Can this really be happening ? Could D.A.R.E be shifting gears and be in support of the legalization of marijuana? This doesn’t make sense as the program was designed by Nancy Regan in 1982 to teach and scare children out of doing drugs. However, their website recently posted a piece calling for the legalization of weed. Hit the jump for more.
Former deputy sheriff and D.A.R.E officer Carlis McDerment penned an open letter claiming that the legalization of marijuana prevents violence and an overcrowded prison system. According to him it has become impossible to for police to control dealers from selling to minors. He said, “People like me, and other advocates of marijuana legalization, are not totally blind to the harms that drugs pose to children,” continuing, “We just happen to know that legalizing and regulating marijuana will actually make everyone safer.”
McDerment adds,
Anyone who suggests we outlaw everything dangerous to children would also have to ban stairs, Tylenol, bleach, forks and outlet sockets and definitely alcohol. Those things harm children every day, but anyone championing that we ban them would be laughed at. I support legalization precisely because I want to reduce youths’ drug use. Drug dealers don’t care about a customer’s age. The answer isn’t prohibition and incarceration; the answer is regulation and education.
This is a huge turn around from the programs “Just say no” slogan but clearly shows an open-minded stance on the issue. The letter was taken down from the D.A.R.E site but to read the full piece click the gallery.
Do you think D.A.R.E. has given up on the war on drugs or are they being realistic? Sound off in the comments.
Source NYMagazine
