In one of her first acts after taking office, Philadelphia's first female mayor declared a state of security emergency to stem the rampant crime and excessive drug addiction plaguing her city's neighborhoods.
“I think this is a step in the right direction,” Frank Rodriguez, a recovering heroin addict and former drug dealer in Philadelphia's Kensington neighborhood, told Fox News. “This is at least a step. Whether it will work and how productive it will be remains to be seen. But at least something is being done.”
Democrat Sherrell Parker, 51, was sworn in as Philadelphia's 100th mayor on Tuesday, signing an executive order declaring a state of security emergency and vowing in her inaugural address to immediately focus on curbing crime. The longtime city council member said his administration would focus on community policing and increase the number of police officers in order to uphold its campaign promise of thorough security, rebuild public trust in the police, and restore law and order. Announced.
she “100 Day Action Plan” It will also focus on a range of issues, including tackling education and housing.
Democrat Sherrell Parker takes the stage at an election night party in Philadelphia on November 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
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“I want you to know that when we make these decisions, not everyone is going to be happy,” Parker said in a speech Tuesday. “I want the world to know that I am committed to ending this illegality and restoring order and lawfulness to our city.”
Philadelphia has faced a spike in crime in recent years, with homicides exceeding 500 for the second year in a row. City police station data. Data shows homicides fell 22% from 2022 to 2023, but some violent crimes, such as robbery and aggravated assault with a firearm, remain above pre-pandemic levels.
Kevin Bethel, a nearly 30-year veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department, was sworn in Tuesday as the city's police chief alongside Parker to work on plans to tackle the city's crime crisis and ongoing drug epidemic. is.
Bethel, who most recently served as director of school safety for the Philadelphia School District, discussed the impact of excessive public drug use in the Kensington area on children in the area, saying, He vowed to restore order.
A child watches as a drug addict uses drugs in Philadelphia's Kensington neighborhood. The region became internationally known for its excessive public drug consumption. (FOX News/John Michael Raasch)
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“That means the open-air drug market that is happening here in Kensington and casting a shadow over our community will be dismantled,” Bethel said Tuesday. “We will pursue those who have harmed and traumatized our neighbors throughout the city.”
Kensington is known worldwide for its notoriety. Excess drug consumption in public placesThe area is one of Philadelphia's most affected by overdose deaths, according to data from the city's health department.
More than 1,400 people died from drug overdoses in Philadelphia in 2022, an 11% increase from the record high in 2021.
Dozens of drug users open fire in McPherson Park, also known as Kensington Avenue and Needle Park. One woman had blood running down her arm after injecting herself. (FOX News/Megan Myers, John Michael Larsch)
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Drug users are regularly seen openly injecting drugs in Kensington as residents, including children, pass by each day. Sometimes addicts are left horribly disfigured by the addictive animal tranquilizer called xylazine, or even run across a busy street in a daze.
“When I think of Kensington…all I think of is addicts,” Rodriguez said. “But there are families and children in that community who are literally held hostage in their homes. They can't get out.”
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Rodriguez, who met with Parker during the campaign, said he is optimistic and hopeful about her plan to tackle the drug addiction and crime epidemic in the city, particularly in Kensington.
“I think everyone has to be held accountable, from the police down to the mayor,” Rodriguez said. “There has to be accountability, and I believe this initiative is a step in the right direction.”
