The Opioid Epidemic and the Addiction Crisis

Opioids are drugs that people have taken for centuries to alleviate pain, but they are also highly addictive. In the past several years, the United States has seen a growing number of people addicted to and dying from opioids, creating a health crisis that doctors and communities are working hard to solve. Learn how the United States became the world leader in daily opioid use, how the situation has impacted individuals and families, and what people are doing to treat the epidemic.

Read WokeTM Books are created in partnership with Cicely Lewis, the Read Woke librarian. Inspired by a belief that knowledge is power, Read Woke Books seek to amplify the voices of people of the global majority (people who are of African, Arab, Asian, and Latin American descent and identify as not white), provide information about groups that have been disenfranchised, share perspectives of people who have been underrepresented or oppressed, challenge social norms and disrupt the status quo, and encourage readers to take action in their community.