program, including the distribution of free pipes that can be used to smoke crack or methamphetamine in a "harm reduction" strategy.
"Every step that we take has to also be about immediately saving lives," Wu said at the time. "We have seen a big drop and data proven success with the parts of this program, the goals of this program, which are to ensure there is a stop to communicable diseases that are preventable."
For Kennedy, who's a resident of Beacon Hill, the program has led to a dramatic increase in needles seen on her kids' walk to school.
"I pass discarded needles as I walk my 5-year-old to her public school every day," Kennedy said, according to the Boston Herald. "Having to keep needles away from my kids as I walk them to preschool is unacceptable."
"Boston and the surrounding region is not doing enough to actually disrupt the cycle of addiction that has led to this crisis," she added.
Robert Charles, former assistant secretary at the U.S. State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, who's running for governor in Maine, told Fox News Digital that Americans don't fully understand the downstream impact of illegal drugs.
"It's a sequence of events. You get dramatic increases in the drug presence, which is a testing of law enforcement and political leadership. If the political leadership and law enforcement either don't have the resources or don't have the political will, you gradually see an increase in the drug trafficking itself and, of course, in overdoses," Charles said. "The burglaries go up, the robberies go up, the assaults go up. The domestic abuse goes up. Something like 80% of all domestic abuse is tied to polydrug use."
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You'll find some lower-fiber options, like seedless fruits and sourdough bread, to ease into the rest of the week. Days 3 through 6 follow a lower-fiber routine, focus primarily on protein and include more tender, lower-fiber vegetables, such as well-cooked carrots, spinach and mushrooms. It's typically recommended to follow a low-fiber diet for three to five days prior to the fasting day. For this plan, we chose to incorporate a low-fiber routine for four days. On Day 7, the day before your colonoscopy, it's often recommended to follow a clear-liquid diet. Liquids typically allowed on a clear liquid diet include water, black coffee, broth and lemonade. You should avoid red or purple liquids, as these colors can mimic the look of blood and can impair the accuracy of the procedure. These are general recommendations. Please follow the guidelines outlined by your medical team because individual guidelines, including foods to eat and foods to avoid, may vary depending on the medical facility completing your colonoscopy. How We Create Meal Plans Registered dietitians thoughtfully create EatingWell's meal plans to be easy-to-follow and delicious. Each meal plan meets specific parameters depending on the health condition and/or lifestyle goal it is targeting and is analyzed for accuracy using the nutrition database, ESHA Food Processor. As nutritional needs differ from person to person, we encourage you to use these plans as inspiration and adjust as you see fit. Read the original article on EATINGWELL
