The death of rap legend and Pittsburgh native Mac Miller on Sept. 7 brought grief-stricken listeners from all over the world onto social media almost immediately, mourning the loss of yet another life. Miller, found dead of an apparent overdose, is just one more celebrity gone too soon, taken by the same drugs that have been plaguing our country, and specifically our community, for years. Miller’s death came not long after popstar Demi Lovato’s overdose and hospitalization on July 24 of this year.

Of course these incidents are tragic. Both Miller and Lovato have openly struggled with substance abuse and while Miller lost his battle, Lovato continues to receive support from her family, fans and strangers on the internet from the comfort of her rehabilitation center.

Yes, these incidents are tragic, but they happen every day. All over. And to people who may not have support or funds to check into rehab. It happens to those whose lives essentially do not matter to us. In 2017, West Virginia’s Health Statistic Center reported a record number of fatal overdoses in the state; Cabell County led the pack with 183 deaths. That’s 183 people gone in an instant, 183 souls now forgotten. There are no community-wide memorials for these people, no trending hashtags or commemorative articles. Instead, their names live on in degrading Facebook updates, “At least there’s one less drug addict on our streets!”

This may be true, but there’s also one less mother, brother, cousin or friend. Watching Miller’s life being memorialized and seeing hollow words of encouragement to others struggling with addiction plastering my timeline brings conflicting emotions but also hope for the future.

When will we, as a community, begin to treat addiction as a disease instead of kicking an addict while they are down? When will we begin seeing all addicts, not just those whose names appear in tabloids or as click-bait, as people who deserve to live past the age of 26?

While Miller’s untimely death is tragic, it allows us to look in the mirror as a society and hopefully realize that addicts deserve a life, too.