Drug-Free Tennessee Holds Events to Honor Red Ribbon Week for 2016

Drug-Free Tennessee holds a variety of events throughout the year to benefit the community through education and awareness.

According to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations, 80% of crimes in the state have some drug-related nexus. Additionally, Tennessee's uninsured coupled with a high rate of prescribed painkillers are contributing factors behind the state's rise in heroin addiction and overdoses, according to a new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report.

To protect people from the disastrous effects of drugs, Drug-Free Tennessee had meetings with community leaders and events to educate people and provide resources during Red Ribbon Week.  Volunteers distributed Truth About Drugs booklets, which helps people understand what drugs are and how they affect the user,  to residents of Edgehill and 12 South neighborhoods, as well as met with government officials interested in health and wellness.

Red Ribbon Week occurs during the last week of October each year and is a time to educate people and help prevent drug abuse. The Red Ribbon Campaign was started when drug traffickers in Mexico City murdered DEA agent Kiki Camarena in 1985. This began the continuing tradition of displaying Red Ribbons as a symbol of intolerance towards the use of drugs. The mission of the Red Ribbon Campaign is to present a unified and visible commitment towards the creation of a Drug-Free America, according to redribbon.org.

Drug-Free Tennessee is a chapter of the Foundation for a Drug-Free World, an international non-profit organization. Its materials demonstrate the dangers of drugs through factual information and interviews with former addicts giving personal perspectives on each of the substances covered. For more information on Drug-Free Tennessee, visit drugfreetn.org.