In 2012 former Nixon Drug Czar Robert Dupont, MD delivered the keynote speech at the Drug and Alcohol Testing Industry Association (DATIA) annual conference and described a “new paradigm” for addiction and substance abuse treatment. He advocated zero tolerance for alcohol and drug use enforced by monitoring with frequent random drug and alcohol tests. Detection of any substances is met with “swift and certain consequences.”

And then he proposed expansion of this paradigm to other populations including workplace, healthcare, and schools.

Robert Dupont was a key figure in launching the “war on drugs” — now widely viewed as the failed policy that has turned the US into the largest jailer in the world.

In the 1970s, Dupont administered the experimental drug rehab program called “The Seed” – that was later deemed by congress to use methods similar to those used on American POW’s in North Korea. He would later go on to consult for “Straight, Inc”, a rehab program that treated troubled teens as “addicts”, often for minor infractions or normal teenage behavior.

Deemed the “family oriented treatment program,” Dupont encouraged organization and expansion. Targeting the children of wealthy white families parents fears were used to refer their kids to the programs. Signs of hidden drug use such as use of Visine, altered sleep patterns, and changes in clothing style were used as indications for referral. Any child who arrived would be considered an addict in need of their services. Coercion, confrontation, command and control were the guiding principles. Submit or face the consequences. We know what’s right. The idea was to strip the child of all self-esteem and then build him back up again in the straight image.

Abused, dehumanized, delegitimized and stigmatized-the imposition of guilt, shame, and helplessness was used for ego deflation to facilitate canned and condensed 12-step as a preparatory step on the path of lifelong spiritual recovery.

Children were coaxed or terrorized into signing confessions, berated, and told they were in “denial.” Inaccurate and false diagnoses were given to wield greater control. Reports and witness accounts now indicate that many of the kids did not even have drug problems but by creating a “moral panic” about teenage drug use they exploited parents fears for profit. Straight, Inc. became the biggest juvenile rehabilitation center in the world for rehabilitation and treatment of addiction.

A 12 year old girl was admitted to inpatient addiction rehabilitation for sniffing a “magic marker”–Once!

A Deficiency Correction Order was issued by the Executive Office of Human Services, Office of Children, Commonwealth of Massachusetts Services to Straight, Boston in 1990 that read in part:

“Although Straight’s statement of services states that Straight serves chemically dependent adolescents, a review of records and interviews with staff demonstrate that Straight admits children who are not chemically dependent. For example, one twelve-year-old girl was admitted to the program although the only information in the file regarding use of chemicals was her admission that she had sniffed a magic marker.”

Straight was always making outlandish claims of success but there was no scientific evidence based data to support it. In September 1986 USA TODAY ran an article headlined: DRUGS: Teen abusers start by age 12 which opened with: “Almost half of the USA’s teen drug abusers got involved before age 12…”The article was based on a study conducted by Straight, Inc.

Many former patients of Straight were so devastated by the abuse that they took their own lives. Since then, Dupont has been a key figure in the proliferation of workplace drug testing programs, and once advocated for drug testing anyone in the workplace under the age of 40.