Update and complete the analysis of drug use, consequences and correlates amongst minorities : Vol. 1: Synthesis. Vol. 2: Country profiles. Vol. 3: Annexes. Project CT.01.P1.13

ENGLISH :
A project to map information on the relationships between social exclusion and drugs, focusing on minorities, covering all 15 EU Member States, was carried from Sept. 1999 to Nov. 2000. Unfortunately this report has not been published.
A follow-up project to update and complete the analysis of drug use, consequences and correlates amongst minorities, covering all the EU Member States and Norway, was carried out from Dec. 2001 to Oct. 2002. The study used a qualitative approach. Since much of the knowledge on the drug use of Black and minority ethnic (BME) communities is undocumented, key messages were extracted from the EMCDDA's previous report and used to devise a questionnaire specific to each country and addressed to key informants (drug researchers, service providers and others involved in the health or welfare of BME communities). Ethnic monitoring is an extremely sensitive issue, especially when drug use is being monitored. However, consistent, co-ordinated ethnic monitoring, based on a common set of classifications, is a reliable instrument to measure drug service use and, importantly, non-use, by drug users. Analysis of results of ethnic monitoring from drug services and drug surveys provide a baseline for improvements to the quality of service provision - including equal access for all drug users and more equitable allocation of resources - and can be used to track changes in drug-using patterns and in the uptake of drug services. The link between drug use and social exclusion is well-established, and the evidence collected by this study does not indicate that the drug-using patterns of BME groups are different from those of socially-excluded, white, indigenous populations. However, there are some cultural variations in the types of substances used, and some risk factors specifically affecting drug use amongst BME communities, such as trauma suffered by those coming from countries where there are wars, and the migration experience failing meet expectations. Myths, stereotypes, and scapegoats surround the drug use of BME groups, but due to the lack of research they can neither be confirmed nor denied. Examples are that religion and the "strong social bonds" in some BME communities are protective factors against drug use; that BME females do not use drugs; and, fuelled by adverse media reports, an over-representation in criminal statistics, and because they are highly visible to the white population because of their skin colour, that some BME groups are heavily involved in drug distribution. BME groups face many barriers to drug treatment, education, and prevention services. These include a lack of cultural sensitivity by the service, a distrust of confidentiality, communication problems because of language, a lack of awareness of drugs and drug services, the stigma surrounding drug use within their community, and the failure of drug services to target BME drug users. An Executive Summary of the project results is included within volume 1. (From the author' s abstract)