Street artist Joe Caslin, known for his large-scale black and white drawings, has released ‘The Volunteers’, a powerful new piece of public art in Front Square of Trinity College. The installation and forthcoming film reflect on Ireland’s century of progress and asks us what battles we must fight in the present. It is the first of a three-part about modern volunteerism and some of Ireland’s most pressing issues: drug addiction, mental health, and direct provision. Rachael Keogh now illustrated on the walls of Trinity College Dublin writes from her perspective on drug addiction…
Photo credit: Gavin Leane
If I am to be brutally honest about what it was that drove me to be so public about my addiction in one word I would have to say PRIDE. It was pride for myself. It meant me saying ‘no’ to myself and to the life I had been living and to once and for all stand up to and for myself no matter what people thought of me.
By chance of my mother sending a picture of me to the Irish Independent my story became well known and made international headlines. I knew at the time and throughout that I had been given a platform. A chance to speak out and to voice my own truth and to highlight the lack of services for drug users. The response I got from the public was phenomenal.
Initially my plight wasn’t so altruistic. I was too fragile to think of anyone but myself and my attitude at the time was that no one really cared either way. But then amazing things happened. I began to receive emails and letters from people from all over the world. I made connections with families of drug users, drug users and even people who knew nothing about the subject of addiction. It was these acts of kindness from others that really restored my faith in humanity at the time.
People said that in telling my story that I was helping them. But really they were helping me. Then things quietened down and my real recovery began. It genuinely hasn’t been easy and the past eleven years has only deepened my belief that addiction is in fact a real illness. One that actually becomes very apparent once the drugs have been removed, and really proves to me that it’s not about asking the question of “what is wrong with addiction”?, but instead asking “what is right with it”? Because whatever this illness is, it is powerful enough for people to risk losing everything that they have because drugs are providing for them/us something that society can’t.
I believe that if people could really understand this piece of addiction then it wouldn’t so much be an issue of choice, morals or punishment. Instead it would be a very clear idea that for whatever reason, be it biological, environmental, or hereditary we are dealing with something much bigger than we are actually willing to admit.
I believe the time for talking about addiction has long since passed and I sometimes want to shout “Can we please just do something about it now”. That is why I am so grateful to have been asked to get involved with Joe Caslin’s project THE VOLUNTEERS. Joe is an incredible human being with an old soul. He draws with his heart and uses his art to connect with people and to try and challenge their attitudes on subjects which are quite controversial.
Joe’s vision of THE VOLUNTEERS draws on the qualities of the volunteers of 1916 and is a reminder to us all of the importance of contributing towards one another. The importance of looking beyond the material world and reclaiming what we value the most. Our lives, our loved ones, our friends. Each other. No matter what the difference. Without prejudice or judgement. We are all the same!
Joe conveys this message beautifully in his drawing of myself with Lynn Ruane and Fiona O’ Reilly who were wonderful people to work with and who are incredibly passionate about changing our attitudes on how we view addiction and treat the drug user. I know only too well that PRIDE alone would never have been enough for me to do okay. I was fortunate to have a family and people close to me who knew that I wasn’t choosing to live my life as I was and who stood by me until I got well.
I feel that if we are to make a difference in how we deal with the problem of addiction, the first thing that we need to change is our attitudes. We need to stop criminalising and ostracising the drug users and see it for what it really is. I doubt that I would still be here today if people had not believed and encouraged me. I have a wonderful son and partner and I am slowly learning to be the person that I probably always should have been. These days happiness is in peeling the potatoes. It is in the small things, the monotony of everyday life. Giving someone else a dig out or being dug out myself. Doing my studies and just working hard at what I do and trying to enjoy my life.
Help Information
- Ana Liffey Drug Project – Freephone 1800 78 68 28 – The Ana Liffey Drug Project is a national addiction service with a ‘Low Threshold – Harm Reduction’ ethos.
- Drugs.ie – Drug and alcohol information and support
- CityWide Drugs Crisis Campaign is a national network of community activists and community organisations that are involved in responding to Ireland’s drugs crisis.
You can read Lynn Ruane’s article here, another volunteer as part of Joe Caslin’s Trinity College Dublin installation THE VOLUNTEERS.
Check out Joe Caslin’s article on how THE VOLUNTEERS came about.
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