WEAR RED!

It's Time To Stand Against Drugs

This week in October each year, not only locally, but across the state and
nation, is Red Ribbon Week. We wish there were no need for the week, but
the sad reality is that every effort must be made to encourage youth to
resist pressure from their friends and peers to use drugs.

The theme for this year's observance is "Get Real! Real Drug Free," and
unquestionably it is a message every child, every youth, every adult, needs
to take to heart. Unfortunately, despite continued efforts cautioning
against the use of drugs, some still use them. Indeed, seldom a week passes
without several arrests being made locally for drug use. Little wonder
Clark County grand juries have repeatedly decried the problem of drug abuse
here in recent years.

Red Ribbon Week was established by Congress in 1988 in the aftermath of the
1985 murder of a federal drug enforcement agent and the strong public
response which saw parents across the nation wearing red ribbons to raise
public awareness of the death and destruction caused by drugs. Today the
wearing of red ribbons signifies intolerance for drugs, whether they are in
our schools, the workplace or the community in general.

Many have heeded the message, but as long as one child, one youth, thinks
it is "cool" to use drugs, efforts such as Red Ribbon Week must continue,
because children and young people are our hope for tomorrow, and the future
can be bright only as long as they remain drug free. Children and youth
need to understand that drugs not only can cause irreparable harm to their
body, but can result of them being expelled from school if they are caught
using them. For some that might mean never graduating. For others it could
mean a record so tarnished they are denied college admission, and
consequently never realize their full employment potential.

Thank goodness for Red Ribbon Week. Some might be inclined to dismiss the
impact of pinning a red ribbon on, but studies have shown that only seven
percent of students who participate in Red Ribbon Week are later considered
at high risk of using drugs. However, for non-participants, the rate is 18
percent. While only 18 percent of Red Ribbon Week participants later fall
into the moderate risk category, 27 percent of non-participants end up
there. Seventy-five percent of participants fall into the low-risk group,
while only 55 percent of non-participants fall into that category.

Area schools have scheduled a variety of programs and activities this week
to focus student attention on the need for a healthy, drug-free lifestyle.

In keeping with the week's emphasis, many students, teachers and others in
the community will be wearing red ribbons on their clothing or displaying
them elsewhere as a reminder to all of us to recommit ourselves to working
to combat drug abuse.

That has to start in the home, with parents instilling in their children a
strong sense of values and providing them with the encouragement and moral
support they need to resist the temptations that confront them. Educators,
health officials, clergy and the public also need to get involved, speaking
out at every opportunity about the harmful effects of drug and alcohol
abuse and the fact that it will not be condoned or tolerated. With the
future of our children - and of society at stake - we can do no less.