BRAZILIANS SEEK DRUG-PREVENTION TIPS

Group Attends Teen Program

Although the United States has been waging a war on drugs for years, the
people of Brazil are only recently taking up arms.

Increased crime and horror stories like that of a San Paulo principal who
was shot in front of her school for standing up to neighborhood drug
dealers have galvanized a group of Brazilian psychologists and police
officers in New Orleans this week to seek tips on drug prevention.

The group is observing the Teen Institute, a 3½-day leadership camp held at
Jackson Barracks that encourages high school students to create drug-free
strategies for their schools. The program for teen-agers from Orleans,
Jefferson, St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes includes team-building
activities and games, speakers and workshops on suicide and violence
prevention, eating disorders, teen pregnancy and cultural diversity.

The program is unique because it's run by other teen-agers who hope to
spread the drug-free message to their peers. Many of the Brazilian visitors
cite this as the program's greatest strength and hope to re-create the
students' enthusiasm in their home country.

"They have fun here," psychologist Ana Westphal said through a translator.
"You can tell the kids have fun. They're teaching them prevention without
overloading them with a lot of information."

Gung-ho over all they've seen, members of the group said they are going to
take the Teen Institute concept back to Brazil.

While they say Brazil's drug problem may not be as intense as the one the
United States, it is growing quickly because of the country's large middle
class, thriving club scene and proximity to drug-producing nations. Claudio
Jose de Barros, a colonel with the Santa Catarina Military Police, said 80
percent of crime in Brazil is connected to drugs or alcohol. Twenty percent
of those crimes are committed by children. But because the country doesn't
have the money to mount an all-out war on drugs, prevention is seen as the
cheapest and most effective method.

All prevention programs in Brazil are government-sponsored, with no
grass-roots efforts such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving. San Paulo, a
city of 18 million, does have the DARE program, as well as Programa
Independencia, in which adults educate children about the dangers of drugs.

But the group attending the Teen Institute said it wants to get students
involved.

The trip was organized by the American Embassy in Brazil after John King,
executive director of the Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, spoke about
the Teen Institute there last year.

"I thought that it was intriguing," said Michael Greenwald, an information
officer at the embassy. "We think that it is in the interest of the U.S.
government that fewer people around the world use drugs. Having it
(prevention) done by the youngest is the most effective."

On Tuesday, Kathy Roten headed up an adult workshop for the Brazilians and
several teachers from the New Orleans area on parent-community networking.
During the session, both groups marveled at the similarities and the
differences of drug and alcohol use in the two countries.

"Schools usually have a little bar next door, and they don't really card,"
Westphal said. "For 25 cents, they can get a shot of cane liquor --
Brazilian rum."

New Orleans teachers said it isn't that much different here, noting that
daiquiri shops dot numerous street corners and that many parents buy
alcohol for their underage children.

"The problem is a universal problem. It's not about race, culture . . . or
geography," Roten said.