Sydney Sharpe, Calgary Herald, June 6, 2000
Raves are getting a bad rap. They tend to be blamed for every ill that befalls a forlorn lad and lassie.
Raves are the scapegoat for a misspent youth. They're also another example of the generation gap that occurs -- unsurprisingly -- every generation.
In my youthful days, raves went by another name: love-ins.
Like raves of today, there were drugs if you wanted them. But that certainly wasn't why everyone went. There was also booze, but that's banned at raves today.
We wanted to be with our own age group, where everyone understood what life was about (as if!), and the music was loud -- and ours.
Raves are the same. Yes, there are drugs, but guess what? Drugs are available in Grade 7. Is that any reason to ban junior high?
We need to take a responsible look at raves, and Monday's meeting hosted by Children's Services Minister Iris Evans is a start.
Like many parents, I was so worried about raves that I banned my teenage son from attending any. When he turned 18, I felt he was able to make an adult decision.
He did just that. He insisted I had raves all wrong, and if he wanted drugs he easily could have had them years before. My son was right, of course.
He went to the rave, stayed out late, got back safe and drug-free. And he had a great time.
Raves are the culture of young people, celebrating.
"Peace, love, unity and respect are the guiding principles of the rave," says a former raver. "People are treated equally, and aren't marginalized."
The kids have found a new way to stay off the streets at night, and to express themselves as a group, non-violently.
"I think it's brilliant that they're recommitting to each other in a peaceful way," says a reader who works with teens and young adults. "They're not pretending to be adults. They are who they are."
Adults party differently. Too many drink and drive home drunk. There are far more fights between adults at bars than there are between teens at raves.
Yes, there are drugs like ecstasy available, but ecstasy is not the drug of choice at the raves. It's far too expensive, and is more likely available at the many downtown watering holes than it is at raves.
If the kids are taking drugs at raves, they're more likely smoking pot and its cheaper cousins.
There's no move afoot to ban downtown bars because drugs are rampant, but the rules for raves are different.
Ravers want to know why. They believe there's too much misinformation that marginalizes even more the teens and young adults who attend.
"Kids are going to find ways of accommodating their needs and lifestyles," says my source. "They will develop a culture to party."
As they always have.
I spoke with Russ Piche, the program director for Alberta Safe House Society which provides shelter to teenagers. He knows kids who attend raves and believes that ravers have been unfairly targeted.
"As soon as there's an incident at an event where teens go, there's a crackdown and more control," Piche says.
"Instead, let's start to be more pro-active and educate people. We have a responsibility to demystify rave culture."
Piche and others working with city youths worry that banning raves will make them more tempting, ultimately harming the very youth we want to protect.
The solution is public awareness, like the Evans meeting, and education.
"Commit yourself to learning what the rave scene is about," advises Piche. "There's a huge mystery and a fear of the unknown."
Any taboo against raves will push them underground. It's already happening. Raves that once occurred in public buildings are held outside the city, in unsafe and reclusive spots such as abandoned warehouses and barns.
Because rave promoters are afraid of being shut down, they don't announce the event in advance. The rave becomes secretive, transportation is risky, communication non-existent, and any medical help unlikely.
Ald. Jon Lord, who attended the Evans meeting, wants to see raves take place in a safe, managed environment.
"The young people who spoke at the meeting were eloquent. Let's do the right thing," Lord told me.
"If raves go underground aren't we just as responsible as if they were held in city venues?"
We need to minimize any problems by having raves regulated, accessible and well-managed. They have to be safe as well as fun.
As for drug use, there's not much we can do at raves when drugs are rampant in society anyway. Most kids have already figured out drugs.
"Kids who weren't taking drugs weren't pressured by their peers but were celebrated," Lord recounted of the youths who told their stories at the Evans meeting.
"They just wanted to dance and have fun at the rave."
Isn't that just what their parents wanted at the wild and crazy dances of their youth?
Of course, if we get too understanding about this, the kids might just move on to something else.
If the parents say its okay to rave, it's already too uncool. And on we go to the next generation gap.
Sydney Sharpe can be reached at 235-7134 or by e-mail: sharpes@theherald.southam.ca