GROUP CRACKING DOWN ON DRUGS

ESP Launches Program To Fight Substance Abuse

The latest effort to combat the "alarming'' rate of substance use and
abuse in Chatham-Kent was launched Thursday.

In the war on drugs, East Side Pride has developed a drug awareness
campaign dubbed C.R.A.C.K. - Citizens Raising Awareness in
Chatham-Kent.

"The purpose of this campaign is to educate the community about the
dangers and risks of drug use and its prevalence in our community,''
Marjorie Crew of East Side Pride and a newly-elected Chatham
councillor, told a media conference.

The goal, she said, is to make the community safer, healthier and more
vibrant.

"This campaign is acknowledged as one small step, but we feel an
important one,'' she said.

Crew said substance abuse is a contributing factor in many crimes
committed in Chatham-Kent.

Joe, not his real name, knows first-hand the toll drugs can have on a
person's life.

"I was suicidal, I wanted to kill myself," he said. "I knew I hit
bottom."

Joe said his decades-long drug addiction began when he sniffed nail
polish remover and glue at the age of 14.

His quest for a high quickly moved to illegal drugs including
marijuana.

"From that, it just escalated as time went on," the 49-year-old said,
adding he soon moved on to LSD, methamphetamine and heroine.

Joe said he doesn't know why he became a drug addict.

"I used to blame it on issues in my life which I didn't have because I
came from a good family," he said.

Joe said as a teen, he hung around with older kids.

"I thought they were cool," he said. "In order to be like them, I
acted like them."

Joe became a methamphetamine addict and to support his habit sold
drugs.

In the mid-1970s, the police caught up with Joe and he spent two years
less a day in jail for trafficking.

Shortly after his release, he was again arrested for trafficking. That
sentence took him away from a pregnant girlfriend and made him want to
change his ways.

"It was a little too late," he said, noting his girlfriend left him
when his daughter was born.

The loss of his family sent Joe back to drugs and alcohol, which he
became increasingly dependent on.

"I was so bad, my liver was starting to shut down," he
said.

Joe said his addiction got to the point where he lived on the streets
and couldn't keep anything in his stomach except booze.

"The doctor told me I had to stop drinking or I was going to die," he
said.

When Joe found himself strung out, cold and hungry with nowhere to go,
he did the only thing he could - asked for help.

"I fell to my knees crying because I had enough. It beat me," he
said.

Joe has now been sober for 10 years and he still fights his addictive
urges.

He said the C.R.A.C.K. campaign is worth it if one person avoids
trying drugs because of it.

"It's okay to push drugs out, but this is a prevention tool," Crew
said.

ESP has worked to eradicate drugs and drug-related criminal activity
from Chatham's east side. They have helped shut down more than 40 drug
houses in that part of town.

"We've seen what drugs can do to a community, we have suffered the
negative effects for many years," Crew said. "It's been a long haul in
getting our community back to where we feel safe walking on the streets."

Drugs are a known problem in the municipality, officials
said.

"The use of drugs is very high in Chatham-Kent compared to other parts
of Ontario,'' said Dave Cons, chairman of the Drug Education Alliance
of Chatham-Kent. "Ask any police officer and they will confirm what I
say.''

John Zarebski of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in
Chatham-Kent, said 45 per cent of Grade 11 and 12 students in
Chatham-Kent have indicated they've used cannabis in the past year.

"The alarming fact is that nearly 16 per cent of them are using it
daily,'' he said. "That's up from eight per cent in 1999.''

Zarebski said drug use in Chatham-Kent is actually higher than in
Toronto.

He said high-risk consumption of alcohol by adults is also a concern
in Chatham-Kent.

Chelle Cartier of the Drug Education Alliance said the Drug Awareness
Council of Chatham-Kent chose Drug Awareness Week, which starts
Monday, to launch the campaign.

Cartier said pamphlets will be distributed to various groups and
individuals in Chatham-Kent containing information related to the campaign.

The literature deals with such subjects as the indoor growing of
marijuana, protecting children from harmful drugs and methamphetamine
labs.

For more information on drugs visit www.eastsidepride.ca or
www.streetdrugs.org.