By HDN staff
Starting Saturday, Havre will kick off Red Ribbon Week, which this year carries the theme Drug-Free is Y2K Compliant.
Activities from trivia contests to giveaways to church services to fun runs and more are geared towards our communitys young people and steering them towards a more healthy lifestyle.
People are encouraged to sport red ribbons as a symbol of a drug-free commitment.
Events over the past year from the student killings at Columbine High School to a recent drug sting at a Billings High School have been constant reminders of the severity of the drug problem in our country and even our pristine state. And anyone out there who believes this problem is only minuscule in Havre is living with their head in the sand.
The problem is real. The problem is in our face. And the problem belongs to all of us.
Now, sporting a red ribbon and participating in a week of activities may seem simplistic and indeed will not in itself solve any problems. But it is a reminder of the problem at hand and the power of the community to solve the problem when it pulls together.
For more information about the events, call HELP at 265-6206 or write HELP, P.O. Box 68, Havre, MT 59501. The HELP website is located at helpcom@hi-line.net.
On another note, this month is also Domestic Abuse Prevention Month, signified by purple ribbons you may see people wearing.
Domestic abuse has long been a closet disease people hear it, see it, live it, but are embarrassed to talk about it.
Many of us cant understand why. Why someone would be embarrassed to speak out and instead continue taking the abuse.
Well, maybe because for so long our society has accepted the jokes made at the expense of such victims.
Just this morning, on the local radio stations airing of Paul Harveys show, Harvey perpetuated this stereotype. In telling a story about a young women who, at breakfast, discovered her husband had a new girlfriend, proceeded to pour hot grits into his lap as he sat at the table. Harvey punctuated the end of the story with a joking intonation to his voice as he added, He was naked.
And I bet a lot of people laughed.
But this was blatant domestic abuse whether it was committed against a man or a women and far from a joking matter.
Until we as a society can recognize the seriousness of such situations and remove the stigma, the abused will continue to be ashamed.
Then whos to blame?
