'SHOOTING UP'

Documentary Portrays a Heroin Addict's Life on the Street

At 24 years old, Liza has a husband, two children and a relentless heroin
addiction. She has sores on her face and track marks on her arms, but she
says she is getting used to life on the streets. Eric Lifton found Liza
working the streets while filming his documentary, "Addicted to Love
(Shooting up: Life on the Streets)."

His inspiration for the film began with his work at Coolidge House, a
half-way house on Huntington Avenue. Lifton described the house's zero
tolerance policy for drugs and expressed his frustration at frequently
having to send violators back to prison.

All residents are subject to random drug testing and Lifton said that every
month someone would fail and be sent back.

"I just couldn't believe that people would ruin their lives again and
jeopardize seeing their kids and family just to get high once," Lifton said.

In 1999 when Lifton left the house, he decided to make a documentary about
heroin addiction to investigate what compelled so many people to sacrifice
their freedom. When he met Liza, he realized that she would be the perfect
subject.

Liza's mother has custody of her children and when Lifton asks where they
are, she responds simply, "they're at home with their family where they
belong."

In order to support her habit Liza said she often "burns tricks" by running
with the money rather than following through with prostitution, a habit
that puts her at high risk for getting beat or stabbed according to Kathy,
a friend and fellow addict.

"I wasn't always a street girl. I was a wife and a mother," Liza said.

Lifton said he is in favor of the decriminalization of drugs and does not
believe prison is the answer to the drug problem. He said that he has
spoken with people who have quit using heroin up to 50 times, and he
believes that jail "doesn't treat addiction."

In describing what he termed "the revolving door," Lifton criticized the
current drug policy. He said the illegality of drugs results in people
living on the streets and hustling through more illegal activities such as
stealing and prostitution in order to feed their addictions.

Kathy, who has been shooting heroin for five years, confessed to turning 10
tricks in half a day to support her more than 10 bag a day habit. She told
Lifton she usually will not go to sleep until she has either heroin or
money because she "doesn't like to wake up feeling sick."

"We pay a very high price for very low living," Kathy said.

Both Liza and Kathy have faced several court charges and Liza is currently
in jail for violating her parole. After witnessing other recurring
offenders first hand from his experience at Coolidge House, Lifton said
that the money spent on drug offenders in prison is out of control.

In a hearing on the resurgence of heroin use in 1999, the Committee on the
Judiciary of the U.S. Senate estimated that it costs about $25,000 to
$30,000 to keep one drug offender in prison for one year. Of the 1.8
million people in prison at the time, 80 percent were there for
drug-related crimes.

Lifton says this comes at the expense of several closed fire departments
and teacher layoffs.

"It is total insanity," Lifton concluded.

According to Assistant Director of Programs Francesca Carmignani, the drug
policy at Coolidge House has changed since Lifton's time. In December the
zero tolerance policy ended due to prison "overcrowding issues."

Carmignani said that now prisoners will get disciplinary actions that
depend on the severity of their violations but will not automatically be
sent back to prison.

To find out more or to purchase Lifton's video, visit http://ishouldquit.com.