Glow parties are one of the latest ways for young people to get out, cut loose and enjoy a good time. They’re especially popular among teenagers, with high school students across the nation hosting and attending these types of events. In many cases, glow parties are ticketed events, where guests are required to purchase their admission to the party, and the money raised through ticket sales goes to pay for the elaborate decorations found at a typical glow party. Usually, a glow party will take place at a large venue such as a vacant warehouse, where powerful sound systems are set up to pump the music out while the party goers dance to the rhythm. In theory, glow parties are supposed to be a safe place for high school students to have fun with their friends. They are typically promoted as being alcohol free, making them an attractive alternative in the eyes of parents worried about letting their children attend parties where they could get into bad situations by drinking. More and more, however, word is getting out that glow parties might not be that safe after all.
What really goes on at a glow party? They get their name from the fact that most attendees spend a substantial portion of their time at the event carrying glow sticks around, waving them around in the air, creating a surreal environment in the darkened space. For many of the attendees, however, this sensory experience isn’t enough. They augment their experience by using powerful drugs such as MDMA, more commonly known either as ecstasy or Molly. MDMA has long been associated with the club scene, and has been a fixture at raves and dance parties for more than a quarter century. It is not surprising to find that it has made its way into the glow party scene, given the strong similarity between that type of party and the raves when have been so popular for so long. While it shouldn’t be assumed that all glow parties are drug dens, at the same time it should be noted that many such events are promoted as having on-site medical personnel who are ready to treat party goers who suffer from overdose, a clear sign that a large percentage of those involved in hosting and attending glow parties know exactly what they’re getting into.
The Risk Glow Parties Pose to Teens
Another major risk associated with allowing your children to attend a glow party is that they are a ripe target for sexual predators. Such people may see in glow parties an ideal opportunity to take advantage of young women who are vulnerable in the dark, surrounded by strangers and potentially under the influence of drugs such as ecstasy, which are designed to create a false sense of euphoria and loss of inhibition. Glow parties may be billed as a safe and fun way for your children to spend an evening, but in practice they are often found to be anything but that. Young people who attend such parties are likely to be offered drugs, and when they are they may feel an overwhelming sense of peer pressure to just go with the flow and be part of the scene. Just as bad, there is a possibility that they will be slipped drugs in a drink or food, unwittingly getting high and later suffering the consequences. It might not make you popular with your children or cool in their friends’ eyes, but it is very much in their best interests to tell them “No” when they ask to go to a glow party. The party they want to go to might be safe, but it might not, and it would be better for you to not have to find out the hard way.