Rocky Steps, Longwood Gardens, and Peddler’s Village. Places like these can get tarnished by the image of Kensington Avenue, Philadelphia, a location that became infamous among the sea of famous sights. From people fighting their drug addictions to truly tragic stories, you shouldn’t write off the avenue as some skid row of Philadelphia.
Kensington Avenue runs 3 miles through what is now a dangerous and crime-ridden neighborhood. Every corner houses a story about a broken person. The streets of Philadelphia, Kensington Avenue, don’t hold back on the scary factor. If there is a problem plaguing modern society, chances are you will find the living form of it in the 3-mile-long stretch.
Photos are the best way to experience the ugly, rugged, and dirty side of Kensington Avenue, Philadelphia. Between 2008 and 2014, the photographer Jeffrey Stockbridge took a series of intimate portraits of people he later put in a book, capturing a side of Philadelphia that is rarely seen or talked about.
In the Kensington Blues project, the residents shared their stories, talking about drugs, prostitution, and other struggles of their lives. Without further ado, let’s look at the photos, discover the difficult hand some people have been dealt, and learn more about the infamous neighborhood in Philly.
More info: kensingtonblues.com
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#1 Al
Al lives in a house off Kensington Avenue without electricity or running water. He sometimes rents his upstairs bedroom to prostitutes in need of a private location for engaging in sex and drug use.
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117points
#2 Sarah
"I'm 55 years old, I have a master's degree in psychology, but after my husband, mother and father, died in a car accident two years ago, I lost my whole family, my career, one, my health, all in one go."
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109points
#3 The Twins Tic Tac And Tootsie
"We out here so we can get money so we has somewhere to rest our heads. We look out for each other. If I can't get money, she gets it, and whatever money we get we share...We need quick money cause we need somewhere to sleep every day. I mean, trust me, we don't want to be out here doing this. This is the last thing I want to do. But I do what I have to do to take care of my sister. Cause she’s all I got and I’m all she's got."
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104points
#4 Pat And Rachel
They still have children, whom they gave away to a special agency for their protection. "We gave the kids away, people say it's a selfish act, but I think it's the best I could do for their better future," Rachel said.
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89points
What is Kensington Avenue, Philadelphia, Known for?
Kensington Avenue in Philadelphia has more than one problem. The problems are more dangerous due to their long-lasting nature and both long and short-term side effects. According to the 2019 City of Philadelphia report, Upper Kensington ranks dead last in health factors. In some cases, health-related metrics in this area are significantly higher than the average numbers for Philadelphia as a whole. Specifically, per 10,000 residents:
- 204.7 violent crimes are committed (average for Philadelphia — 95.7).
- 203.1 lives are lost from injuries (average for Philadelphia — 68.6).
- 8.3 homicides are committed (average for Philadelphia — 1.7).
Upper Kensington also has higher levels of unemployment (27%) and drug overdose deaths (152.1 per 100,000 people, where the city’s average is 44.8).
#5 Carroll
She told that she often sleeps on the streets during the day to protect herself at night.
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87points
#8 Tanya
She is 25 years old, working in the sex industry since she was 18.
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55points
#9 Carol
A local resident, at the time she was 41. Carol told the photographer that she had been doing heroin for 21 years and it became "the love of her life".
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52points
#10 Mary
"I don't just do this for drugs. I do this because I wanna eat, because I like to buy clothes, because I like the small things, you know. I did have a normal life once but...I really believe, like if my, if my family say like, "Mary come, come home stay with us" like, if I could I would..."
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50points
#11 Sarah And Dennis
The veins in Sarah's arms were no good for injection, so she asked Dennis for the drug to be injected to her neck.
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48points
#14 Kensington And Somerset
Maria: "I’ve been here almost 8 years and I see a lot of bad stuff going around. They say when you go between it, you gonna do it too." Robert: "You don’t need no cable, you don’t have to watch TV. You just gotta sit out here. You see drama, you see soap opera, you see violence and crime." Maria: "You even see sex."
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43points
Where is Philadelphia Skid Row?
Want to look at the streets of Philadelphia Kensington Avenue firsthand? Well, you can find the area most often referred to as Philadelphia’s modern-day skid row in northern Philly. Once a bustling center of workers, the area is riddled with vices today.
#15 Matt Neal
He struggled with drug addiction after being released from prison. Sepsis developed in his left leg. Because of his addiction, he failed to meet the treatment regimen and eventually the doctors had to amputate part of the leg.
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42points
