Red Ribbon week is known to be the largest drug prevention campaign in the United States with over 80 million people participating in the cause to keep kids drug-free, according to redribbonweek.org. All over the nation, students in various schools partake in this week by wearing red, decorating the school with red ribbons, and following the other spirit days of the week.
This year, from October 23 to October 26, Clark celebrates its annual Red Ribbon week with students dressing up in the assigned clothing of the day to fight against drug use. This year’s theme is “Be Kind to Your Mind” and to make a personal commitment to live drug-free.
At Clark, students participated in the week-long event with the spirit days as follows: wearing hats on Monday, as if to say “hats off to those who don’t use Drugs,” jerseys on Tuesday, to symbolize “[teaming] up against Drugs,” red on Wednesday, in support of “putting a stop to Drugs,” and finally, college gears on Thursday to “[look] into the future.”
Apart from students, some teachers also show their support for Red Ribbon week and wear the assigned spirit days to support the prevention of drugs.
“My family is a Chicago Bears’ fan, so I just took one of my husband’s jerseys and wore that. It was nice because I got to have football conversations with many of the students” Shahverdian said.
Each year, KATS (Kids Against Tobacco Smoking) Club takes the responsibility for Red Ribbon week by tying red ribbons all around the school, even on the astronaut statue in front of the office, to symbolize Red Ribbon week.
“My club members works with me to spread awareness of the dangers of tobacco to middle school students. We’ve gone once and we’re going again November fifthteenth,” Der-Gevorkian said. There are a total of 52 club members this year.
Students in KATS Club are learning the different negative effects of smoking and spreading awareness to others about the short and long term effects of smoking along with how vaping affects teenagers. Later on in the year, they will present to various middle schools in the district to teach young kids about the different kinds of electronic cigarettes or vapes sold to people their age.
“Tobacco companies use fruity flavors to make vapes appear like candy,” senior Camila Cancik, secretary for KATS Club, said. “They do this so they can get a younger generation hooked on their tobacco products to be able to have lifelong customers. This is really important to know to stay educated and to teach other people that it’s okay to say no to peer pressure.”
Cancik believes that smoking from a young age could be dangerous and is a big problem in today’s society.
“It’s super important for me to participate in Red Ribbon Week because I’ve been a member of KATS Club since my freshman year, so I want to show my support for KATS as well as make sure my peers are aware that smoking has life threatening long term effects,” Cancik said.
Overall, the main message of Red Ribbon week is for students to be reminded to love themselves and live a healthy and drug free lifestyle.
