Pubdate: Sun, 07 Apr 2002
Source: Delta Democrat Times (MS)
Copyright: 2002 Delta Democrat Times
Contact:  http://www.ddtonline.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2123
Author: Donald V. Adderton
Note: The author is editor of the Delta Democrat Times

RISING TO THE CHALLENGE OF DRUGS, GANGS TAKES GUTS

A pained expression crossed W. Allen Pepper Jr.'s face when he began to 
talk about how illegal drugs have dashed young lives and ripped apart families.

As a U.S. District Court judge, the Bolivar County native has witnessed 
firsthand from the bench what the substance abuse carnage is doing to 
Mississippi and the nation.

He is disturbed by the trend that is weaving its evil way into the human 
community fabric - wrapping its vile tentacles around our impressionable 
young people.

"We should do whatever it takes to win this war, because there is no 
alternative," Pepper said. "The enemy is now at the gates, and we must do 
something."

But in America, there always seems to be a constant, forever presenting an 
oasis of hope, and believability. For a long time now, the American 
scouting movement has provided our adolescents with a wholesome avenue for 
character-building and leadership.

It was those childhood scouting experiences that prompted Pepper to make a 
rare public speech, in fact, the first one since being appointed to the 
federal bench in 1999 by President Bill Clinton.

"It takes courage and conviction to be a scout," Pepper said before the 
annual fund-raiser dinner of the Washington District of the Boys Scouts of 
America.

Many of you who are reading this column probably, at one time or another, 
were involved with scouting, as a youngster or adult volunteer. I know I 
have taken the building blocks of scouting with me into adulthood.

Nonetheless, our young people continue to be romanced by the allure of 
street life and illegal drugs. A study released last year by the 
Partnership for a Drug Free Society indicated 11.3 million teenagers 
admitted using illegal drugs. And marijuana remains the drug of choice 
among teenagers.

And the drug abuse problem taking place in Mississippi Delta communities 
only serves to mirror a more vexing social problem. It's an issue that is 
not lost on Pepper, who calls illegal drugs a silent, but deadly force 
impacting our nation.

Pepper talked about attending a concert last year in Memphis, and was 
aghast when his son told him several stylishly dressed young adults sitting 
a couple of rows ahead where using the so-called "club drug" Exstacy.

"It was right there in the open, and no one knew," he said. "They just kept 
drinking bottled water and passing around Altoids."

What appeared to be high-priced breath mints were actually Exstacy tabs 
that they carried in the Altoids tins.

"I know that I am not the only naive one," Pepper continued, "because a 
former U.S. attorney was sitting behind us, and he was just as shocked as I 
was."

You see, the drug causes the body temperature to increase, which requires a 
steady water supply.

Although there has been a concerted government response - even at one time 
creating a so-called drug czar - to the illegal drug invasion with varying 
degrees success, Pepper, nevertheless, challenged the audience to become 
more involved in parenting and mentoring children and teenagers.

"Our young people are our tomorrow, and they belong to us for better or 
worse," Pepper said. "Drugs and gangs exist in our communities today, 
because the public has not been outraged."

Just where is the moral indignation? How long will you allow outside 
impurities to continue to contaminate our youth?

Unless we stand as a collective, illegal substances will remain a social 
scourge, and the blame will rest on our shoulders.

Donald V. Adderton is editor of the Delta Democrat Times
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