me_irl

Same in the 70’s but with pamphlets.

“Hey Mikey doesn’t wanna do drugs!”
“Have you tried DARE-ing him?”
“Yeah Mikey’ll do anything if you dare him… hey look, Mikey likes it!”

TBQH our DARE program did scare me off of any and all drugs/alcohol for awhile because our DARE program often would bring in motivational speakers for a school assembly to talk about "how drugs ruined their lives" and that really did scare me off of doing most drugs/alcohol. It wasn't the stories of what addiction did to their lives or their bodies, though; it was the speakers themselves *having to be there*. It was the idea that my life might become speaking in front of a junior high or high school assembly *all the time* - THAT would have been my absolute worst nightmare come true.

Or what if a court ordered it or something?! I'd have to learn the whole formula of how to be 3/4ths entertaining/hilarious only to spring the Very Serious, Hush Over the Room Expected moment on the audience when I discovered drugs/alcohol were ruining my life or I almost died, all while a bunch of high school football players were openly sniggering on the back seat of the bleachers. GAH. *shudder*

I was a dare role model in high school. They shipped me off to talk to fifth graders about how drugs were bad.

And then they gave us black D.A.R.E. t-shirts which became highly coveted because irony. And people would trade you drugs for the t-shirts.

Same in the 80s except we had cops with suitcases of bagged stuff from the evidence locker, so we could see what it looks like; and they would tell us about the onset and duration and effects, so we'd know if someone we knew was on drugs; and they would show us educational videos like what songs had the hidden drug references in them, so we would know what to listen to when on drugs... And then they said, "OK kids don't do drugs!" and out the door they went, suitcase full of evidence and all. And we had some music to pick up at the store later.