L.A. Scientologists Reach Out To Save Youth From the Threat of Overdose

Bringing the Truth About Drugs to the first Monster Jam at SoFi Stadium

Huge crowds were expected at the SoFi Stadium on April 29. But it wasn’t the Los Angeles Chargers or Rams they were lining up to see. They were there for the first Monster Jam ever held in the stadium. More than 100 volunteers from the Scientology Churches in Los Angeles were there too, to reach out to fans with the Truth About Drugs campaign of Foundation for a Drug-Free World.

Monster Jams are action-packed sports events where offroad vehicles with heavy-duty suspensions and oversize tires compete in intense contests of speed and skill. They are popular with youth and young families. And these were exactly the demographics the volunteers wanted to reach with their drug prevention campaign. 

While fans were anticipating an exciting and fun-filled afternoon, what drove the volunteers to bring their campaign to the event is no laughing matter.

According to the Centers for Disease Control as reported in The Hill, teen overdose deaths have doubled over the past two years. What’s more, “between 2010 and 2021, the number of adolescent deaths from black-market fentanyl and related synthetics rose more than twenty-fold.” 

This news doesn’t deter the Drug-Free World volunteers. They know the key to turning this crisis around is prevention.

“The only solution is to educate youth, so they don’t start taking drugs in the first place,” says Jessica Hochman, executive director of Foundation for a Drug-Free World, one of the world's largest nongovernmental drug education and prevention initiatives. “It’s not how to safely take drugs. It is how to empower youth with confidence that they are doing the right thing in not taking drugs period.”

The campaign’s effectiveness is its fact-based information that pulls no punches. “Teaching kids the truth about drugs before some dealer or peer tells them lies is what it is all about,” says Hochman. “We provide resources to do just that and in language kids listen to.”

Foundation for a Drug-Free World is a volunteer-based organization with a network of some 200 chapters around the world. Thanks to the support of the Church of Scientology and Scientologists, the Foundation provides the Truth About Drugs secular program and materials free of charge.

Scientology Founder L. Ron Hubbard noted the role substance abuse plays in the disintegration of the social fabric. He wrote: “Research has demonstrated that the single most destructive element present in our current culture is drugs.”

Using the resources from Foundation for a Drug-Free World, volunteers in countries across the globe are reaching their communities with this vital information. See how effective this initiative is by watching episodes of Voices for Humanity on the Scientology Network.

The Scientology Network is available on DIRECTV Channel 320 and can be streamed at Scientology.tv, on mobile apps and via the Roku, Amazon Fire and Apple TV platforms. Since launching with a special episode featuring Scientology ecclesiastical leader Mr. David Miscavige, Scientology Network has been viewed in 240 countries and territories worldwide in 17 languages.