EFSDP Looking for an Alternative to D.A.R.E.
Dear friends,
After decades of implementation, the D.A.R.E. program continues to be as
controversial as ever. People seem to either love it or hate it and if
they are indifferent they will certainly not take the time to write a
letter about it. Perhaps DAREâ??s single biggest flaw is that it arose
from a prohibitionist mentality having been conceived by a law
enforcement officer. Perhaps D.A.R.E.'s biggest strength is the sheer
weight and precedence of many decades of drug prohibition and the
insistence of the drug warriors to â??stay the courseâ??.
Educators for Sensible Drug Policy
Educators For Sensible Drug Policy (EFSDP) believe teachers are
well qualified to teach many subjects, including drug education. We feel
professional educators should be educating our children, period. You
donâ??t call your teacher when there is a robbery in progress so why
should we have police officers who are highly trained in police work,
assume the role of educators? The subject matter of drug education
touches on many disciplines, including Biology, Chemistry, Psychology,
Anthropology, P.E., Social Studies and the list goes on. Comprehensive
curriculum could be developed using a multidisciplinary approach that
integrates subjects with classes that students are already taking.
Compared to the depth and complexity of such a curriculum, which would
mirror and draw from human history and experience, the D.A.R.E. program
is one dimensional. Police officers are sworn to uphold the law and
therefore tend to view the use of any illegal drug as abuse. Studies of
the effectiveness of D.A.R.E. have suggested little or no effect on
actual statistics of drug use among the programs participants. There is
a significant monetary cost for school districts to implement the
program and during this time of cutbacks and tight budgets perhaps these
funds could be better used to develop curriculum suited to such a
complex issue.
It is quite true that the police are here to protect the public and keep
the peace. All citizens need to be respectful of the police, and the job
they do. Albert Einstein observed of alcohol prohibition during the
1920â??s as 'nothing contributes as much to lawlessness and disrespect for
the police as the government passing laws which are unenforceable'. This
statement is as true of illicit drugs now as it was in the roaring 20â??s
with alcohol.
We all need to ask the question: How does the D.A.R.E. program discuss
medical marijuana? We know that research is now proving that cannabis
has immense therapeutic potential. It is clear that not all use is abuse.
The good news is that many people are thinking about and coming up with
meaningful approaches to drug education. Our members are familiar with
and endorse the Drug Policy Alliance booklets, 'Safetylst' and 'Beyond
Zero Tolerance'
Drug Policy Alliance. Educators who care about the
well being of their students in drug education programs want the best
health based approaches for their students. Parents would like their
children to have up-to-date, accurate, scientific and factual knowledge
about drug education and this needs to come from professional educators
and health care professionals not from D.A.R.E. law enforcement officers.
Sincerely,
Judith Renaud M.A.
Executive Director
Educators for Sensible Drug Policy
Paul Renaud
Communications Director
Educators for Sensible Drug Policy
Educators For Sensible Drug Policy (EFSDP)
(604) 886-8665
160 9th Street
Gibsons, B.C.
VON-1V3
