" Senator Golden's comments regarding the opioid epidemic are racist, disturbing, and inaccurate. The life of an individual is not worth more because of their parent's profession and should not be addressed differently because of it.
Additionally, the truth is that drugs do not discriminate when it comes to gender, race, or income. Addiction is a public health issue, not a criminal justice one, and should be treated as such across the board. Senator Golden should apologize for his troubling remarks and work in the best interest of all New Yorker's health, not just a select few."
Senator Martin Golden's comments are available from the link provided by Senator Rivera's office to the Brooklyn Eagle at http://www.brooklyneagle.com/a
The comment occurs towards the end of the article when the reporter goes into other questions that the lead story.
One area of concern is the rising rate of opioid addiction in New York state. “It’s not a ghetto drug. It’s happening to doctor’s kids,” Golden said.
People start out on painkillers and then turn to heroin when they can no longer find a doctor willing to prescribe painkillers, he said. “They cut heroin from fentanyl,” he said. Fentanyl is dangerous because it is much more potent, he said. “The kid is addicted by the second or third hit of heroin,” he said.
Golden added that he believes there are not enough rehab centers.
