NUMBERS DON’T ALWAYS TELL THE WHOLE STORY
The statistics are chilling, hard to ignore and alarming for any parent in any family in America.
According to an unprecedented survey by the federal government of drug use by adolescents ages 12 to 17 on any given day during 2006:
• nearly 1.2 million smoked cigarettes
• 631,000 drank alcohol
• 586,000 used marijuana
• 50,000 used inhalants
• 43,800 used hallucinogens, cocaine or heroin
"By breaking the data down and analyzing it on a day-to-day basis, we gain a fresh perspective on how deeply substance abuse pervades the lives of many young people and their families," said Dr. Terry Cline of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
Cline is on the mark; the study proves that alcohol and other drug abuse is everyone’s problem. No family, no community is immune. And it isn’t just the federal government’s problem to solve. It’s an issue that churches, neighborhood associations and civic groups are obligated to address.
It is also an issue that deserves the kind of conversation that I was part of a few weeks ago when I spoke at a special school assembly for 1,200 students at Ball High School in Galveston, Texas.
I was amazed at the depth and breadth of the questions and comments from students who don’t use these substances, who seek healthy alternatives to peer pressure or what is too often construed as the “norm” among their friends.
“I got a buddy who sniffs stuff like glue and paint, he thinks it ain’t hurting him but I know it is,” said Francisco, a junior. “I’m worried for him, but I still want to be his friend. How do I say it?”
I told Francisco that the best friends in the world are those who can tell the truth to each other, without fear. “You might be surprised by his response if you let him know that you’re worried and want to help him get help. Even if he pushes you away now he may be back later when he’s hurting more or in trouble.”
Lakeisha is also in the 11th grade. She stood at the microphone in front of her classmates and talked about her older brother who dropped out of the same school a few years ago. “He sells dope on the corner on our street and he’s been shot, in jail, and still getting high all the time. He says everyone did it when he was here. I don’t believe him.”
I asked Lakeisha what she does believe. “Do your friends and classmates all do drugs?” A wave of hoots and hollers swept the auditorium. She hesitated for a moment. But she didn’t shirk from the microphone.
“My friends aren’t like that,” she said. “The kids doing drugs want us to believe everyone’s doing it. It’s like we’re the ones who are hiding something because we don’t get high, they aren’t afraid to hide anything even though they are smoking and drinking.”
I told Lakeisha that oftentimes it’s the people using those substances that garner the most attention, mainly because they want their peers to see their behavior as a badge of rebellion or puffed-up risk taking. “In fact, I urge you and your friends to stand up and be an example that not everyone is getting high. You will find that most people are like you, not like them. Don’t be invisible.”
It’s hard to ignore the numbers in the recent government survey. We do have a serious on-going problem with adolescent drug abuse in our families, in neighborhoods and at school. But for every statistic underscoring the problem, there are more uncounted examples of the solution. It is time we start counting them too.
