The DC Traveler

Finding and developing substances to relieve pain have been around almost as long as man. The first opiates, derived from the poppy, have been documented as far back as 4000 BC.

Searching for an effective medically-safe pain killer, led to the discovery of a wonder drug, morphine, in 1804. It’s appropriately named after the after the Greek god of dreams, Morpheus. But initially was used in a rather unique way - as a cure to help people overcome the grips of opium and alcohol addiction. Later, it became the much needed pain-killer of choice on the battlefields of the U.S. Civil War.

The excessive use of medical morphine led to an estimated 400,000 veterans returning home suffering from morphine addiction or as it was called “soldier’s disease”.

Morphine and other so-called “wonder drugs”, such as heroin and cocaine, also had dark and unintended consequence - drug addiction.

San Francisco was the first city to pass laws in an attempt to control the impact to society of the spread of opium addiction, by restricting opium dens in 1875. Thirty-one years later, the passage of the Federal Pure Food & Drug Act forced medicine producers to list dangerous drugs, such opiates and cocaine, on their bottles.

Until post-World War II, drug abuse was a minor problem in the U.S., due partly to effective control of the world’s production of opium and coca. But in the 1960s, once again, the U.S had to confront and growing problems of drug abuse, user addiction and illegal drug trafficking.

In 1973, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) was created to enforce federal drug laws, notably to counter the popularity of cocaine, marijuana and LSD.

By 1979, the peak period of drug use in America, one in ten Americans used illegal drugs on a regular basis.

Since then, the abuse of illegal drugs such as meth and crack have reached epidemic levels, fueled by more and more sophisticated criminal groups creating more highly addictive and dangerous drugs.

The DEA Museum in Washington, DC, offers visitors exhibits, videos and interactive displays on a variety of drug related topics, including drug abuse, drug enforcement and anti-drug education.

The current exhibits include:

• Good Medicine, Bad Behavior: Drug Diversion in America

This interactive exhibit explores the history of prescription drug abuse, illegal web-based pharmacies and the impact that self-medication can have on the human body.

• Target America

From the ancient Silk Road carrying opium to Europe, to modern day narco-terrorism, this exhibit explores the costs to American society and the impact illegal drugs have on users, children and the environment due to global illegal drug trafficking and its link to terrorism.

And in case you forgot the classic This is your Brain public service announcement, created by The Partnership for a Drug-Free America, here it is.

And a more recent version addressing heroin.

DEA Museum and Visitors Center
700 Army Navy Drive
Arlington, VA (map it)
202-307-3463

Dates and Times - Tuesdays - Fridays -10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Admission - Free

Nearest Metro Subway Station - Pentagon City, Blue and Yellow lines, then a 1-block walk.

Parking - Paid parking is available at the Pentagon City Mall parking garage.

Images - Flickr, except #2 from the DEA Museum

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