Drug abuse doesn’t just physically damage our bodies. The demand for drugs damages so much more.

After all, drug trafficking is a global, multibillion dollar business. People have made fame (or infamy) and fortunes from their part in the drug trade. Prominent drug lords such Pablo Escobar have become internationally famous. Escobar has been the subject of books, documentaries, television shows, and movies. His fame doesn’t seem to be diminishing anytime soon, even though the man himself died in 1993.

These drug dealers have earned their money and recognition at the expense of others. Some of these others are rivals in the drug trade. Very often, though, the drug trade claims victims who are trying to do the right thing, such as police officers and other authority figures working to stop the drug trade. The drug trade also affects people who have nothing to do with the trade but are innocent victims of it anyway. This could involve people physically harmed or even killed if they are in the wrong place at the wrong time. For example, innocent people might be caught in the crossfire during shoot-outs of rival gangs.

The drug trade has also ravaged whole geographic regions. In different countries, corrupt drug dealers have threatened and bribed local politicians to ignore their crimes. These drug dealers have even killed politicians and judges as threats to other authority figures who have punished or spoken out against them.

Drug dealing and drug use also damage life closer to home. In many neighborhoods, there are areas such as specific houses, corners, or parks that are designated places to buy, sell, use, and even manufacture drugs. Innocent people have to live near these areas, putting them into constant contact with potentially dangerous drug-related activity.

Drug dealing and drug use do more than just harm the people who engage in these practices. They can (and do) hurt innocent people.