BAN 'ROSE IN A GLASS'

We recently heard from the Rev. Melvin Whitley that drug pipes are
being sold as a product called 'rose in a glass' in Durham community
stores, particularly in high-crime areas.

They are comprised of a fabric rose in a small glass tube with one
open end and one end enclosed by aluminum foil. The sale of the drug
pipe is legal because it is not considered drug paraphernalia until
the legitimate equipment is modified for drugs. There is a new drug
which may employ the drug pipe. The new drug mixture is known on the
street as "cheese" and is a so-called "starter form" of heroin. It is
believed that "cheese" is manufactured by mixing a small quantity of
heroin with a large quantity of crushed Tylenol-PM caplets.

Children as young as 13 are known to be experimenting with this drug.
The drug pipe issue not only affects Durham but neighboring
communities as well.

We, Earl and of Durham Together for Resilient Youth; Bill Patterson,
senior program manager for law enforcement, Pacific Institute for
Research and Evaluation, Washington, D.C.; Dale Pratt-Wilson, The
Coalition for Alcohol and Drug Free Teenagers of Chapel Hill and
Carrboro; and Elizabeth Vickery and George Gregory-Holt, Alcohol and
Drug Free Youth of Chatham County, join with Rev. Whitley in support
of the proposed city ordinance introduced to the Durham City Council.

The ordinance bans the sale of the drug stem. In situations of
noncompliance, the outlet's ability to sell alcohol will be
jeopardized. The writer is founder of Durham Together for Resilient
Youth (DurhamTRY).

Wanda Boone