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National Issues Forums Institute - Donna Aguiniga

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There are no easy answers to deep-seated public problems like substance abuse. In order to make progress on such issues, we need to tap the experience, wisdom, and hopes of people in communities who are concerned about the issue. Why does this issue matter to people? What roles can different people and organizations play? What actions would make the most difference? What are the potential drawbacks and trade-offs of different approaches?The purpose of this issue guide is to help people talk together about what we should do when alcohol and drug use becomes a problem to society. It begins with an overview of substance use and abuse in the United States and the impact this has on individuals, families, and communities. It then offers three options for addressing the issue, along with potential actions that could be taken. These are starting points for the conversation, which may lead to other insights and possibilities.People from seven organizations across the country participated in developing the guide, conducting interviews, surveys, and conversations with diverse people in their communities to capture different views on the issue. The organizations included the Community College of Baltimore County, San Diego Deliberation Network, Tennessee State University, University of Alaska Anchorage, Walden University, SUNY Broome Community College, and the West Virginia Center for Civic Life.This issue guide presents the following three options for deliberation:Keep People SafeAccording to this option, the main problem is that substance abuse threatens our safety and well-being. "The rise in crime in this area and others won't decline until the problem is eradicated," a police investigator said. "We need to get help for the addict, get him or her off the street and go after the dealers and players." This option says we need to tightly regulate and control the production and use of alcohol and drugs. We must impose fair punishments for people who break the rules and assure treatment for substance abuse for those who need it. We must not become complacent about the serious harm that substance abuse can cause to individuals and society.Address Conditions that Foster Substance AbuseAccording to this perspective, the main problem is that we are ignoring the social issues that contribute to substance abuse. "Substance abuse is not a contagious disease, and no one says, 'I want to be a substance abuser when I grow up.'" a nurse said. "Life circumstances have put these people in the situation they are in." This option says we need to recognize that discrimination creates a society where people may self-medicate with drugs and alcohol because they lack power and opportunities. We should stop placing all the blame on individuals and demand more accountability from drug companies, the media, and society at large. We must strengthen local economies and create better jobs to reduce the incentive to sell drugs illegally, and reduce the discrimination that can lead people to use substances as an escape.Uphold Personal FreedomAccording to this view, the main problem is that current efforts to control substance use infringe on people's rights and are ineffective. "The idea that law enforcement can take care of this problem on their own, even if they had more resources, is a complete fallacy," said a board member of a nonprofit agency. This option says we need to ease up on overregulation and focus instead on providing accurate information so people can make their own choices about substance use. We must also protect the legal and civil rights of people arrested for drug-related crimes and reform laws that are unduly intrusive or unfair.

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Publié par	National Issues Forums Institute
Date de parution	01 décembre 2015
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781946206121
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0100€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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ABOUT THIS ISSUE GUIDE
There are no easy answers to deep-seated public problems like substance abuse. In order to make progress on such issues, we need to tap the experience, wisdom, and hopes of people in communities who are concerned about the issue. Why does this issue matter to people? What roles can different people and organizations play? What actions would make the most difference? What are the potential drawbacks and trade-offs of different approaches?
The purpose of this issue guide is to help people talk together about what we should do when alcohol and drug use becomes a problem to society. It begins with an overview of substance use and abuse in the United States and the impact this has on individuals, families, and communities. It then offers three options for addressing the issue, along with potential actions that could be taken. These are starting points for the conversation, which may lead to other insights and possibilities.
People from seven organizations across the country participated in developing the guide, conducting interviews, surveys, and conversations with diverse people in their communities to capture different views on the issue. The organizations included the Community College of Baltimore County, San Diego Deliberation Network, Tennessee State University, University of Alaska Anchorage, Walden University, SUNY Broome Community College, and the West Virginia Center for Civic Life.
The guide may be used to support a single conversation or a series of conversations. The following suggestions can help you get started:
• Invite participants to share how substance use and abuse has affected them, their families, and others they know. Many will have direct experiences and are likely to mention concerns identified in the guide.
• Consider each option one at a time, using the actions and drawbacks as examples to illustrate what each option entails.
• Review the conversation as a group, and identify areas of common ground as well as disagreement. Talk about possible next steps, individually and as a group.
Writers: Donna Aguiniga, Martha Cox, Julie Pratt, Karen Shelby, Mary Thompson
Executive Editor: Brad Rourke
Managing Editor: Joey Easton
Design and Production: Terzetto Creative LLC
Proofreader: Jared Namenson
Over the Edge: What Should We Do When Alcohol and Drug Use Become a Problem to Society?
Copyright 2015, National Issues Forums Institute, All Rights Reserved, ISBN: 978-1-943028-15-3

