LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 24, 2021) It s a question that is critical to families and communities across the Commonwealth how do we tackle the opioid epidemic?
The 2021 “Kreminar” will feature virtual seminars about the history and contemporary status of opiates, opioids and addiction.
“The Cooperative for the Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) is pleased to co-sponsor these events because it is important to understand that drug use and opioid addiction have both a global and a local history,” Karen Petrone, director of CHSS, said. “Understanding this history helps scholars and practitioners to imagine future solutions to social and health problems.”
“The opioid crisis is a pressing local concern, and substance use is one of our university s research priorities,” Claire Clark, associate professor of behavioral science in the College of Medicine, added. “The ‘Kreminar’ provides an opportunity for us to think about this issue globally, as well as locally and to
Lucas Richert is the George Urdang Chair in the History of Pharmacy at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and historical director for the American Institute of the History of Pharmacy. His work explores prescription and illicit drugs, the American counterculture, and the influence of various power structures within and beyond psychiatry.
As a scholar of the pharmaceutical industry, Richert encountered a trove of historical documents that talked about the self-described radicals in mental health from the 1970s. “They cared about relevant issues, things that we talk about right now: racism, the environment, militarism, and political division. It really grabbed hold of me when I got these documents, they were a catalyst.” This project turned into his third book,