Pubdate: Wed, 24 May 2000
Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)
Copyright: 2000, The Globe and Mail Company
Contact:  http://www.globeandmail.ca/
Forum: http://forums.theglobeandmail.com/
Author: Gay Abbate
Bookmark: additional articles on Ecstacy may be found at 
http://www.mapinc.org/mdma.htm and articles on raves may be found at 
http://www.mapinc.org/raves.htm

LEGALIZE DESIGNER RAVE DRUG, AUTHOR URGES INQUEST

Professor Advises Governments To Beware Of Moral Panics

Toronto -- Governments should legalize ecstacy, says a university professor 
who told an inquest yesterday that the drug is the subject of the latest 
"moral panic" to sweep across North America.

"Since the late 1950s, we've had one of these moral panics about a 
substance every four years," said Philip Jenkins, a professor of history 
and religious studies at Pennsylvania State University (Penn State).

The author of The Symbolic Politics of Designer Drugs testified yesterday 
at the coroner's inquest looking into the ecstacy-related death of Allan 
Ho. The 20-year-old university student collapsed and died while attending a 
rave at an underground garage last Oct. 9.

The inquest, which winds up tomorrow, is looking at the rave culture, 
including the prevalence of ecstacy, and at ways to prevent further 
ecstacy-related deaths.

Prof. Jenkins told the hearing that ecstacy should be legalized because it 
can be a useful medical tool. Since it was first produced in Germany in 
1912 and until the United States banned its use in 1985, the U.S. medical 
community prescribed it to help patients confront traumatic childhood memories.

Mr. Jenkins said "moral entrepreneurs" are spreading the panic over 
ecstacy, just as they did in the past over other illegal drugs.

He defined a "moral entrepreneur" as a person who develops and presents 
something as a problem and then becomes the leading spokesperson on the 
subject.

Yesterday was the first time Prof. Jenkins has testified on raves. Despite 
his book and expertise about designer drugs, he could speak only about the 
U.S. drug scene and rave experience. He said what little he knows about the 
Toronto experience has come from media reports.

Outside the hearing building, Prof. Jenkins elaborated about his 
impressions, saying that the scare over ecstacy and raves currently holding 
sway in Toronto is the classic moral panic.

He added that the driving force behind the scare is Toronto Police Chief 
Julian Fantino. "As far as I can see, the police chief is very active as 
the entrepreneur in this," he said.

He refused to comment further about the chief's war on ecstacy, other than 
to say that he was worried about driving raves underground.

He told the jury that scares about a specific drug can be precipitated by a 
single horrible incident that then is seen as the norm. He also criticized 
law-enforcement agencies for using these scares to obtain funds and to 
justify their existence.

"Moral panics will always happen, but people need to be critical of the 
claims and look for words such as 'epidemic' and 'addictive,' and ask if 
there is evidence to support the claims," he said.
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MAP posted-by: Thunder