As co-chair of Red Ribbon Month, Alicia Limtiaco, United States Attorney for the District of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, spoke about the importance of increasing drug awareness among the island’s youth and an upcoming national initiative to properly dispose of unwanted prescription drugs.
The co-chairs of this Red Ribbon Month are the District Court of Guam, the Department of Youth Affairs, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Also making up the Red Ribbon Coalition are members from many local and federal agencies as well as business and nonprofit organizations.
While a number of events and activities to engage the community are slated throughout the month, Limtiaco’s office has been focusing on educational outreaches by making visits to schools around the island.
“These are different ways in which we try to bring awareness out into the community by going into the schools, and by also inviting our young people to these events that would be of interest to them and at the same time raise their awareness about drug prevention and drug abuse,” said Limtiaco.
During the school visits, Limtiaco says, they talk to the students about the history of Red Ribbon – which stemmed from the 1985 murder of Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, who gave his life to protect against illicit drug use and abuse. The Red Ribbon was then adopted as a symbol of intolerance towards the use of drugs.
Critical
“The investigation and prosecution of drug-related cases is critical to protecting our community, and at the same time these public awareness community outreaches that we also conduct during Red Ribbon Month are very important,” said Limtiaco on the responsibilities of her office.
“We need to have our community members understand the danger of drugs and ways in which we can prevent drug abuse. There are some significant concerns about our youth who are abusing drugs. There’s also been public awareness about prescription drug abuse amongst youth. We also provide tips for parents and families to encourage and promote drug abuse prevention.”
Aside from the educational outreaches, Limtiaco also noted the U.S Attorney’s Office is working with DEA in preparation for the National Take-Back Initiative.
“Also what we promote is the National (Prescription Drug) Take-Back Initiative, which is going to be held at the end of this month,” said Limtiaco.
“This initiative speaks of the importance of public safety and public health when it comes to prescription drugs. So what we’re doing is raising awareness about the dangers of the inappropriateness or misuse of drug abuse in young people.”
According to Limtiaco, statistics have shown a concern in the rise of prescription drug abuse among youth.
Across the nation, the National Take-Back Initiative will be held Oct. 29. Guam will be on its third year of participating in this initiative. On this day, community members are encouraged to bring in their prescription drugs for proper disposal. More details for this upcoming event will be provided as soon as a location is established.
