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Remember your first set of friends growing up? Mine just so happened to be my cousins. Derrell and Daniel were my best friends.

When I was about five years old, my dad would say, 鈥淗ey, we are gonna go to Derrell and Daniel鈥檚 house.鈥� It was the equivalent of going to Disneyland.

I can鈥檛 remember what I ate for lunch yesterday, but I can remember going to my cousin鈥檚 house at a really young age. Derrell was one year older, and Daniel was one year younger than me.

My grandmother (Mama Scott) lived there, along with my Aunt Darlene (Derrell and Daniel鈥檚 Mom). This was on the south side of Chicago in a complex called Parkway Gardens. It鈥檚 gone now, but back in the early 80s, there was a seesaw out front that I loved.

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One of the main reasons I loved going over there is because of my Aunt Darlene. Ahh, she was (still is) the most beautiful woman. I鈥檓 telling you, she would walk into any room and would command attention. I don鈥檛 remember eating anything but fried chicken when I was there.

Let me be specific, she would make me chicken wings and always tell me how handsome I was and how much she loved me. To this day, when I have chicken wings, I think about Aunt Darlene.

Fast forward to the present day, and one of the problems that still exists in our country is drug consumption. According to the CDC, drug overdose deaths rose from 38,329 in 2010 to 70,237 in 2017 and have remained steady through 2019. Then, in 2020 we saw a significant increase, with 91,799 reported deaths.

From 1968-2020, 1,106,859 have died from drug overdose in the United States. Wait, how does that happen? President Nixon declared a War on Drugs in 1971, so you鈥檇 think we wouldn鈥檛 have the problem that we have today.

Let鈥檚 check the receipts. In 1972 there were 6,622 overdose deaths. Then in 1980, there were 2,492 overdose deaths. That鈥檚 when the increase continues. So, if there was a War on Drugs, why didn鈥檛 that stop the problem? Well, let鈥檚 look up what the word 鈥渨ar鈥� means.

War: a state of usually open and declared armed hostile conflict between states or nations

: a period of such armed conflict

: weapons and equipment for war

: a state of hostility, conflict, or antagonism

: a struggle or competition between opposing forces or for a particular end

So was the war on the problem, or was the war on the people?

I鈥檒l let you answer that. Also, what is it about a war that brings in so much money? The U.S. spent $56 billion a year on the war on drugs, spending over $1 trillion in 50 years. All that money is spent, and we are really slim with the amount of drug treatment services in this country.

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Then I hear folks say, 鈥淲ell, why don鈥檛 they get help?鈥� Well, most of the time, it鈥檚 financial reasons, stigma, and sometimes geographic location.

Another problem is how outdated we are with the discussion centered around drugs. For the most part, we are still repeating what Nancy Regan said, 鈥淛ust say no!鈥�

Yeah, so how鈥檚 that working? It鈥檚 not. And for over 50 years, the inaction by our Federal Government has us where we are today.

Drug treatment shouldn鈥檛 just be accessible to those that are financially able. Drugs touch all of us, whether we use drugs or not — our family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, or acquaintances.

Let me take this time to apologize right now. I鈥檓 sure some of my family will be upset with this next part, but this is what鈥檚 on my heart. If you鈥檝e listened to me on the radio, then you鈥檝e heard my stance on this drug issue. What you don鈥檛 know is why I speak on it this way.

I never saw my aunt use drugs. I was a kid, so how would I know? Well, I knew by listening to what adults were saying. It must have been pretty bad cause anytime I would hear her name, it was always connected to the discussion about drugs. Back then, it was crack.

I was really confused, though. I was confused because every time I would see her, she would always say, 鈥淗ello, my handsome nephew.鈥�

I always felt so much love. As a matter of fact, I remember she was dating a guy by the name of Derek. He worked on the radio.

Well, one night, he said the names of my cousin and me, and I thought that was soooo cool. Maybe the seed was planted then that one day I would be on the radio myself.

Through her addiction, she still loved everyone. That was my lesson on drug addiction. Sure, there鈥檚 drug addiction, but inside, there鈥檚 still a beautiful soul. A soul that鈥檚 fighting something that needs so much help.

I speak passionately about this for the love of my Aunt Darlene. Do you know that no matter what, she makes sure to text me on my birthday? And she was the first to text me this year.

My heart goes out to any of you that have lost loved ones due to drugs. I鈥檓 sure it鈥檚 not easy.

My hope and prayer is that there is a dramatic increase in drug treatment facilities. Individuals struggling with addiction need access to quality treatment programs. Period!

While we treat those that are fighting, we also need to improve education. There needs to be more education about the harms and risks of drugs, and I鈥檓 not talking about the one annual school assembly. It needs to be put into our school curriculum. There has always been a battle (war) on the supply but not on the demand. We address the demand through more education.

I will continue to use my platform to help with the drug problem in this country, and I will also use my platform to remind my Aunt Darlene how much I love her. You are still the most beautiful woman in the world, and I love your heart. I know you love me and everyone else, Auntie.

Listen to Gee Scott and Ursula Reutin weekday mornings from 9 a.m. 鈥� 12 p.m. on 成人X站 Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the聽podcast here.