The neighborhood’s afflictions date to the early 1970s, when industry left and the drug trade took hold. With each new wave of drugs, the situation grows grimmer. Now, with the arrival of xylazine, a veterinary tranquilizer, new complications are burdening an already overtaxed system.

Labor trafficking frequently takes place out of sight; the ugly truth of capitalism that we keep hidden from view. Anyone with a camera can become a celebrity online, but have we created the conditions to produce more victims, and what responsibility do corporations have to stem the tide?

Vaping may not contribute to lung cancer the way cigarettes do, but there are still dangers in that “smoke.”

Yesterday marked the 36th year that the world observed World No Tobacco Day. This relatively obscure milestone masks a stalled effort to curb consumption of combustible cigarettes and other nicotine-related products. It’s unlikely most people paid any attention. But the impact of smoking is all around us, even if we don’t see it. Statistics rarely tell a provocative story to compel people to action.