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Since its inception, one of the primary motivations behind America's War on Drugs has been the concern for the welfare and social development of children. Policymakers have rightly argued that laws should be crafted to protect young people from the dangers of drugs. This makes good sense given that young people are vulnerable to becoming victims of addiction, the violence associated with the black market drug trade, and exploitation as sales agents for drug traffickers.

In recent years, however, the policy debate has left young people themselves in the crossfire and too often assigned blame for the drug problem to youth culture itself. Youth frequently find themselves the targets of raids at social gatherings and entertainment events and are treated as though they are under perpetual suspicion for committing drug crimes.

In 2003, an 11th hour amendment to the AMBER Alert bill made business owners liable for the drug law violations of their patrons, even when they take steps to prevent on-site drug use. The amendment - popularly known as the RAVE Act - has the practical effect of shutting down dance and concert venues frequented by young people. Law enforcement have broad discretion to apply the law to whatever groups or events they happen to personally dislike, as evidenced by the DEA shutdown of a 2003 SSDP fundraiser in Billings, Montana.

Click below for more information and to find out what you can do to stop unwarranted Drug War assaults on youth culture.

• Legislative Guide on Youth Culture (HTML) (PDF)
• What YOU Can Do: A Grassroots Guide for Activists (HTML) (PDF)