There is no mild way any institution needs to be or act when dealing with drugs. But that was what I thought until I read this piece on the USSU website READ THE FULL PIECE HERE. This comes as a result of students on Campus, and I can only assume from the USSU website that these are first year students, have been to Unisex with problems they have been experiencing because of their use of Mephedrone.
For us there has to be at a University level a Zero Tolerance to drug use, possession and distributing. Brighton, as is common knowledge, a serious drug problem, so much so that in 2009 it regained it’s ‘Drug Death Capital of the UK‘ beating much larger cities like Liverpool, Manchester and London. On both Lewes Road (the Avenue) and London Road there are Methadone clinics and pharmacies that give out Methadone which make these areas unsafe and undesirable.
This last line in this piece states ‘For more ideas* on safer drug usage* and how to look after yourself and your friends, please see our factsheet‘ sends a very bad message to students and is one that I feel the union and University needs to re-address. Students, to the most part are not addicts, but to provide ‘helpful’ information on ‘safe drug use’ is immature and does not in anyway deal with the issue which seems to be to many students doing drugs at the University of Sussex. Does the USSU feel that they need to give students ‘ideas’ on how to take drugs, or supposed tips on ‘safe drug usage?
*Emphasis added by the author.
The USSU’s piece doesn’t go far enough and doesn’t give enough facts or information which is essential to try and ensure that students are all to aware that all drugs, smoking and drinking as well, are dangerous and can lead to death. In Stockholm in 2008 an 18 year old girl died after buying Mephedrone over the net, here, and in 2010 last month a 49 year old woman died in Scotland after taking Mephedrone, here. And since 2009 there have been calls in the UK to ban so called ‘legal highs’ as a result of this the USSU advice seems more condoning students using Mephedrone and other drugs than informing them that its against university policy. Drug deaths are rising and you only have to look at the data available here.
This wouldn’t be a hard thing for them to do since Oxford University has banned students from using Spotify on university campus I think it would be easy enough for the University to ban students using so called legal highs and giving advice on drug usage.
There has to be some information about drugs made available to people who may take it but for many students prolonged use of any drug, including alcohol, can have serious and life long implications. There seems to me a weakness from the University and the students union to actually tackle this issue full on and to inform a student body that any drug use will result in expulsion and criminal prosecution. This might sound harsh but students are participating, in some cases more so than local residence, in the making Brighton (and other student areas in the UK) more dangerous and increase the drug dealer/traffickers coming to the area.
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