To the editor:
Marblehead has known the heartbreak of losing too many young lives to risky choices: drinking, cannabis, opioids and driving under the influence. If we want to keep our kids safe, we must look honestly at the culture around them.
On Halloween, it’s common to see alcohol handed out to parents in the streets while children walk beside them. What are we teaching our kids when we drink during Halloween walks?
The “Marblehead pour” at dinner or weekends on boats may feel normal to many adults, but our kids notice. When heavy drinking or casual cannabis use is treated as the norm, teens absorb the message that this is simply what grown-ups do. If our kids are watching us, what story do we want that drink or joint in our hand to tell them?
We cannot dismiss risky behavior with “teens will be teens” while failing to model better ourselves, and then expect them to make safer choices. Brain science shows adolescents rely more on the emotional part of the brain than the logical one. Drugs and alcohol only heighten this imbalance, making good decisions even harder.
I invite us to hold an honest, open town conversation with experts, parents and teens, so we can face this together.
Prevention can start with individuals asking themselves hard questions and with a community willing to shift the culture together. Some ideas to kick-start this include:
- a parent agreement not to allow underage drinking or drug use at home.
- student-led peer campaigns.
- greater awareness of social host laws, which hold adults legally responsible if underage drinking happens in their homes.
- volunteer-run safe-ride programs so no teen feels trapped in a dangerous situation.
- education on opioids and fentanyl to prevent overdoses and save lives.
- increased police patrols at night to deter impaired driving and protect the community.
- adults modeling safer behavior by limiting drinking and avoiding driving under the influence.
Marblehead is strongest when we choose courage over comfort. By facing this together, we can give our kids what they deserve: a community where they are safe, valued and guided by our example.
Cynthia Belmer
Lorraine Terrace