The National Issues Forums Institute
This issue guide was prepared for the National Issues Forums Institute in collaboration with the Kettering Foundation. Issue guides in this series are used by civic and educational organizations interested in addressing public issues. These organizations use the books in locally initiated forums convened each year in hundreds of communities. For a description of the National Issues Forums, go to www.nifi.org .
Other Topics and Ordering Information
Recent topics in this series include mental health, America’s energy future, and the future of work. For more information, please visit www.nifi.org .
Founded in 1927, the Kettering Foundation of Dayton, Ohio (with an office in Washington, D.C.), is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research institute that studies the public’s role in democracy. It provides issue guides and other research for the National Issues Forums. For information about the Kettering Foundation, visit www.kettering.org .
This publication may not be reproduced or copied without written permission from the National Issues Forums Institute. For permission to reproduce or copy, please write NIFI@nifi.org
Photos: The photos throughout this document are licensed materials being used for illustrative purposes only. Any person depicted in the licensed material is a model .
Cover: (Group of People) © Digital Vision/Digital Vision/Thinkstock; (Torn Paper Background) © A-R-T-U-R/iStock/Thinkstock; (Whiskey Glass) © Wavebreakmedia Ltd/Wavebreak Media/Thinkstock; (Joint) © itayuri/iStock/Thinkstock; (Two Vials with Pills) © Pureradiancephoto/iStock/Thinkstock; (Mephedrone) © Chris Elwell/iStock/Thinkstock; (Leaf) © skydie/iStock/Thinkstock Inside Cover: (Cement Yellow Background) © piyagoon/iStock/Thinkstock
OVER THE EDGE What Should We Do When Alcohol and Drug Use Become a Problem to Society?
Table of Contents
Introduction
By all accounts, America is a nation of substance users. More than two-thirds of us are taking at least one prescription drug, and more than half drink alcohol on a regular basis. Marijuana consumption is on the rise as more states relax their laws on its medicinal and recreational use. But even legal substances, when misused, can result in serious problems. Beyond the human suffering, the abuse of legal and illicit substances is costing the nation more than $400 billion dollars each year due to lost productivity, health problems, and crime.
This guide offers three perspectives to help start the conversation about how we should respond to the problem of substance abuse. While not entirely mutually exclusive, each provides a different lens on the nature of the problem, the kinds of actions that would have the greatest impact, and the drawbacks or consequences of each.

OPTION ONE: Keep People Safe
Our top priority must be to protect people from the dangers posed by substance abuse, according to this option. Whether the threat comes from sharing the same roads and highways with people under the influence, living in communities under siege by drug trade, or having our families devastated by a child or adult addict, the potential for harm is real. In order to keep people safe, we need to tightly regulate and control the production and use of alcohol and drugs, as well as impose penalties for people who break the rules.

OPTION TWO: Address Conditions that Foster Substance Abuse
This option says we must recognize the critical role society plays regarding how and why people use drugs and alcohol. It is too easy to blame the individual—to say that if a person had just been stronger, smarter, or had more willpower, they would not have become involved in substance use. Instead, we should focus on the broader context and take responsibility for changing the social, cultural, and economic conditions that foster widespread substance use and abuse.

OPTION THREE: Uphold Individual Freedom
We must respect people’s freedom while offering them the means to act responsibly, according to this option. Overzealous efforts to control substance use infringe upon our rights, are often ineffective, discourage sick people from seeking treatment, and have led to the incarceration of large numbers of Americans for nonviolent drug offenses. Instead, we must provide the information and treatment options people need to make healthy choices, as well as reform laws that are unduly intrusive or unfair.