Black Lives Matter Paterson recently held the formal opening of a harm reduction center, where it helps people affected by substance abuse and opioid overdose, and aims to prevent the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. The goal is to focus on a person’s overall health and well-being — help them to get into rehab, fill out forms for housing and Medicaid, provide things like hygiene kits, even food.
Bre Azanedo, program manager for BLM Paterson, said the center — which opened in February — is about “uplifting our community, making sure that we get resources and bring this back into the conversation and making sure that the children of the people who are in addiction don’t go through a lot of the obstacles that I had to face. Because harm reduction is not necessarily just for the person experiencing, it’s also for the family.”
