5.5   Lesson 5: Suburbs in Jeopardy

Many respondents, including youth, parents, and community representatives, noted that the drug problem can no longer be characterized as an urban problem. It is pervasive in the suburbs and other communities across almost all of the sites visited for this evaluation. The following statements describe the nonurban drug problem:

• Some drugs, including designer drugs, cocaine, hallucinogens, methamphetamines, and prescription and nonprescription drugs, were described as being commonly used by youth in the suburbs.
• Nonurban youth reportedly travel to the city to buy their drugs and then return home to use them.
• Many younger nonurban youth reported that they obtain drugs from their older siblings and from college students who are home for the weekend or the summer.
• Parents of nonurban youth were described as not being savvy about their own children's use of drugs. Likewise, it is the nonurban parents who are more likely to be in denial when it comes to youth drug use in their communities.

Many nonurban parents commented on the new anti-drug ads they had seen and noted how helpful they had been in initiating conversations with their own children. These same parents are asking that more anti-drug messages be developed to educate them and help them communicate with their children. Parents also commented on the need to provide other programs, such as mentoring and parent education programs, that would support the Media Campaign's messages.