‘What a march’

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by Al Summers
News Editor • alsummers@timescourier.com

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Last Saturday, April 28, well over 3,000 marchers converged on Ellijay to show unity against methamphetamine, and it was a sight to behold.

I will be the first to admit that I was surprised at the number of people who decided to participate. When the string of marchers stretched out, they covered a distance of one mile and the width of a lane of a city street. For anybody using methamphetamine or considering using methamphetamine, that river of marchers clad in white shirts should have been intimidating. Having them come and visit a user would be most intimidating.

I saw people who probably should have not walked the route from the Lions Club fairgrounds, up Main Street, through town, to Ellijay Elementary School. But, they did it anyway because they believed in the cause. I saw children, both marching and being pushed or pulled in strollers and wagons.

I saw preachers, law officers, judges, teachers, business leaders, accountants, and blue collar workers marching side by side for a common cause. There were even a few recovering meth users who joined the march to tell their story about how this drug ruins lives.

One man who participated in the march told me that the event was supposed to send a message to those who sell and those who use methamphetamine that it is not wanted in this community. Some statistics show that where the marches are held, meth arrests and meth related arrests decline. The sellers and the users move to another area.

Gilmer County Sheriff Stacy Nicholson marched with his son. East Ellijay Police Chief Greg Arp was joined by his wife. Ellijay Police Chief Larry Callahan led the security detail for the march and drove just ahead of the marchers.

All three of the county’s top lawmen will tell you that a way to slow down the problem is for people in the community to get involved and report suspicious activity and then demand that those who are guilty of selling and using face harsh consequences.

With between 3,000 and 4,000 people participating, stretching out along Main Street on a Saturday morning, the message should be loud and clear – no more meth.

And it was reinforced with a march. And, what a march it was.