Baratiyan 1

Saba Baratiyan
Professor Mercado
English 113B- 12:30pm MW
30 April, 2016
Conquering Mental illness and Drug Use
Poverty can change everything in life for the worst in a short amount of time. It can lead
to homelessness, drug addiction, and mental illness. All of these factors lead back to the main
issue, poverty. Many people living in Los Angeles are mentally ill and addicted to drugs because
they face poverty every day. Skid Row Los Angeles is one of the largest community of drug
addicts and mentally ill individuals in the city. Mental illness causes depression, which then
develops drug addiction to release their stress in life. By developing these addictions, it interferes
with physical and mental health and it keeps them away from trying to find a solution to get out
of poverty, which instead they dig themselves deeper into their struggles. Although there are
some drug prevention programs and mental hospitals to offer help to people in need, yet there are
not enough resources to help them because there are still people suffering with mental illness and
drug addiction, which is why paying attention to this social issue is significant.
Skid Row is located in Downtown Los Angeles, which consists of 50 blocks. Skid Row
was built during the 1870s when railroads were made. Today Skid Row is filled with men and
women who struggle daily with mental illness (Humes). according to Maya Humes, author of
Mental Health Issues on Skid Row and beyond. This shows that Skid Row is overcrowded
with men and women who are facing difficulties because of their illness. One of the biggest drug
issues in Skid Row Los Angeles is, where homeless people buy and sell drugs to each other. A
drug called Spice or also known as synthesized marijuana, is one of the most dangerous drugs.

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It is deadly for people who use it and develop an addiction because it can cause other illnesses
such as lung and cardiovascular disease. According to Hayley Fox author of Policing Synthetic
Marijuana on LA's Skid Row causes them to run into traffic, get hit by cars and continue on
their way unphased (Fox). This shows that people who are addicted to Spice, are mentally ill
and they do not know or understand the importance of how dangerous this drug is. It can cause
serious health problems for people who are addicted to it.
Serious actions need to be done in order to solve this social issue. For instance more
police officers need to be located in Skid Row, when people are buying and selling drugs. This
can help reduce the drug sale, by keeping an eye on them. Poverty plays an important role when
people become drug addicts. By facing challenges and difficulties in life, many people give up.
They develop depression and feel as if they have no hope left, which leads them to form drug
addiction. According to Joel Rubin author of LOS ANGELES; 12 held in 'spice' sweep; L.A.
arrests are part of a federal move against synthetic narcotics. Spice is the most dangerous drug
because these are extremely dangerous drugs, despite being falsely marketed to youth as being a
'safe' alternative,"(Rubin). This shows that this drug is very dangerous, especially for younger
people.
Another important reason that many individuals today are facing poverty and are
mentally ill is because unemployment rates are high, and people lose their jobs. This impacts
people who are unemployed because they get into debt, and eventually later in life they will have
to give up everything they own in order to pay their expenses, which leaves them with nothing in
the end. This leads many people to become mentally ill, which then they develop drug addictions
to clear their mind of their problems. There is lack of public drug prevention programs, and
mental hospitals, since this social issue is still a problem in todays world. According to Diana

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Kruzman, author of Out of mind but in plain sight: homelessness in Los Angeles there are not
enough programs that are helpful to people in need. The problem is that these services aren't
working (Kruzman). This shows that even though there are some services created to help drug
addicts, or anyone in need of help, yet they do not work properly. In all these years, nothing has
worked properly to help solve this issue, which is why it is still one of the biggest social issue in
Los Angeles.
Different approaches to treat drug use have been made because drug prevention programs
have changed the requirements and rules of their policy, for accepting people in need. It is now
easier to transfer homeless people into medical centers, and drug prevention centers, since they
accept most homeless people. As claimed by Gale Holland, author of HELPING THE
HOMELESS; CURBSIDE CARE; A longtime L.A. skid row doctor's services include finding
patients a home through a county program providing people who are in need with these
resources saves public funds by keeping them out of ambulances, emergency rooms and jails
(Holland). This shows that by keeping them away from the streets, there is a less chance for them
to commit crimes, and be in danger. By keeping them away from the streets and providing other
alternatives for this issue, it gives those individuals who need help a new chance to start over
again, and have faith in themselves to succeed in life.
Drug addiction among people who are facing poverty, is a social concern. People need to
take into consideration that not only it affects their health, but it also has an impact on the
environment. It shapes the community in a negative way, because it consists of people living in
poverty and drug addicts living on the streets. It interferes with childrens view towards life
because they observe people living this way. Children will be influenced to think that doing
drugs is normal, since they see people do it, which is why paying attention to this issue is

