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Feature
WedNEsdAy, M arcñ 14, 2001
The CI ac I camas P rínt
OANCINö:
Drug testing offered for ravers' safety
TAM OLIVER
A&E Editor
The sign at right explains what it
means if a person's pill tests posi
tive for the drug ecstasy.
DanceSafe, “a nonprofit, harm
reduction organization promoting
health and safety within the rave
and nightclub community,” of- A
fers drug testing services to /I
promoters of raves, which
includes testing any pillsy
brought into their events.*"
In some cities, the police welcome
their services.
Using trained volunteers,
DanceSafe follows strict protocols
to attempt to minimize damage
caused by ingesting pills contain
ing ingredients other than ecstasy
(MDA, MDMA, MDE or a combi
nation). Additionally, strict paper
work is kept to help trace
pills that later are re
ported as causing ad
verse reactions.
People
at
events such as
raves can
have
a quick analysis (drug screening)
done on their pills to know whether
or not their drug is really ecstasy.
After the pill is given to the
DanceSafe volunteer, the name of
the pill is recorded on a log sheet
along with color, size, measurement
by calipers, logos and whether or
not the pill was bought inside or
they note how many points are on
it. This is to help identify drugs that
are copycats in the event of a later
problem with the drug.
A tiny bit of the pill is scraped
off for testing. The drug is always
returned to the person before the
testing is performed. This is to pre
vent the tester from being charged
This test produced a normal reaction.
This means this pill does contain some real
Ecstasy.
(either MDMA, MDA, MDE or a combination)
with dispensing a
It does NOT mean the pill is “pure.”
Promoting health and safety within the rave and nightclub community.
outside the event. If the pill was
purchased from inside the event,
the pill owner is further cautioned
that statistically, pills sold within
events have a greater probability
of being fake.
After having the person read the
sign, the tester receives the pill and
does the paperwork. In addition to
the written measurements and de
scriptions, the tester _ __
sketches both the front
and back of the pill.
It is important to
note if it is scored.
If the logo is
a crown,
drug known to be ecstasy.
DanceSafe is careful only to re
port the test result and explain what
these results mean. If the drug has
a reaction indicating that it is DXM,
a cough syrup ingredient that has
been passed off as ecstacy,
DanceSafe tells the pill owner all
(There could be something else in it.)
It does NOT mean the pill is “safe.”
(No drug is completely safe, even if it is pure.)
It does NOT tell you how much is in the pill.
(There could be a lot or a little. You never know.)
they know about the adverse reac
tions that have come from ingest
ing this drug. They also explain
that DXM feels nothing like
MDMA. They don’t say a
pill is “bad” to avoid the
risk of being misunder
stood to imply that an
other pill is OK. They
just give straight facts.
Pqople having pills
Rk tested are requested
to report any ad
verse reactions
they have from
the drug. If there
is a bad lot of drugs
circulating, this en-
i ables the police to
* issue warnings to
other recreational drug us
ers.
Different DJ's, different styles, different world
DARREL HOBSON
Sports Editor
Rave dances are becoming
more popular than ever with
teens and young adults. The
high-energy dance music and
bright lights have attracted the
attention of a new generation
of young people all across
America.
Raves have had such an im
pact that owners of night clubs
and mobile DJ services have
had to make critical decisions
about how to run their busi
ness as the rave culture creeps
its way into the main stream.
“We don’t have a policy
against doing raves, it’s just
that we don’t train our DJ’s to
mix the rate style of music,”
said Chad Dowling, owner of
Ultimate Entertainment, the
Northwest’s largest mobile DJ
service.
Dowling went on to say there
is a difference between mobile
or if 1 have done any raves,”
DJ’s and club DJ’s. “We play
said Ultimate DJ Jake Roberts.
Ultimate Entertainment ad-
top 40, R&B, rap and old favor
ites for publicr schools, wed
dings and private parties,
where club and rave DJ’s play
house or techno beats.”
Another thing that worries
Dowling about doing raves is
safety. There is no way to in
sure the safety and security of
mits that they have added more
house and techno songs to their
library due to the large number
of requests they have received
in the last few months.
A n -
For many years, teens have
frequently appeared at the
week for young people. Thurs
day is retro night, Friday and Sat
Quest, a 16 and older club lo-
cated downtown. For the first
urday is current dance hits,
Monday is karaoke night and
Tuesday is Latin dance night.
time, the Quest has substantial
competition,
There
are
club-s
such
All these clubs are under age
facilities and do not allow alco
hol. They check kids at the door
r drugs and weapons as
well. Some of these clubs,
like Ground Zero, are
providing a safe al
ternative to raves,
while others are
just
making
money on a trend
the equipment and the DJ at a
rave party.
Ultimate has never been con
tracted to do a rave party and
probably will never be asked
because it is not their target
market. However, the impact in
the company has been felt.
DJ’s at Ultimate claim that
most students commonly re
quest techno music and bring
glow sticks, necklaces and
glow gum to the high school
dances.
“I get middle school kids ask
ing me if I will play rave music
trend
i
nigh
c 1 u
has come
up that may
be related to ■
the popularity
of. raves. New
dance clubs have
opened up ail
over Portland that target the
young dance crowd.
The Z is a brand new club that
just.opened that has three floors,
all with different music.
as the
Onyx dance club
for teens, which is on 82 Ave.
and Ground Zero in Gresham,
which is smoke, drug and alco-
hoi free and offers activities all
that is hot.
thing is for sure,
One
raves are not just underground
secret parties anymore. It’s a cul
ture of young people that is be
ginning to change the businesses
world.