DRUGS CONTINUE TO DESTROY LIVES

The First Step To Fixing A Problem Is To Recognize There Is One.

Those involved in the battle against drug abuse at St. Mary's First
Nation deserve applause following recent efforts there to give the
problem a public face.

Provincial Court Judge Graydon Nicholas, a respected member of the
judiciary and a native Canadian, spoke on the issue last week at
Chief Harold Sappier Memorial Elementary School during a day-long
event set to coincide with the United Nations International Day Against Drugs.

Nicholas said drug use is a threat to every community, but is
particularly true on reserves.

"Within First Nations communities the problem is magnified because we
tend to live isolated lives and don't see what is going on in the
greater communities," he said.

"People need to know the effect of drugs in both the greater
communities and globally."

According to the United Nations, tobacco kills five million people a
year, alcohol about 2.5 million; and illicit drugs around 200,000
persons a year worldwide.

Those are shocking statistics.

Nicholas, a provincial court judge since 1991, said he regularly sees
the effects of drugs in his courtroom as users often cross the line
to find ways and means to support their habits.

St. Mary's First Nation worked in collaboration with the Foundation
for a Drug Free World, in organizing the first such event put on by a
Canadian reserve.

Organizer Jessica Paul said the key to battling the problem on
reserves is to get more natives involved and to take a stand against drugs.

Information packages provided by the foundation were distributed to
all 250 homes on the St. Mary's First Nation prior to the forum
Thursday. Paul said it's important to give community members the
facts about drugs.

"These packages we distributed have the most accurate and truthful
information I have seen and talk about a lot of the things that
people just don't talk about.

"And it's important to get that information out there," Paul said.

Education is the key.

People need to be reminded of the dangers that go hand-in-hand with
illegal drugs and the potential impacts they can have on families,
specifically, and communities in general.

Drugs sometimes kill.

But they're also responsible for destroying millions of lives each year.