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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I am not saying that students should be searched when they go into lectures but I think we have to be a bit more grown up about it. Why is it ok for students to do drugs but those people on our streets who rob, attack, and become addicts its not ok? Why is it ok for us to talk to students and seem to say ‘hey guys your going to do it so here is the facts’? Also this drug IS banned in several countries so I would argue that this is a very well tested drug and the evidence is out their for all to see.
It’s not a question of a ‘just say no’ campaign its more about the wider role and responsibilities of us as students and as citizens. Should we make drugs legal? Whatever way students are buying this drug they are going about it in an illegal way, they are supporting more broader organised crime, and, as the Unisex people have found out, some students can’t handle this drug, yet your point is that it’s not really that big a drug.
I respect your comment but go out and talk to people who are doing this drug, ask them what else they do, what they mix it with, how often they do it. Then talk with the Talk to Frank folks and get some stats from them. If that’s not enough have a look and may be if your big enough interview some people on remand for drugs offences, ask they what they started with, what they do to get their drug of choice. The talk to the parents who have lost kids or loved ones because drugs have taken over their lives and they are now dead.
Sensational or not we are simply not mature enough to use drugs moderately and so to talk about it in a way that says ‘hey very impressionable 17-25 year old, this is our stance on drugs and these are the ones that aren’t that icky’.
Man up, drugs have a very real negative role in our society and you making out that its ‘sensationalistic’ and or fear mongering seems weak. You want your cake and eat it, do the research and get the facts then come to me and say ‘yeah students should be allowed to do what they want to do because guess what they are going to do it anyway’.
That’s a cop out, if we respect the rules then we follow them. Students follow many rules at uni and i find it a little odd that having a zero tolerance policy on drugs seems to be against the norm, rich I think!
Get out there and talk to people where ‘moderate drug usage’ became and has become something a bit more real and serious then tell me that the very well healed and protected students should be allowed to flaunt the law, practice (though limited) criminal activity in supporting local drug dealers and pushers, and have no consequences.
I’m sorry.. actually, I’m not.. but your article is a massively ill-informed, turgid festival of badly written bollocks. Do you think it is better that students take a an informed, or ill-informed decision over whether to take drugs such as mephedrone? and do you think students respond better to impartial information about the facts surrounding mephedrone (rather than sensationalist hearsay), or being given the stick and told what to do like a parent?
If you have a look at government policy and information, you’ll find that the harm minimisation and educational style of battling drug use (as used by Unisex) is a hell of a lot more effective than just outright banning or ‘just say no’ campaigns. Drug use under the Government’s ‘Just say no’ campaign a few years ago that simply preached about how awful all drugs were was a massive disaster. All signs, stats and information points to harm minimisation and impartial education about drugs used by the likes of Unisex as being by far the best way of tackling drug use. You can’t stop people taking drugs – they have done since the dawn of time – but you can sure as hell make sure they know how to be safe if they do choose to take anything.
It’s also worth pointing out that the massive increase in the use of the relatively untested mephedrone recently is largely due to the government’s clampdown on the far safer and tested MDMA. You ban a drug or make it really hard to get hold of, and people don’t stop taking it – they just look to other substances instead. How is banning mephedrone on campus going to stop anyone taking it? who’s going to police the students? Should students be frisked and drug tested before lectures?
I don’t agree at all. How is it immature to provide accurate information so those who do choose to use it can do safely? Quite the opposite I would imagine. The students who take drugs obviously are going to do so whether you like it or not, so what is wrong with publishing a few facts (which certianly weren’t encouraging or condoning mephedrone use) which educate users against misuse and reduce deaths (and cost to the NHS/society)?
Also funny how you cite 2(!) worldwide deaths from the LEGAL drug, whilst many thousands die from alcohol and tobacco each year.
So unless you can prove that mephedrone really is a problem and not just a media frenzy, then I will have to conclude that this is another pointless sensationalist article.
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