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Toll-free (877) 268-4636 www.cmudetroit.com IN METRO DETROIT Auburn Hills • Clinton Township • Dearborn • Flint Livonia • Southfield • Troy • Warren CMU is an AA/EO institution (see www.cmich.edu/aaeo). cmuoffcampus@cmich.edu 15664d 9/04 What you need to know about your kids and drugs Undoubtedly, drugs are a subject not often discussed in our community for a variety of reasons. Some feel it is taboo to talk about drug use, others say their kids would never get involved in drugs, and even others believe that the people their teens befriend would never use drugs or influence their child. There are many wise, responsible teenagers making great decisions to ignore the drug and alcohol scene, and they deserve our praise. However, there are others making different decisions. Please talk to your kids about this subject instead of merely assuming that they would never get involved. Perhaps many parents are missing out on having an honest and necessary conversation with our kids, especially our teenagers. There are a variety of drugs on the market and our kids have access to them if they choose to beome involved. Based upon the cases that I observe coming through our court, it is clear that drug use is prevalent within our community. The following is a description of the most common drugs and the effects that they have on the body. Marijuana A plant that contains the chemical THC, a mind-altering substance, marijuana is the most common illegal drug used in the United States. Marijuana is smoked or can be baked in foods and eaten. It is considered a “gateway drug” because it often leads to the use of other drugs. Some of the physical symptoms of using marijuana include red eyes, dry mouth, hunger, reduced concentration and coordination. Short-term memory and judgment are also impaired. The drug is stored in the body for up to 30 days after it is smoked. Inhalants These are chemicals that are abused by inhaling and include many aerosol sprays that may be in your home. People experience a high when they inhale the vapors from products such as spray paint, cooking oil spray and hair spray. Other inhalants include gasoline, transmission fluid, nail polish remover, paint thinners and more. These inhalants depress the central nervous system and affect a person’s breathing by slowing it down. The user may become dizzy and lose muscle coordination having slowed reflexes, slurred speech and lightheadedness. Sudden death can result in several ways. It is certainly frightening that this drug is found in the home and is easy to obtain at relatively low cost. HON. DIANE DICKOW D’AGOSTINI CONTRIBUTING COLUMNIST Club Drugs These are a variety of drugs that have received the name “club drugs” because of their prevalence at all-night dance parties, nightclubs and concerts. These drugs are called Ecstasy, GHB, Roofies, Rohypnol, etc. Drugs such as GHB and Rohypnol are sedatives that can make you unconscious and immobilize you and are sometimes used in sexual assaults. Ecstasy is a stimulant that increases your heart rate and blood pressure. Cocaine This drug is snorted or injected and is very addicting and powerful. Its effects include paranoia, seizures, severe depression, elevated blood pressure and heart rate, heart attack, insomnia and death from overdose. There are many reasons why our youth are using drugs. Peer pressure is a significant factor. Most times when I ask defendants why they were using drugs they describe being with friends who convinced them to use. This is the most common answer I hear in court. Please know your children’s friends well. Know their parents also. If you do, you will be in a much better position to recognize whether a problem exists. You must know them because they are likely influencing them more than anyone else during this time in their lives. Other factors contributing to drug use are boredom and a lack of parental supervision. The financial cost of many drugs can be high and often users will steal from family members to support their drug habit. There have been cases where parents have asked me to keep their teens in jail because they felt they were safer there than at home using drugs. The anguish, frustration and devastation on their faces are something I think of often. It is proof of the need to make an impact on your child before someone who doesn’t love or care about him or her does. Once the addiction of these drugs sets in, the struggle to stop using can be a daily obstacle. Talk to your children at an early age. The legal penalty for using or selling any of these drugs is severe in addition to the life-threatening effects already discussed. Please make this discussion a priority in your lives. Diane Dickow D’Agostini is a judge with the 48th District Court and a frequent contributor to The Chaldean News. 38 CHALDEAN NEWS APRIL 2005
MIDDLEBELT chaldean teens and drugs The link between them, their parents and the community There are no statistics that target Chaldeans as a specific group, but law enforcement officials in Oakland and Macomb counties say they see a steady rate of Chaldean American teens who abuse drugs. They also see the stigma attached to drugs in the community, which in turn hinders addicts from getting help. Experts say this problem begins with the parents. Officials say that boys experiment with drugs more frequently than girls. In the Chaldean community, boys are commonly more active than girls. They tend to work more and go out more, and are not as controlled by their parents. Girls, on the other hand, are more likely to have their time accounted for by family members, and often hear the phrase, “I trust you, I just don’t trust other people.” Girls have been known to dabble in drugs, but boys are the ones who usually get caught, said officials. Some local high school administrators say most parents are regretful for their children’s behavior and supportive of police action. But there are always those few parents who remain in denial, even after seeing physical proof and hearing their children’s confessions. LIVING IN DENIAL Of course, all parents want to protect their children when they are in trouble. But, experts say, the BY CRYSTAL JABIRO real danger in the close-knit Chaldean community lays deeper. Parents fear a diminishing family reputation as pride and honor is of the utmost importance. Some families refuse to send their children for help unless it is required by the family court system. Others turn a blind eye; they like being in the dark because it means they do not have to face these issues. Their reputations mean more to them than helping their children. All kids are susceptible to drugs. Some Chaldean teens, like other teens, lack direction, which begins at home. The most important things parents can do are to lend their emotional support and set boundaries. Children need realistic limits and consequences for their actions. Sometimes, parents can be naïve. With Chaldeans there is not just a generation gap, but also a disparity between two cultures. Parents need to recognize that life is different in America, and different now than it was 30 or even five years ago. The “culture clash” syndrome affects the whole community. Experts say that parents need to talk to their children about drugs. The best place for them to hear about it is at home, because drugs are definitely around them at school. There are many resources parents can take advantage of to heighten their awareness, including workshops at local churches and libraries, and on Internet sites such as www.theantidrug.com. THE POVERTY PROBLEM Iklas Bashi, a clinical therapist with the Arab- American and Chaldean Council (ACC) in Detroit, said that poverty contributes to the drug epidemic in Wayne County. She sees people of all cultures and races struggle with this issue in more ways than simply using and selling. The majority of Chaldeans living in Detroit are refugees who fled Iraq for a better life. Already with little to start with, they face issues bigger than the language barrier and lack of education. They live among multiple dilapidated homes that are centers for drugs as well as prostitution, Bashi said. Some kids are approached by drug dealers while they walk home from school. The residents see these actions take place right on their streets, but fear voicing their opinions. Many feel a general paranoia that haunts them from being active about the situation. However, there are no hard numbers to back up this claim. “We need statistics on our culture,” said Bashi. “We need stronger leadership in the community to initiate funding and research by the government.” Bashi believes there could be Chaldean youths in Detroit who sell drugs out of desperation to move out of the city. Their limited English, lack of education and deficient financial resources place them at a high risk for drugs, whether it is selling or using. The ACC’s newly built Youth Center in Detroit has the goal of keeping kids off the streets and away from those dangers. The Chaldean American perspective is well understood by Bashi, who deals with this on a daily basis. She questions what is more important — feeling shame or getting help. She believes the community needs to face reality and realize they are not alone. “The biggest threat is the stigma attached to drugs and other issues that nobody wants to talk about,” said Bashi. “People continue to be in denial. 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