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HTML Title:
Church of Scientology Pasadena Hosts Anti-Drug Symposium
Display Date:
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Display Location:
Pasadena
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PASADENA—Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard, Police Chief Phillip Sanchez, and Executive Director of Californians for Drug Free Youth (CADFY) and Director of HIDTA (High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas) Mr. John Redman, were among the community and government leaders joining forces Saturday October 1 at the Church of Scientology of Pasadena, in an anti-drug forum sponsored by The Foundation for a Drug-Free World.
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The subject under discussion: Is drug education an effective weapon in the War on Drugs?
Mayor Bogaard believes it is vital. “There are so many factors impinging on young people today facilitating the improper use of drugs and alcohol. The effort for education and information for combating those activities and those circumstances is all the more important because of that,” he said.
Chief of Police Phillip Sanchez stressed that the community cannot “enforce” its way out of the challenges that are generated by illegal narcotics use. Educating young people about the consequences associated with illegal drug use, teaching them effective judgment skills, and developing contemporary drug treatment programs are vital in combating this problem.
Mr. Mike Wagner, a teacher at Monrovia High School, agrees. He shared the results he has gotten using the Foundation’s booklets, documentary and educator’s guide in teaching drug education to teens.
“The U.S. Government spent more that $15 billion on the War on Drugs in 2010,” says Eden Stein, President of the Church of Scientology of Pasadena, “If more were spent on prevention, we could crack this problem. Some would have you believe that we have lost the war. But we disagree. All you have to do is talk to the kids after they watch the Foundation for a Drug-Free World documentary to know this is something we can win if we all work together.”
The Church of Scientology of Pasadena sponsors drug-education projects throughout the greater Pasadena area, including Glendale, La Cañada, La Crescenta, Sunland/Tujunga, the San Gabriel Valley, and out to San Bernardino and the Inland Empire.
The Foundation for a Drug-Free World is a nonprofit public benefit corporation that empowers youth and adults with factual information so they can make informed decisions and live drug-free.
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The Church of Scientology sponsors the largest nongovernmental anti-drug information and prevention campaign on Earth. It has been conclusively proven that when young people are provided with the truth about drugs—factual information on what drugs are and what they do—usage rates drop commensurately. By statistical survey, the Drug-Free World Campaign has thus far prevented some 500,000 young people from recreational drug use…or worse.
The Foundation for a Drug-Free World [6] is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Los Angeles, California, and dedicated to the eradication of illicit drugs, their abuse and their attendant criminality. The Drug-Free World campaign is predicated on the statistically proven fact that wherever young people are presented with the unvarnished “truth about drugs,” illicit usage drops. Accordingly, the Drug-Free World information and prevention campaign features thirteen Truth About Drugs booklets—one for each of the most commonly abused substances. Campaign materials also include an Educator’s Kit to provide teachers, law enforcement and community groups effective tools to help young people make the right decision. Incisive public service announcements [7] and documentary videos [8] complement The Truth About Drugs series—ninety minutes on every drug of choice from those who have been there.
To date, more than 700 million have heard or seen The Truth About Drugs message and wherever campaign materials have saturated populations, usage rates have dramatically dropped.