Hoping to grab people's attention in a different way, a nonprofit has plastered unique ads right in the middle of the so-called open drug markets in San Francisco.
The colorful signs say "The Fentalife is no life" and "No yelling while selling drugs. Kids are trying to sleep around here."
With images of syringes, another reads "Drug dealers now have more rights than our kids."
"The campaign is sort of cheerful and bright because we need it to draw contrast from the darkness of the reality of what's happening on our streets," said Kanishka Cheng, CEO and founder of TogetherSF Action. "We want people to confront the reality that we’ve all sort of normalized how bad it’s gotten. We all look the other way and we want you to not be able to look away from this."
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The nonprofit chose to put the first ads in the heart of the Tenderloin to send a message to the residents in the area and to city hall just down the road.
"It is primarily an immigrant, person of color family neighborhood that we’ve allowed this to happen in," Cheng said.
Cheng said the growing crisis needs more attention.
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The nonprofit has launched a monthlong campaign as city leaders debate and prepare next year's budget.
"We want them to prioritize ending the drug markets and that to us means you’re going to fund police because they have a role in addressing the drug dealing and fund recovery," Cheng said.
Last week, the city's medical examiner reported that 211 people had died from an accidental fentanyl overdose so far this year, meaning 2023 is on pace to become the deadliest year yet for overdoses.
Cedric Akbar, a former drug addict, is now using his experience to help addicts trying to get clean.
"It’s beyond bad," he said. "We’ve talked about the pandemic, but this is worse than the pandemic. This is like a war-torn country where we have allowed this to happen over time."
While some online say the signs rub them the wrong way, the cofounder of Mothers Against Drug Addiction and Deaths said she agrees with the look and tone of the campaign, adding that it's necessary and bold in order to break through the crisis.
"We are at a pivotal turning point in our city," Cheng said. "We’ve got to turn this around. We’ve got to try something else."
