Set for October 26-30 this year, Red Ribbon Week is an annual event aimed at raising awareness about the destruction that can be wreaked on lives and communities by drug use.

The National Family Partnership organized the first Nationwide Red Ribbon Campaign, and since its beginning in 1985, the “Red Ribbon” has touched the lives of millions of people around the world.

How it started

The movement began in response to the murder of DEA Agent Enrique Camarena in 1985, while he was on assignment in Mexico. Emboldened by the tragic event, parents and children in communities across the country began wearing red ribbons as a symbol of their commitment to raise awareness of the killing and destruction caused by drugs in America.

According to the National Family Partnership, friends and neighbors began wearing red badges of satin in honor of Camarena’s memory and his battle against illegal drugs.

Parents, tired of the destruction of alcohol and other drugs, had begun forming coalitions. Some of these new coalitions took Camarena as their model and embraced his belief that one person can make a difference.

The Ribbon

These coalitions also adopted the symbol of Camarena’s memory, the red ribbon.

“The Red Ribbon Campaign is a fun, powerful and effective way to deliver focused, branded, healthy, anti-drug messages to the public,” says NFP President Peggy Sapp. “The winners of the National Red Ribbon Awards honor DEA Agent Kiki Camarena’s legacy by helping to create a drug free America through the promotion, support and growth of the National Red Ribbon Campaign.”

The Pledge

Learn and take the official Red Ribbon Pledge below:

As parents and citizens, we will talk to our children and the children in our lives about the dangers of drug abuse.

We will set clear rules for our children about not using drugs.

We will set a good example for our children by not using illegal drugs or medicine without a prescription.

We will monitor our children’s behavior and enforce appropriate consequences, so that our rules are respected.

We will encourage family and friends to follow the same guidelines to keep children safe from substance abuse.