Morgan Statome

UWRT 1104
Ms. Douglas
03/30/17
Why is Teenage Drug Use on the Rise?

Drug use is a very controversial topic in society in this day and age. With modern

research and medicine, civilians are much more educated on the potential dangers of drug use

and abuse. However, without any pun intended, drugs use is a hazy topic amongst youth. Drug

use in minors is on the rise, as many adolescents are starting to experiment younger and younger.

Government policy on drugs is very controversial. Should marijuana be legal or not? Many

believe that because medical marijuana has been legal for so long, that adolescents have

developed a greater curiosity for it and mentally created less of a sense of danger surrounding it.

Others believe it isnt so much of an issue regarding policy changes, and instead blame it on the

lack of education provided to young adults. There are many programs in place that educate

minors on the dangers of drugs, however some believe the approach these programs take arent

effective. There are also advocates that neither policy or drug abuse prevention programs are to

blame for the rise in use. They claim that drug use rises and falls in a cycle over decades.

Concerning adolescent drug use, teenagers are going to experiment, it is almost inevitable. The

question that racks society is how can the community work together to combat use and abuse in

minors.

Peter Katel, author of, Do weaker drug laws encourage youths to try pot?, has a strong

voice in rising teenage drug use due to government policy. Teen marijuana consumption is up

21.4 percent... from 18.3 percent in 2006 according to the Monitor The Future survey in 2011

(Katel). According to the Drug- Free Communities Act of 1997, Increases in substance abuse
among youth are due in large part to an erosion of understanding by youth of the high risks

associated with substance abuse, and to the softening of peer norms against use (Public Law

105-20). Due to the legalization of medical marijuana and the outpour of campaigning for the

legalization of the plant for recreational use as well, many adolescents have matured through a

time of seeing marijuana use as no big deal, and almost a norm of society. The recent Obama

administration contributed to this view on why teen drug use is on the rise as well. Because

marijuana is still illegal under the federal law, any state that has legalized marijuana is

technically not protected under federal law and users could be prosecuted. However, President

Obama did not want to enforce the federal law of marijuana prohibition in states where it is legal.

Therefore, someone in Colorado can smoke marijuana without prosecution, while someone in

North Carolina is performing illegal behavior.

Varying laws state by state hinder the youth. In some states marijuana is not just legal

medically but recreationally as well. Nora Volkow, the director of the National Institute

on Drug Abuse stated, the concept of marijuana as medicine could have harmful effects, we're

seeing a decrease in the number of teenagers perceivingregular marijuana use as harmful

(Katel). Teens are never going to completely stop experimenting with drugs. The teenage mind

isnt fully developed and teenagers have a popular belief that they are invincible. However, due

to the increase in attitude change and regular marijuana use, could more adolescents be subjected

to experiment with much harder and worse drugs? Marijuana is a schedule one drug along with

Heroin, LSD, and MDMA. Cocaine happens to be a schedule two drug. During the late 1970s

cocaine use rose dramatically. Cocaine use was becoming increasingly popular, and movies and

TV shows began glamorizing the white powder, which was viewed by some as a sign that
someone was hip and successful (Masci). Over time more and more people died from Cocaine

overdoses and the drug was perceived to be dangerous as opposed to a vision of success.

Because Cocaine use was shown positively in the media in the late 70s early 80s, more

and more citizens began to try the drug. Today marijuana is cast in a humorous light in the

media. Instead of it being associated with danger as a gateway drug, it is seen light heartedly. It

is just a plant that people smoke and giggle and have a good time on. Stoners, which is urban

slang for a dependent marijuana user are depicted comically in television and movies. The

rappers, musicians, comics, actors, the people in the media we look up to have become much

more open about drug use, and it is glorified by the youth. The shift in government policy has

made a huge difference in the attitude towards marijuana similarly to that of cocaine in the

1980s. The only difference would be marijuana is a much safer drug in that overdose is not a

common associate of its use.

There are many different programs set in place in an attempt to stop teenage drug abuse.

These programs include, American Council for Drug Education, DARE America, Keep our Kids

off Drugs, and Drug Free America Foundation. David Masci has a strong voice on the

ineffectiveness of these programs on preventing our youth from exploring in the world of drug

use. Masci wrote, Is the Get Tough Approach Effective?, in regards to how these programs take

the wrong approach in confronting and educating younger children about the risks of drug use.

The program Masci mainly focuses his attention on is the DARE America program. DARE, or

Drug Abuse Resistance Education, is an abuse and use educational school special where police

come lecture to children starting in the fifth grade about the harms and risks of drug use (Masci).

The first problem he addresses is the fact that law enforcement is delivering the message. At age

10, when the program is first introduced to children, having police speak on the issue is effective.
An eleven-year-old child who was interviewed after her first experience participating in DARE

stated, I think [DARE] will help us know which kind of pressure is bad and help us to say no,

(Masci). However, as children grow and mature into young adults and teenagers, law

enforcement loses their credibility. Teenagers dont trust law enforcement, especially within the

recent years. A 17-year-old graduate of the program described the loss of credibility due to

police, lumping marijuana in with hard drugs and saying weed will either kill you or cause you

to end up on the streets (Masci). Students dont take the program seriously because they know

that the information is over exaggerated and wrong.

