The following facts may be disturbing, but they will raise awareness and provide a reason for mobilizing people in a community to action. For a variety of reasons, many more young people are trying marijuana and using it on a regular basis than were doing so even a few years ago. Greater supplies of more potent strains of marijuana are available today than 10 years ago. We all need to be reeducated about marijuana so that we can help young people understand and avoid this dangerous substance. Marijuana hurts communities.
Some people perceive that marijuana is a relatively harmless drug.
Because media coverage of problems associated with marijuana has been overshadowed by the dramatic coverage of drugs such as crack and heroin, and because many of today's parents grew up at a time when marijuana use was considered harmless, the message about the real dangers of this drug has not been communicated to young people. Almost all users of other drugs such as cocaine, crack and heroin, currently use, or in the past used, marijuana. Therefore, if we can help young people avoid becoming involved with marijuana, we'll have a greater chance of helping them avoid problems with other drugs as well. Families are confused about how they should address marijuana with their children. Many parents and guardians would like to talk with their children about marijuana and other drugs but are not sure how.