Amethyest Initiative
From www.amethystinitiative.org/:
The Amethyst Initiative began with an invitation extended to John McCardell, President Emeritus of Middlebury College and Founder of Choose Responsibility, to speak at a meeting of the Annapolis Group, a group of about 120 liberal arts colleges, in June 2008. In preparing for that presentation, McCardell contacted several Annapolis presidents who were long-time friends to solicit their thoughts about the effects of the 21 year-old drinking age. The group quickly discovered a common desire to reopen public debate over the drinking age and began to frame a statement expressing their views.
The statement as finally drafted does not, by design, prescribe a particular policy change. It does, however, state clearly the signatories' belief that 21 is not working as well as the public may think, that its unintended consequences are posing increasing risks to young people, and that it is time for a serious debate among our elected representatives about whether current public policies are in line with current realities.
The group discussed the possibility that other presidents might agree that 21 has not been an unmitigated blessing and might welcome both the formulation of language to which they could subscribe and the opportunity to join others who are similarly persuaded. They thus began to widen their circle of correspondence and quickly concluded that all presidents and chancellors of all colleges and universities should be invited to join the effort, which now needed a name. And the Amethyst Initiative was born.
Here is their statement:
It’s time to rethink the drinking age:
In 1984 Congress passed the National Minimum Drinking Age Act, which imposed a penalty of 10% of a state's federal highway appropriation on any state setting its drinking age lower than 21. Twenty-four years later, our experience as college and university presidents convinces us that…
Twenty-one is not working
How many times must we relearn the lessons of prohibition?
Partners for Prevention (P4P) supports scientific data that alcohol is detrimental on the brain as it continues to develop and grow until an individual reaches his/her early twenties. We agree that responsible drinking is vitally important and we understand the difficulties of managing college-aged students. We believe, however, that some measures of abstinence from alcohol are helpful as young adult brains continue to develop. We welcome open discussion with college/university officials, with elected officials, with parents and students and with Substance Abuse Prevention agencies all over the US/World.
This is a complex issue. We applaud that the Amethyst Initiative recognizes the difficulties of binge-drinking on college campuses. We hope that the Initiative hears that many Prevention Specialists are interested to participate in this process of some change to lower on-campus alcohol abuse.
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The Amethyst Initiative began with an invitation extended to John McCardell, President Emeritus of Middlebury College and Founder of Choose Responsibility, to speak at a meeting of the Annapolis Group, a group of about 120 liberal arts colleges, in June 2008. In preparing for that presentation, McCardell contacted several Annapolis presidents who were long-time friends to solicit their thoughts about the effects of the 21 year-old drinking age. The group quickly discovered a common desire to reopen public debate over the drinking age and began to frame a statement expressing their views.
The statement as finally drafted does not, by design, prescribe a particular policy change. It does, however, state clearly the signatories' belief that 21 is not working as well as the public may think, that its unintended consequences are posing increasing risks to young people, and that it is time for a serious debate among our elected representatives about whether current public policies are in line with current realities.
The group discussed the possibility that other presidents might agree that 21 has not been an unmitigated blessing and might welcome both the formulation of language to which they could subscribe and the opportunity to join others who are similarly persuaded. They thus began to widen their circle of correspondence and quickly concluded that all presidents and chancellors of all colleges and universities should be invited to join the effort, which now needed a name. And the Amethyst Initiative was born.
Here is their statement:
It’s time to rethink the drinking age:
In 1984 Congress passed the National Minimum Drinking Age Act, which imposed a penalty of 10% of a state's federal highway appropriation on any state setting its drinking age lower than 21. Twenty-four years later, our experience as college and university presidents convinces us that…
Twenty-one is not working
- A culture of dangerous, clandestine “binge-drinking”—often conducted off-campus—has developed.
- Alcohol education that mandates abstinence as the only legal option has not resulted in significant constructive behavioral change among our students.
- Adults under 21 are deemed capable of voting, signing contracts, serving on juries and enlisting in the military, but are told they are not mature enough to have a beer.
- By choosing to use fake IDs, students make ethical compromises that erode respect for the law.
How many times must we relearn the lessons of prohibition?
- We call upon our elected officials: To support an informed and dispassionate public debate over the effects of the 21 year-old drinking age.
- To consider whether the 10% highway fund “incentive” encourages or inhibits that debate.
- To invite new ideas about the best ways to prepare young adults to make responsible decisions about alcohol.
- We pledge ourselves and our institutions to playing a vigorous, constructive role as these critical discussions unfold.
Partners for Prevention (P4P) supports scientific data that alcohol is detrimental on the brain as it continues to develop and grow until an individual reaches his/her early twenties. We agree that responsible drinking is vitally important and we understand the difficulties of managing college-aged students. We believe, however, that some measures of abstinence from alcohol are helpful as young adult brains continue to develop. We welcome open discussion with college/university officials, with elected officials, with parents and students and with Substance Abuse Prevention agencies all over the US/World.
This is a complex issue. We applaud that the Amethyst Initiative recognizes the difficulties of binge-drinking on college campuses. We hope that the Initiative hears that many Prevention Specialists are interested to participate in this process of some change to lower on-campus alcohol abuse.
WE'D LIKE TO HEAR FROM YOU....
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