As the opioid epidemic slows for others, there is a growing number of older Black men in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, who are dying of fentanyl-related causes.
A new report by The Baltimore Banner, The New York Times, and Stanford University’s Big Local News reveals that Milwaukee County is among dozens of U.S. counties where drugs are disproportionately claiming the lives of Black men born between 1951 and 1970. The data highlights a critical crisis: older Black men in Milwaukee accounted for 12.5% of all drug-related deaths between 2018 and 2022, despite representing only 2.3% of the population. Their drug mortality rate was 14.2 times higher than the national average and 5.5 times higher than that of other Milwaukee County residents.
After initially uncovering the growing crisis in Baltimore, the Times and the Banner quickly found similar issues in dozens of counties across the nation, the Wisconsin Watch reported. The Wisconsin Watch and Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service are among 10 news outlets that are looking into the research further.
Six other Wisconsin counties — Brown, Dane, Kenosha, Racine, Rock, and Waukesha — ranked among the top 408 nationwide for drug-related deaths from 2018 to 2022. However, Milwaukee was the only county in Wisconsin with such an alarming rate of Black men dying drug-related deaths.
The numbers have only continued to accelerate in the years
since the analysis ended, even as the opioid crisis declines nationwide. Medical examiner data reveals that drugs claimed the lives of 74 older Black men in Milwaukee County in 2024. This group accounted for 17.3% of all drug-related deaths in 2024, up from 16.2% in 2023, and 14.1% in 2022.Hamid Abd-Al-Jabbar’s tragic story highlights a trend among drug-related deaths in Milwaukee. Abd-Al-Jabbar was working as a peace activist after spending years in prison for shooting and killing a man during a 1988 drug house robbery.
He experienced a life of pain, trauma, and abuse he harbored internally without asking anyone for help. Drugs were an outlet for Abd-Al-Jabbar, cocaine in particular. But he died in February 2021, at age 51, after ingesting a drug mixture that included fentanyl and cocaine.
Abd-Al-Jabbar’s story mirrors that of many older Black men who have died from drug-related causes. The majority used cocaine laced with stronger fentanyl — the fast-acting drug that has fueled the national opioid crisis. Many also had a history of incarceration.
The disparities in Wisconsin are compounded by the state’s high incarceration rate for Black men, one of the highest in the nation, along with some of the country’s most significant gaps in education, public health, housing, and income. Limited options and persistent stigma prevent a generation of Black men from accessing drug treatment. While a network of organizations offering comprehensive care provides hope, these resources are vastly insufficient to meet the community’s needs.
“Black men experience higher rates of community violence, are often untreated for mental health issues, and experience greater levels of systemic racism than other groups,” said Lia Knox, a Milwaukee mental wellness consultant. “These all elevate their risk of incarceration, addiction, and also death.”
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