Intoxication: derived from the Latin word “intoxicatio,” meaning “to poison one’s self.”
The “straightedge” movement was born almost 30 years ago, spontaneously and simultaneously in different parts of the USA. Youths who had entered the punk rock counterculture as an outlet for rebellion soon realized it was saturated with many of the same crutches and negative influences as mainstream society: drug abuse, promiscuity, sexism, racism, chauvinism, homophobia, and identity found in fashion trends. A new level of rebellion, a counterculture of counterculture, was formed in positive, sober living. This was not so much a political movement as a desire to not be associated with “those guys”: the partying types. The partying types were synonymous with violence, date rape, unaccountability, escapism, and wrecked cars.
The term “straightedge” was officially coined in 1984 in a phone conversation between Ian McKaye (at the time singer of the band Minor Threat from Washington, D.C.) and Kevin Seconds (singer of 7 Seconds from Reno, Nev.). However, sober bands like SS Decontrol and DYS were spearheading the movement in Boston in 1981. The Minor Threat song “Out of Step” states the fundamentals: “I don’t smoke. I don’t drink. I don’t f**k. At least I can f**king think.” Emblems of identity emerged in the forms of a black sheep, an “X”, and variations of the “X.” Soon after the coining of the name, vegetarianism and veganism were de facto added to the regimen. The stage was set for a secular, positive youth movement, and after three decades it is stronger than ever.
Straightedge may sound basic and “common-sensible,” but the social sciences under the surface show a more advanced strategy for revolutionary social change.
From a sociological standpoint, drug use is wrecking, and has always wrecked, a stable family or relationship environment. Seventy-five percent of all domestic violence is directly linked to drug abuse. Sixty-five percent of drug addicts (including alcoholics) are introduced to the substance via their family or closest friends. Fifty percent of the citizens of the USA have a loved one who is suffering from drug abuse at any given time. Twenty-five percent of all deaths can be attributed to drug use. Since drug use is a prerequisite to drug abuse, abstaining from the initial drug use prevents a person from becoming one of the aforementioned statistics. Also, the family’s money is not spent on drugs. Drugs are relatively inexpensive, and a staggering amount of the world’s poor will spend their last dollar on a temporary escape, contributing to their own poverty.
Alcohol manufacturers, coca and marijuana syndicates, and “chemists” have created a colossal destructive industry based on both legitimate and black market demand. Philip Morris Intl and Anheuser-Busch, although both household names, are no more concerned with the public well being than the Sinaloa Cartel (Mexico) or the Noorzai Organization (Afghanistan). By using the tactic of “voting with dollars,” the straightedge movement reduces demand for their “goods” and limits their power, one person at a time. It can be argued that if an activist spends his or her energy fighting against Huntington Life Sciences or Wal-Mart, and then heads home to a six-pack and terrorizing their kids … the gesture is wasted.
Unfortunately, straightedge is also true-to-form with other revolutionary movements in these ways: a) it is exhausting for many, and b) it can lead to social isolation.
The social norm in much of the world is to partake in social drug use (for example, having a beer or two) and attend parties. Sometimes the desire to be part of the majority outweighs the virtues of the counterculture, and many members wind up “selling out” (sometimes after decades of sobriety). More commonly, the presence of a straightedge enthusiast, or “edge kid,” causes the nearest friends and family to develop a negative defensive response to such a positive lifestyle. There are a number of reasons for this: feelings of inferiority, constant reminder of mistakes made via drug use, feeling of recruitment pressure, and seeing the sober person as an outsider who is distancing himself or herself. The “sellouts” often consider themselves shunned (even when self-induced) by the straightedge community, and often become vehement antagonists to the movement.
Whether a person chooses to become a member of the straightedge movement for personal, political, economic, or social reasons, the similarities and trials prove to be no different than in many other kinds of radical groups.
But here’s the bottom line for me. I tried my first drug (cocaine) when I was only 12 years old, and I partook of my last drug (alcohol) at age 13. I have been sober for 21 years and a member and advocate of the straightedge movement for 20. My family lineage is littered with crutches, and my environment is overwhelmingly escapist. Without sobriety, I am certain that my life would have taken a darker turn or even ended in a young death. I cannot prove this, of course, but the proof for me has been watching my childhood friends and family members become addicts and corpses because of drug use. I also find comfort in the knowledge that no pusher, manufacturer, conglomerate or cartel has made a penny from me in the last two decades.
Photo courtesy Nicholas James
