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The Brutality endured
 A
considerable amount of my time is taken up with helping people who are
trapped within the cycle of drug addiction. The world of drugs can be
a very cruel, vicious and savage place to inhabit. Constantly I come
across young people running for their lives, trying to escape the
brutality of the drug gangs who hunt them for the money they owe.
There is a code of practice, have as much heroin as you
want, on the one condition that you pay us back with currency. The
need for the white powder is too tempting to turn down. So people can
find themselves running up huge credit bills. The drug pusher is not
sympathetic to the plight of those who cannot pay. So the addict goes
on the run. Like a fox running through the fields, the junkie
desperately searches for a hiding place. The drug gangs smell blood
and go out for the hunt. The following photo depicts a savage attack
Peter experienced recently. He was stabbed in the head and repeatedly
in the arms and could of easily lost his life. Nevertheless, he lives
to face another day.
In this edition of Edges Magazine
we pay special attention to people who suffer from eating disorders. A
girl in her late teens came to visit me recently suffering from
anorexia; she expressed an interest in working on one of our projects.
My encounter with this person inspired me to make contact with other
people who struggle with this illness. Hence, in this edition of Edges
we give a platform to some people who suffer with this form of
marginalisation.
Here at the Edges Office we are busy
preparing for our second annual conference which we are holding at
Wolfson College, Oxford. This year's Conference is called "Youth
Lost Through Social Exclusion." It's being organised by
T.H.O.M.A.S., the organisation which promotes Edges. We are pleased
that the Home Office has responded to our Invitation. The Minister of
State for Prisons and Probation will speak at the event. Equally, we
are also planning our Edges Personalities of the year. These awards
are for young people who have made outstanding progress over the last
year, for example turning away from crime and drugs. The Home
Secretary, Jack Straw, will present these awards.
It is
encouraging to know that some of the young people with whom we work on
one of our projects called Reconcile, are continuing to build their
lives in rehabilitation units. We provide an environment which enables
them to escape from the street and prepare for rehab units.
With each edition of edges we always make contact with people on
the streets of London. Kerry is on the front cover of this edition. I
met up with her for the second time this year. She had an article in
the last edition. Since our last meeting she has had difficulties and
she shares her thoughts with us in this publication.
At the
moment we are looking at how we can give more practical help to the
homeless of London. Please continue to support us. With your help we
can continue to give marginalised people throughout the U.K. , and via
the internet throughout the world, a platform to express who they are.
We also accommodate people with drug problems and we feed people in
our Drop In Centre. Please support us: we need your help.
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