CASA 2009 TEEN SURVEY REVEALS:
TEENS LIKELIER TO GET DRUNK, USE MARIJUANA, SMOKE CIGARETTES IF THEY SEE PARENT DRUNK
NEARLY NINE MILLION 12- TO 17-YEAR OLDS CAN GET PRESCRIPTION DRUGS TO ABUSE IN A DAY, NEARLY FIVE MILLION IN AN HOUR
WASHINGTON, D.C., August 26, 2009 – Compared to teens who have not seen their parent(s) drunk, those who have are more than twice as likely to get drunk in a typical month, and three times likelier to use marijuana and smoke cigarettes, according to the National Survey of American Attitudes on Substance Abuse XIV: Teens and Parents, the 14th annual back-to-school survey conducted by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University.
The CASA survey found that 51 percent of 17-year olds have seen one or both of their parents drunk and 34 percent of 12- to 17-year olds have seen one or both of their parents drunk.
Teen drinking behavior is strongly associated with how teens believe their fathers feel about their drinking. Compared to teens who believe their father is against their drinking, teens who believe their father is okay with their drinking are two and a half times likelier to get drunk in a typical month.
The survey found that five percent of 12- to 15-year old girls and nine percent of 12- to 15-year old boys say their fathers are okay with their drinking. Thirteen percent of 16- and 17-year old girls and 20 percent of 16- and 17-year old boys say their fathers are okay with their drinking.
“Some Moms’ and Dads’ behavior and attitudes make them parent enablers—parents who send their 12- to 17-year olds a message that it’s okay to smoke, drink, get drunk and use illegal drugs like marijuana,” said Joseph A. Califano, Jr., CASA’s chairman and founder and former U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare. “Teens’ behavior is strongly associated with their parents’ behavior and expectations, so parents who expect their children to drink and use drugs will have children who drink and use drugs.”
Compared to teens who have never tried alcohol, teens who get drunk monthly are:
• 18 times likelier to have tried marijuana;• Four times likelier to be able to get marijuana in an hour;
• Almost four times likelier to know someone their age who abuses prescription drugs;
• More than three times likelier to have friends who use marijuana; and
• More than twice as likely to know someone their age who uses meth, ecstasy, or other drugs such as cocaine, heroin or LSD.
Compared to teens who have never tried alcohol, those who get drunk at least once a month are:
• Twice as likely to know a girl who was forced to do something sexual she didn’t want to do; and
• Nearly four times likelier to know a guy who uses drugs or alcohol to hook up.
“The message for parents is loud and clear. If your teen is drinking, the odds are your teen is getting drunk. And teens who get drunk are much likelier to try marijuana and hang out with friends who are abusing prescription drugs and illegal drugs like cocaine and heroin,” said Elizabeth Planet, CASA’s Vice President and Director of Special Projects. “Parents who think their kids are just having an occasional drink each month need to wake up and smell the beer and pot.”
Teens whose parents believe the decision to use marijuana is not a big deal are almost twice as likely to use the drug, compared to teens whose parents say this decision is a big deal.
Most teens who smoke cigarettes (56 percent) say the decision to use marijuana is not a big deal.
“Parents are the key to raising drug-free kids and they have the power to do it if they send their children the clear message to choose not to use and demand that the schools their children attend be drug free,” noted Califano whose book How to Raise a Drug Free Kid: The Straight Dope for Parents, was published this month by Simon & Schuster’s Touchstone/Fireside Division.
For more information visit www.casacolumbia.org.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
Alcohol-Free Weekend
The 6th annual Alcohol-Free Weekend was a big success! Despite threatening clouds, approximately 150-175 people came out to the kickoff event on the common. Thank you for your continued support!
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Celebrate Healthy Teens!
Please join us in celebrating the 6th Annual ALCOHOL-FREE WEEKEND on May 1 through 3 by pledging to stay alcohol free for one weekend, just before prom and graduation.
The mission of this weekend is to demonstrate to our young people that adults do not always choose to drink alcohol each weekend and that we can have fun without alcohol! It also reminds parents each spring to talk to their teens about the risks of underage drinking.
The Burlington Drug & Alcohol Task Force is holding a kickoff celebration on the Burlington Common on Friday May 1, 5-7pm. Free pizza and sodas will be served while families enjoy music performed by Burlington youth!
Burlington has taken a stand to teach young people to make healthy choices. Each spring, communities brace for the inevitible loss of a young life. Burlington takes this pro-active stand to reduce the risk of tragedy.
The Burlington Drug & Alcohol Task Force is holding a kickoff celebration on the Burlington Common on Friday May 1, 5-7pm. Free pizza and sodas will be served while families enjoy music performed by Burlington youth!
