EFFORTS TO BAN WHIPPETS
Inhaling the colorless gas nitrous oxide for its euphoric effects is far from a new phenomena. Used in the past as a medical pain reliever, many now abuse the drug in the form of Whippets (also spelled Whippits or Whip-its). Sold everywhere from gas stations to smoke shops, Whippets are very prevalent in the Mendocino County community. Some, however, are fighting against their legality.
Marvin Trotter, former ER doctor and current Head of Utilization Management for Adventist Health, is a major proponent of the ban of Whippet sales.
“The general populace, as myself, was ignorant of the magnitude of the problem until recently,” Trotter says.
After hearing about numerous tragic deaths related to the drug, Trotter realized that definitive action has to be taken to protect Mendocino County’s youth. One accident in particular caught his attention in October of 2020.
“Several months ago, three kids driving 90 miles per hour, high on Whippets, died in Covelo,” he remembers sadly.
Events of this nature occur far more regularly than people understand, Trotter explains. Car crashes related to Whippet use are grievously high. Despite the abundance of lives lost at the hands of Whippets, young people often fail to recognize just how dangerous nitrous oxide can be. Seeing that they are perfectly legal to buy at 18, many adolescents acquire a false sense of security around Whippets. In reality, they induce serious medical problems.
“They cause anoxic brain damage,” Trotter explains. “You essentially are starving your brain of oxygen when you are using Whippets.”
While many characterize a Whippet high as “fun” and “short-acting,” its long-term effects can be harrowing. Users are susceptible to heart attacks, memory loss, addiction, and more.
Their potential for harm extends beyond their users as well. Used Whippet canisters are littered on the ground with such frequency that Trotter describes it as an “environmental disaster.” From the trails of Low Gap Park to the bustle of State Street, discarded Whippet cartridges are everywhere.
To combat this issue, the Ukiah Valley Youth Leadership Coalition has constructed two wooden boxes specifically for Whippet disposal. With plans to place them along the Redwood Trail, the group hopes to decrease the unsafe and unsanitary littering of cartridges. They have also hosted clean-up events.
The Ukiah Valley Youth Leadership Coalition is a local organization that tackles social justice issues. Recent projects in
clude a Restorative Justice Youth Court, which aims to help young low-level offenders avoid incarceration, and a four-part mural project, which sheds light on topics including missing indigenous women and addiction recovery.
“We’re in the business of building resiliency in youth, and we’re doing just that,” says Director Kate Feigin. “They’re the future of this community, so we want them to feel like they have ownership, like they have a say, and that we’re listening to their voices.”
One way in which members of the Coalition, mainly middle and high school students, have dispersed their message is through art. In the room where they meet, numerous paintings made from discarded Whippet cartridges cover the walls. Within the upcoming weeks, they hope to publish a digital storytelling project, which will highlight members’ experiences surrounding the perils of Whippet abuse.
Alongside reducing environmental damage and raising awareness, the Coalition has drafted an ordinance to ban Whippet sales in smoke shops in Ukiah city limits. The ordinance will be presented at the City Council meeting on Sept. 1. At the meeting, council members will decide whether or not to place the issue on the following month’s agenda.
“Normally (City Council) would draft and write the ordinance, (but) we’ve already written it,” Feigin tells. “We want to make it really easy for them.”
Even if this venture is successful, and Whippets can no longer be sold in smoke shops, the Coalition will not be satisfied. They envision a future without any legal Whippet sales within the county. In fact, they have full intentions to propose th change to the County Board of Supervisors.
On this issue, Trotter wholeheartedly supports the Coalition and encourages others to express their approval to local governments.
“Let’s save the lives of Mendocino County teenagers. That seems like a reasonable thing to me,” he says. “I would like the public to realize the loss of life in Mendocino County and to support this on a city and county level.”