I guess you could say that Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. became an environmentalist thanks to heroin.
From Michigan Live, September 12, 2008:
Robert Kennedy Jr., an environmental activist and attorney who is credited with leading the fight to protect New York City's water supply, will speak at 7 p.m. Oct. 7 at the Fremont Area Community Foundation Speaker Series.
Kennedy, 54, serves as senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, chief prosecuting attorney for the Hudson Riverkeeper and president of the Waterkeeper Alliance. In addition, he is a clinical professor and supervising attorney at Pace University School of Law's Environmental Litigation. Kennedy also is co-host of "Ring of Fire" broadcast on Air America Radio.
...Early in his career, the junior Kennedy served as assistant district attorney of New York City.
But it is as an environmental activist that he has garnered his most success. The New York City watershed agreement, which he negotiated on behalf of environmentalists and the city's watershed consumers, is regarded as an international model.
Kennedy became involved with the Riverkeeper organization in 1984 to fulfill the 1,500 hours of community service to which he was sentenced followed an arrest the year before at the Rapid City, S.D., airport for possession of heroin. He was sentenced to two years probation, treatment by joining Narcotics Anonymous and community service.
After he completed the 1,500 hours, the Riverkeeper group hired him as its chief prosecuting attorney. Kennedy worked with the group to sue alleged polluters of the Hudson River. He has since founded the Waterkeeper Alliance, an international advocacy organization and umbrella group for more than 130 local Waterkeeper programs that defend local waterways from polluters.
It's difficult to say that heroin and illicit drug use was a positive in Kennedy's life, opening the door to what would become his calling.
Drug use was responsible for the death of Kennedy's younger brother, David.
Though like his older brother Bobby Jr., David did use heroin, he died of "'multiple ingestion' of three drugs" - Cocaine, Demerol and Mellaril.
Drug abuse is a killer.
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