CINCINNATI - In response to the Cincinnati Enquirer forum “Drinking age: 21 or 18?“ on August 24, 2008, the Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati has issued the following statement:

The Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati agrees that levels of underage drinking and high-risk (binge) drinking on college campuses remain unacceptable and should be a priority for the administrations. The Coalition disagrees that the solution is to lower the drinking age.

College drinking has become part of the culture of a college students’ environment. Alcohol advertising at campus athletic facilities and events, tail-gating practices, the density of alcohol outlets near college campuses, college ‘ID’ nights and drink specials, all serve to promote college-age drinking at a time when young adults are transitioning to a new social and developmental stage.

More importantly, lowering the minimum legal drinking age sends a message to youth of all ages that alcohol is “not that dangerous.” The regional Student Drug Use survey data from the Coalition continues to demonstrate the correlation between youth (7th to 12th grade) perception of harm of alcohol and student consumption rates. According to the 2008 survey, 83% of 7th graders in our region consider alcohol to be harmful, and only 4% of 7th graders used alcohol regularly*. In contrast, only 58% of high school seniors viewed alcohol use as harmful and 40% reported drinking on a regular basis. (*regular use is defined as drinking alcohol in the previous 30 days)

Rather than enabling this risky behavior by advocating for a lower minimum drinking age, the Coalition supports a comprehensive approach by colleges that targets at-risk individuals, the whole student population and the broader community surrounding the campus.

The Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati opposes any form of legalization of alcohol under the age of 21, and encourages college administrations to think of the consequences of encouraging the legal purchase and consumption of alcohol for nearly all of its students. The Amethyst Initiative fails to provide clear evidence as to why a lower drinking age would actually decrease use. The Coalition for a Drug-Free Greater Cincinnati instead supports increased prevention programs, practices and policies, including formation of a campus/community coalition (or support of an existing one), aimed at reducing underage drinking and other high risk behaviors for those under the age of 21.