YOUNG PEOPLE WANT DRUG EDUCATION THAT WORKS

Colin Mangham's response to a call for ending drug prohibition (
Letters, March 29) is troubling. Drug abuse is bad, but Mangham's
argument is worse.

He points to " legalizers" as the sole reason that prohibition
policies have failed to deter youth drug use. Wrong. Youth drug use
has risen since the criminal prohibition of substances began because
the " prohibitors" have tried to shame and scare young people, instead
of providing honest, health-based information on drugs.

As an example, Mangham perpetuates the ridiculous idea that we can
somehow talk about drugs without using the definition of the word.
Aspirin is a drug; so are alcohol, caffeine, marijuana, codeine. Young
people disregard the false information they receive from fear-based
education programs; this creates an information vacuum, making them
vulnerable to incorrect information.

Honest education, given in respectful settings, has led to fewer young
people using drugs and young people delaying their first use until
they are older. Mangham seems to prefer that young Canadians remain
scared, uneducated and prone to the black market.

We don't want a war, we just want drug education that
works.

Caleb Chepesiuk Director, Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy,
Ottawa