Families Unite at Times Square in Rally Against Fentanyl

NEW YORK CITY—They flocked to the city by the hundreds, families and friends from across the country with one thing in common: the fentanyl crisis.

Bagpipes played in Times Square in salute to lost loved ones during the fourth annual National Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day, held in New York City on Aug. 21.

Andrea Thomas, founder of Facing Fentanyl, which organized the event, told a crowd of parents and members of the news media and law enforcement that while the crisis has killed hundreds of thousands of victims, the recent drop in fentanyl deaths nationwide offers hope.

“This is not just an event—it is a united front,” she said in a statement. “When families, law enforcement, and national leaders stand together in Times Square, the whole country will see that we are not alone in this fight; together, we can end this crisis.” 

John Modlin, acting deputy commissioner for Customs and Border Protection, told the crowd that 6,000 pounds of fentanyl—enough to kill every person in the United States—had been seized by the agency since January.

“It is the cartels that are bringing this poison into the United States,” he said.

Designating Mexican cartels as terrorist organizations has given law enforcement more tools, Modlin said.

“Anyone who’s involved in this … with our partners, we will go after all of them,” he said.

Modlin noted that 10-year-olds, such as Nathaniel Mendoza, should never die from fentanyl poisoning. Mendoza’s parents, Marcy and Miguel Mendoza, who carried a poster of him in a baseball cap to the rally, struggled to push back tears.

His mother, Marcy Mendoza, told The Epoch Times that she never could have imagined losing her son to fentanyl.

“This day is important because it reminds the public that fentanyl is everywhere, and it can happen to anyone,” she said. “Our hope is that by speaking out, lives will be saved.”

Thomas, who lost her daughter to fentanyl, said: “Behind every number is a story, a story of love, of joy, of promise, cut short—a story like Nathaniel’s. 

“His life should have been about playing outside with friends.”

Frank Tarentino, who heads the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New York Division, agreed that the crisis is the work of criminal organizations in China and Mexico.

“A tidal wave of deaths and poisonings has rained down on the United States of America,” he said during the event. “This death and destruction has been primarily caused by Mexico and China.”

Tarentino acknowledged that from 2023 to 2024, the number of overdose deaths, which are mainly from fentanyl, dropped by about 25 percent—to 84,000 deaths from about 112,000 deaths—the largest decrease since the crisis began.

While statistics show that deaths from fentanyl have decreased, it remains the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of 18 and 44, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Tarentino attributed the drop to the work of law enforcement, health care workers, families, and policymakers throughout the country. But he said the fight is far from over.

“We now have momentum,” he said. “The [Drug Enforcement Administration] is laser-focused and committed to relentlessly pursuing those responsible for causing the most harm in our communities.”

Others at the event, which featured digital billboards of the faces of lost loved ones, said more can be done through awareness and prevention.

Naloxone, which can save someone from a fentanyl overdose, needs to be more widely distributed in places such as schools and airports.

Now available in grocery stores across the country, Naloxone is credited in part with saving lives.

More research is also needed, according to speakers. One speaker mentioned research from ARMR Sciences, which is looking at using immunotherapy to protect the body from synthetic drug threats.

The date for this year’s annual event was set after a bipartisan Senate resolution, sponsored by Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), was passed in July to recognize a national Fentanyl Prevention and Awareness Day.

The event ended with family members walking through the streets of New York City from Grand Central Station to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, where The Black Poster Project paid a visual tribute to victims of fentanyl.