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important because it can help prevent future social issues. Providing them alternatives can help
them to live their life the way they prefer. It will also be a good influence on children to not
make wrong choices and take the wrong path, such as becoming drug addicts.
There are many people who do not agree with providing more programs for drug addicts
and mentally ill. They believe that it costs a lot of money to provide them with these resources.
On the other hand if they do not get help, physical and mental problems will increase in the
future, and they will continue to live on the streets, and most importantly drug addiction will
continue to increase. For example Ronald Raegan after being elected as president in the 1980s
discarded a law proposed by his predecessor that would have continued funding federal
community mental health centers. This basically eliminated services for people struggling with
mental illness (Roberts). By closing mental hospitals not only do people suffer, but crime rate
will also increase because these individuals are not getting the help they need, which is why
creating more mental hospitals and other public programs will help to solve this issue.
This event still has an impact on people struggling with mental illness because if they
were provided with mental hospitals and different programs to help them get better, mental
illness and other related illnesses would have not been this severe in todays world. There would
be less people living on the streets of Skid Row, who face poverty every day in life. By providing
these people with mental hospitals and other alternatives, the rate of diseases and illnesses would
decline, and Skid Row would be formed into a healthy community where there is no homeless,
or drug addicts living on the streets. Skid Row would be a safe community to live in.
Serious actions need to be taken in order to save mentally ill people and prevent them
from risking their lives because of drug use. I value this social issue because I understand that

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this issue not only is a problem for people struggling with drug use and mental illness, but
eventually it connects back to poverty. Without creating more organizations and programs that
give these people shelter, there is no other solution to fix this issue. By providing these solutions
for them, it prevents other social issues such as crime to occur and it also gives the homeless
people a new chance to start over. By proving them this new chance they will try their hardest to
improve their life, in order to live the way they used to before facing poverty.
Many people do not acknowledge the importance that this issue has on everyone because
people only care if they are involved in the issue. It does not matter to them how the community
and all the people will suffer and face more problems, if this social issue does not get solved. I
view this social issue differently than other people because I know how this issue can become
more difficult, for instance the rate of mentally ill and drug addicts would increase, if it does not
get solved. Relating back to Ronald Raegan discarding the law talked about earlier, if mental
hospitals were not closed at that time and people would have been getting serious treatments,
mental illness and drug use would not be high. If the government does not pay attention to this
issue, it can only become worse as time goes on.
Poverty is significant, since it has the most influence in life because it leads to
homelessness, mental illness and drug addiction. All of these social issues relate back to the main
problem, poverty. Without paying close attention to this issue, and providing programs, such as
mental hospitals and drug prevention programs, people in need will not get the help they deserve
in order to live a healthy life. Providing them with these resources can shape Skid Row into a
better community, which prevents people from committing other crimes in the future.

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Works Cited
Fox, Hayley. "Policing Synthetic Marijuana on LA's Skid Row." Vice. N.p., 2 Aug. 2015. Web.
23 Apr. 2016.
Holland, Gale. "HELPING THE HOMELESS; CURBSIDE CARE; A Longtime L.A. Skid Row
Doctor's Services Include Finding Patients a Home through a County Program." Los
Angeles TimesJan 14 2015. ProQuest. Web. 23 Apr. 2016.
Humes, Maya. "Mental Health Issues on Skid Row and Beyond." Los Angeles Sentinel. N.p., 24
July 2014. Web. 23 Apr. 2016.
KRUZMAN, DIANA. "Out of Mind but in Plain Sight: Homelessness in Los Angeles."
University WireMar 09 2016. ProQuest. Web. 23 Apr. 2016.
Roberts, Joel John. "Did Reagans Crazy Mental Health Policies Cause Todays Homelessness?
Poverty Insights." Poverty Insights Did Reagans Crazy Mental Health Policies Cause
Todays Homelessness Comments. N.p., 14 Oct. 2013. Web. 23 Apr. 2016.
Rubin, Joel. "LOS ANGELES; 12 Held in 'Spice' Sweep; L.A. Arrests are Part of a Federal
Move Against Synthetic Narcotics." Los Angeles TimesOct 16 2015. ProQuest. Web. 23
Apr. 2016.

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Reflection Letter
In the process of writing this paper, I learned how to research a topic properly. The most
important thing to do when researching about a specific topic is to narrow down and focus on
one aspect of the topic because it is a lot easier to write about. The types of questions I asked
when researching about drug use and mental illness in Skid Row Los Angeles was important as
well, since there are different ways of wording a research question. This impacts the types of
information I found when doing research. In this essay I focused on drug use, mental illness and
how both are connected to poverty. Throughout the revision process I revised my thesis many
times to make it clear and understandable to the readers when reading this essay. I also used
different types of transition words to make the essay flow smoothly. In each paragraph I mainly
focused on a specific topic and I also related back to the thesis statement throughout my essay.
One of the most effective way to support my arguments is the sources that I used. By providing
the readers with quotes that support my arguments and makes the essay credible, it persuades the
readers to agree with my stance towards this social issue. The counterargument paragraph is also
very important. It proves the readers that the writer has thought about other peoples view
towards an issue and how they would react to it in different ways. For example I argued against
myself and talked about how other individuals might not agree with me, then I proved my point
and argument by using a strong evidence to disprove the side that I am arguing against. Overall
going through the process of writing a research paper was a good experience because it taught
me all the things that need to be done in order to write a well argumentative essay, such as
including strong evidence to support arguments, the importance of sentence structure, and
organization of the essay. Writing this essay helped me to learn the importance of following this
structure because in the end it provides the readers with a well written and thoughtful essay.