Instead, critics believe that teachers should be delivering the message to young adults.

DARE harps on zero tolerance for drug use, that you should never ever try drugs and if you do

you will end up in a life of misery. That is not the case and children who endure the program

grow up to see that what they were made to believe was a complete over exaggeration. Marsha

Rosenbaum, the director of the Drug Policy Alliance in San Francisco said in regards to sex

education, 'Abstinence is still the best choice, but if you do have sex, here's what you need to

remember.' That's what we need to do with drugs (Rosenbaum). Preaching zero tolerance is

setting unrealistic goals for curiosity driven teenage minds. Instead, according to drug experts,

children should be taught the dangers of drug use from a source that students look up to and trust

(Masci). They shouldnt be taught that drug use is the end all be all, while instead they should be

taught how to navigate in hopes of not falling for peer pressure.

Teen drug use is constantly fluctuating, no matter the policy in place. It can be attributed

that teen drug use is on the rise due to constant policy change and fluctuation, or it can be the

ineffectiveness of drug prevention programs. According to researches such as Marcia

Clemmitts, drug use is constantly rising and falling as time increases, no matter what policy or
how we as a society go about preventative measures. Clemmitts provides an example of how

Marijuana has gone through the described cycle by, reaching an epidemic peak around 1979,

when more than 35 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 25 reported using the drug,

then a quick drop-off in the 1980s, marijuana use has not risen even half as high again

(Clemmitts). Specific drug use popularity come and go through society, it cant be prevented.

As a drug loses popularity society tends to forget just how harmful the substance can be,

especially with young adults who want to experiment. The drug will then regain popularity in

society until community members see the negative effects first hand (Clemmitts).

The cycle begins by, large numbers of new, light users are recruiting even larger

numbers of light users, (Clemmitts). From there light users become dependent users or light

users get their fix and move on. However, the danger comes with the dependence. It is even

more likely for a teenager to fall victim to the cycle due to their lack of full growth and maturity.

Another reason drug use occurs in a cycle and is almost impossible to fully prevent, is because

drug use is a social phenomenon. John Caulkins and his colleagues related drug use to a disease.

Diseases are spread through social contact as is drug use, and most diseases end in recovery or

death, which also results from drug use (John Caulkins). Therefore, the environment teens

surround themselves in will have a large impact on whether or not they will be drug users. Drug

use will always be prevalent in society according to Marcia Clemmits, however the way we as a

society approach the problem of use and abuse is the deciding factor in how far addiction gets.

The rise of teen drug use cannot be defined by one set of causes. As proven, many

different aspects make up the culture of drug use and abuse, especially among adolescents.

Government policy now-a-days is all too confusing for young minds to fully grasp. If medical

marijuana is legal in other states and is used to treat disease, teens see that as an open excuse to
explore marijuana use. Marijuana is categorized as a gateway drug, therefore marijuana use

opens up a world of potential drugs for teenagers to later explore. The way drug prevention

programs attack the issue of drug abuse is intimidating and preaches a zero-tolerance out-look.

Students should never even think about doing drugs according to advocates of programs such as

DARE. Also, drug abuse is always stable in society, as some believe it occurs in a cycle. Each

drug goes through spirts of popularity for abuse, it just takes time for the community to

remember how bad the drug can affect members who abuse it. Each of these voices describe

reasons why teen drug use is on the rise, it is up to society to change the approach taken towards

lowering the rates. It all starts with the young impressionable minds of the youth. Instead of

trying to scare them straight, why not be honest and provide life tips on how to combat peer

pressure and to stay true to their personal sets of morals. It is time to stop glorifying drug use and

to recognize it as the potential disease it can lead to, a life time of abuse.
Works Cited:

Clemmitt, Marcia. "Combating Addiction." CQ Researcher 9 Feb. 2007: 121-44. Web. 1

Mar. 2017.

Jonathan P. Caulkins, Peter Reuter, Martin Y. Iguchi, James Chiesa. "Drug Policy

Research Center." How Goes the "War on Drugs"?: An Assessment of U.S. Drug Problems and

Policy (n.d.): 11. Web.

Katel, Peter. "Teen Drug Use." CQ Researcher 3 June 2011: 481-504. Web. 7 Feb.

2017.

Masci, David. "Preventing Teen Drug Use." CQ Researcher 15 Mar. 2002: 217-41.

Web. 7 Feb.

"Public Law 105 - 20 - Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997." Public Law 105 - 20 -

Drug-Free Communities Act of 1997. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2017.

Rosenbaum, Marsha. "USA Today." 'Just Say No' - or 'Just Know'? (2000): n. pag. Web.