Burlington has taken a stand to teach young people to make healthy choices. Each spring, communities brace for the inevitible loss of a young life. Burlington takes this pro-active stand to reduce the risk of tragedy.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Parent-Teen Marijuana Forum
Pictures from "MARIJUANA: WEEDING OUT THE TRUTH" March 11 at MSMS. Courtesy of Chief Fran Hart
Monday, March 30, 2009
Ban of Public Pot Smoking
Towns try to punish public marijuana use
Officials want children shielded
Excerpt from Boston Globe
March 25, 2009
Dozens of Massachusetts cities and towns are taking steps to impose stiff new fines for smoking marijuana in public and even to charge some violators with misdemeanors, a trend that critics say subverts the state ballot question passed overwhelmingly last fall to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana.
In recent weeks, at least seven communities - Duxbury, Lynn, Methuen, Medway, Milford, Salem, and Springfield - have passed bylaws that target people who light up in public. And two dozen cities and towns expect to vote this spring on similar measures, which proponents liken to local open container laws that ban drinking alcohol in public.
Police officials say they want to discourage flagrant marijuana smoking, particularly in public parks, schoolyards, and on beaches where young children gather. While last year's ballot initiative reduced possession of an ounce or less from a misdemeanor to a civil infraction carrying a $100 fine, police say that some marijuana smokers mistakenly believe that the voters legalized the drug entirely.
"If you're smoking marijuana in front of schoolchildren, to me that's a little bit more serious than smoking a joint by yourself out in the middle of the woods," said Salem police Captain Brian Gilligan. His city recently authorized officers to fine public smokers $300 in addition to the $100 fine for possession. The Salem bylaw also lets officers give them a misdemeanor summons, although Gilligan predicted that few will get them.
Question 2 passed by a vote of 65 to 35 percent, making Massachusetts one of a dozen states to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, Bernath said. Proponents of the change, including billionaire financier George Soros, who spent more than $400,000 in favor of decriminalization, said that it would ensure that those caught with small quantities would avoid the taint of a criminal record.
A statewide referendum specifically said each city and town could pass bylaws banning public use of marijuana, and communities across the state have started doing that. They are relying on a sample bylaw provided by Coakley's office, which says fines can be imposed, a criminal penalty, or both, in addition to the $100 possession fine.
Coakley's office reviews bylaws enacted to make sure they pass constitutional muster, but takes no position on penalizing people who smoke in public, said spokeswoman Emily LaGrassa.
In recent weeks, Duxbury's Town Meeting overwhelmingly approved imposing a $300 fine on people who smoke marijuana in public. Methuen's City Council passed a bylaw to impose a $100 fine on people who light up at parks, playgrounds, on school grounds, or a public beach.
Mayor William M. Manzi III of Methuen said he sponsored the measure because he wants to keep those areas free of marijuana and alcohol. "You can already be fined under a local ordinance for having an open container of Budweiser," he said.
To show that Methuen was being even-handed, he added, the council increased the fine for drinking alcohol in public from $50 to $100, the same as the fine for public marijuana smoking.
Some communities, however, are also authorizing officers to give people who smoke in public a misdemeanor summons.
Residents attending Milford's Town Meeting, for example, recently approved such a bylaw. The measure also imposes a fine of $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second offense, and $300 for subsequent offenses.
Police Chief Thomas O'Loughlin of Milford said he favored decriminalization last fall. But he supported the local bylaw because police need a tool to contend with young people who flout state law by smoking in public, sometimes in groups that make it difficult to determine who owns the marijuana.
"In the circumstances where you have a dozen young people or two dozen young people out in a park at night, OK, who possesses what?" he said.
But critics of the bylaws are skeptical.
Steven Epstein, a Georgetown lawyer and founder of the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition, said he believes the efforts amount to recriminalization and are "all motivated by police chiefs who lost their power when they no longer had the arbitrary power to arrest people for possessing or using marijuana."
Officials want children shielded
Excerpt from Boston Globe
March 25, 2009
Dozens of Massachusetts cities and towns are taking steps to impose stiff new fines for smoking marijuana in public and even to charge some violators with misdemeanors, a trend that critics say subverts the state ballot question passed overwhelmingly last fall to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana.
In recent weeks, at least seven communities - Duxbury, Lynn, Methuen, Medway, Milford, Salem, and Springfield - have passed bylaws that target people who light up in public. And two dozen cities and towns expect to vote this spring on similar measures, which proponents liken to local open container laws that ban drinking alcohol in public.
Police officials say they want to discourage flagrant marijuana smoking, particularly in public parks, schoolyards, and on beaches where young children gather. While last year's ballot initiative reduced possession of an ounce or less from a misdemeanor to a civil infraction carrying a $100 fine, police say that some marijuana smokers mistakenly believe that the voters legalized the drug entirely.
"If you're smoking marijuana in front of schoolchildren, to me that's a little bit more serious than smoking a joint by yourself out in the middle of the woods," said Salem police Captain Brian Gilligan. His city recently authorized officers to fine public smokers $300 in addition to the $100 fine for possession. The Salem bylaw also lets officers give them a misdemeanor summons, although Gilligan predicted that few will get them.
Question 2 passed by a vote of 65 to 35 percent, making Massachusetts one of a dozen states to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, Bernath said. Proponents of the change, including billionaire financier George Soros, who spent more than $400,000 in favor of decriminalization, said that it would ensure that those caught with small quantities would avoid the taint of a criminal record.
