Saturday, August 23, 2008
Miami Herald: The college presidents who want to lower the drinking age to 18 from 21 have got to be kidding themselves. More than 100 of them — some from prestigious schools such as Duke, Tufts, Dartmouth and Colgate — have signed a statement calling for “an informed and dispassionate debate” about the federal law that makes 21 the legal drinking age.
The presidents are supporting the agenda of the Amethyst Initiative, a recently started movement pushing for reconsideration of the National Minimum Drinking Age of 1984. Adherents believe the drinking age should be the same as the legal age for voting, signing a contract, owning a house or car, or joining the military. The college presidents wonder if the restrictions against drinking aren’t so coercive that they encourage drinking, especially the binge drinking that is prevalent on so many campuses.
Absolutely not
The short answer is: Absolutely not. The evidence is all over the place, in countless studies and in the experiences of young people before the drinking age was increased. Studies show that 18- to 21-year-olds drank more before the law was changed.
The presidents should read the recently published College Alcohol Study by the Harvard School of Public Health, which found that binge drinking reflects the culture and conditions created or tolerated by schools. Researchers found that permissive campuses that promote intercollegiate athletics, fraternity and sorority life had more binge drinking. Campuses with policies that ban alcohol and offer substance-free housing options had far less binge drinking.
So Madames and Messrs. College Presidents, the ball is back in your court. If you want less drinking on campus, promote policies that will give you that result.