Using Community to Fight the War on Drugs

Using a new idea that has shown some potential in Providence, residents of Wilmington were allowed to “speak back” to drug dealers. The point? Show how even low-level dealing in their city has increased crime and affected families.

The program, called “the High Point Strategy,” attempts to connect drug dealing gangs with the invisible victims – neighborhood residents. The name comes from where the idea first emerged: High Point, North Carolina.

These meetings have the police sharing video evidence against street drug dealers, along with call-ins from local residents who share their stories. Commonly, dealers are not privy to the larger picture – the crimes committed to buy drugs, the lives ruined by addiction, and the way locals feel about living in an unsafe area.

In Providence, police also used neighborhood "champions," who are longtime residents unafraid of speaking up and exerting whatever influence they can to improve the community, said Providence Lt. Dan Gannon, a 25-year veteran of the force. "They're in every neighborhood, people like that," said Gannon.

The question is now, how well this will work in Willmington. Will it be enough to move those on the wrong side in the drug war to seeking other opportunities? Police complain they, “can’t arrest our way out of this,” making almost any new idea worth trying.

One additional benefit comes just by having the community pull together. Even if dealers aren’t keen on changing their ways, the show of force that comes from these meetings can give residents the will (and connections) to take back their streets. Many who fear retribution when acting alone are made courageous by the show of solidarity with their neighbors. Frankly, this type of grass roots power seems like the way to go.