America has a drug problem affecting urban and rural communities alike, but in some Democrat-run cities, the epidemic has reached crisis levels. Places like Philadelphia's Kensington neighborhood are among the worst in the country. Driving down the area's streets, you'll see open drug use, people slumped over, others looking like zombies, prostitution, crime, homelessness—you name it. While it's incredibly sad to see, Democrats, who have been in control of the city for decades, have done little to address the devastation. And now, one country is using it as a warning to its youth not to do drugs.
In a national ad campaign, Mexico uses footage of drug users in Philadelphia in an effort to "inform young people of the damage caused to health by the consumption of chemical drugs," says Jesús Ramírez, spokesman for Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. While the city isn't named in the ad, it's easily recognizable from street signs in the background.
AMERICA'S SLUMS: This is a national ANTI-DRUG ad in #Mexico. But it depicts insane scenes from the streets of #Philadelphia and the drug crisis EXPLODING out of control in the Kensington neighborhood. #America #CrackIsWhack #DrugCrisis #Fentanyl #JustSayNopic.twitter.com/E4bNzjnaRf
— Jonathan Choe Journalist (@choeshow) November 14, 2022
The streets of Philadelphia are so bad that Mexico is using footage of them in ads to scare young people away from drugs https://t.co/Lgbi3e4MYv
— Not the Bee (@Not_the_Bee) November 12, 2022
The Philadelphia Mayor's office acknowledged the drug problem but pointed out it's not alone.
"The opioid and overdose crisis in Philadelphia is part of a national and even international epidemic, and we agree it is important for everyone to understand, as this video notes, that all street drugs now present an elevated risk of overdose because of fentanyl's extreme prevalence," said a spokesperson for Mayor Jim Kenney. "Having said that, it is always hard to see our city's people and neighborhoods portrayed in a limited and negative light. No neighborhood, and no person, should be defined by this tragic and widespread crisis."
Mexico is not blameless in the problem, however.
While China is a major producer of fentanyl, "Mexico is becoming a major transit and production point for the drug and its analogues as well, and Mexican traffickers appear to be playing a role in its distribution in the United States," according to the Wilson Center.