A statewide referendum specifically said each city and town could pass bylaws banning public use of marijuana, and communities across the state have started doing that. They are relying on a sample bylaw provided by Coakley's office, which says fines can be imposed, a criminal penalty, or both, in addition to the $100 possession fine.
Coakley's office reviews bylaws enacted to make sure they pass constitutional muster, but takes no position on penalizing people who smoke in public, said spokeswoman Emily LaGrassa.
In recent weeks, Duxbury's Town Meeting overwhelmingly approved imposing a $300 fine on people who smoke marijuana in public. Methuen's City Council passed a bylaw to impose a $100 fine on people who light up at parks, playgrounds, on school grounds, or a public beach.
Mayor William M. Manzi III of Methuen said he sponsored the measure because he wants to keep those areas free of marijuana and alcohol. "You can already be fined under a local ordinance for having an open container of Budweiser," he said.
To show that Methuen was being even-handed, he added, the council increased the fine for drinking alcohol in public from $50 to $100, the same as the fine for public marijuana smoking.
Some communities, however, are also authorizing officers to give people who smoke in public a misdemeanor summons.
Residents attending Milford's Town Meeting, for example, recently approved such a bylaw. The measure also imposes a fine of $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second offense, and $300 for subsequent offenses.
Police Chief Thomas O'Loughlin of Milford said he favored decriminalization last fall. But he supported the local bylaw because police need a tool to contend with young people who flout state law by smoking in public, sometimes in groups that make it difficult to determine who owns the marijuana.
"In the circumstances where you have a dozen young people or two dozen young people out in a park at night, OK, who possesses what?" he said.
But critics of the bylaws are skeptical.
Steven Epstein, a Georgetown lawyer and founder of the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition, said he believes the efforts amount to recriminalization and are "all motivated by police chiefs who lost their power when they no longer had the arbitrary power to arrest people for possessing or using marijuana."
Friday, March 20, 2009
School Required Prevention Education for Parents
Spring is here. And this is the best time to hold a substance abuse prevention workshop for parents because of proms, graduations and general nice-weather partying.
But I have found in my travels around the state that most schools are reluctant to sponsor parent education events due to low turnouts. No one has the funds right now to burn for audiences of only a few dozen.
Even coalitions have a tough time getting the school department to cooperate with a parent program right now.
Yet, I believe schools need to take the bull by the horns and place the responsibility for underage and drug abuse back into the hands of parents.
How can you guarantee good turnouts?
Good turnouts for are guaranteed by two things:
a recent teen fatality or
a parent-required program.
Administrators can take a firm stand to be proactive and require that parents attend a "wellness night".
Many schools require parents to attend an athletics night each year. If a parent wants their teen to patricipate in sports, they must attend a meeting. So include a brief presentation as part of that meeting.
Many schools now require parents to attend a prevention program so their teen can attend a prom! (becoming very popular right now due to liabilities involved with proms.)
Some schools include a brief presentation at Open House Night or Orientation Night when parents will be coming to the school anyway.
If you can convince your school district to take this kind of stand and fill their auditorium, your prevention dollars will be stretched. It is the only way to be proactive...... because if and when a student dies, the parents (that do not attend presentations voluntarily) will be screaming that the community did not do enough to prevent the tragedy.
Yes, some parents will complain at first about a mandatory wellness night. But once it becomes an annual event, parents come to expect it. I've seen it work. I've presented to packed auditoriums. Those administrators tell me that parents are not a problem because it has been annual practice for years.
What do you think? Sound off! I want feedback.....
But I have found in my travels around the state that most schools are reluctant to sponsor parent education events due to low turnouts. No one has the funds right now to burn for audiences of only a few dozen.
Even coalitions have a tough time getting the school department to cooperate with a parent program right now.
Yet, I believe schools need to take the bull by the horns and place the responsibility for underage and drug abuse back into the hands of parents.
How can you guarantee good turnouts?
Good turnouts for are guaranteed by two things:
a recent teen fatality or
a parent-required program.
Administrators can take a firm stand to be proactive and require that parents attend a "wellness night".
Many schools require parents to attend an athletics night each year. If a parent wants their teen to patricipate in sports, they must attend a meeting. So include a brief presentation as part of that meeting.
Many schools now require parents to attend a prevention program so their teen can attend a prom! (becoming very popular right now due to liabilities involved with proms.)
Some schools include a brief presentation at Open House Night or Orientation Night when parents will be coming to the school anyway.
If you can convince your school district to take this kind of stand and fill their auditorium, your prevention dollars will be stretched. It is the only way to be proactive...... because if and when a student dies, the parents (that do not attend presentations voluntarily) will be screaming that the community did not do enough to prevent the tragedy.
Yes, some parents will complain at first about a mandatory wellness night. But once it becomes an annual event, parents come to expect it. I've seen it work. I've presented to packed auditoriums. Those administrators tell me that parents are not a problem because it has been annual practice for years.
What do you think? Sound off! I want feedback.....
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