Red Ribbon Week Returns Across the Midwest Campaign Champions Prevention to Advance a Fentanyl Free America

OMAHA, Neb. – The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Omaha Field Division is joining with millions of community members across the nation October 23, to kick off Red Ribbon Week, the nation’s oldest and largest drug misuse prevention awareness program. Over the course of nine days, members of the DEA will provide drug education presentations to communities across the five-state Division, landmarks will be lit red and proclamations signed declaring Red Ribbon Week as a time for citizens to demonstrate their commitment to a drug-free lifestyle.

Now in its 41st year, Red Ribbon Week honors the legacy of Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena who was kidnapped, tortured and murdered while investigating members of a drug cartel in Mexico. The annual Red Ribbon Week campaign supports DEA’s Fentanyl Free America initiative by providing a call-to-action to increase public awareness and education around highly addictive, dangerous drugs containing fentanyl and the emerging drug threats that continue to fuel the opioid epidemic.

This year’s Red Ribbon theme, in collaboration with National Family Partnership, is “Make a Difference. Be a Hero. Stay Drug Free,” highlighting how living a drug-free lifestyle helps build a brighter future.

“Red Ribbon Week serves as the cornerstone of DEA’s prevention efforts,” DEA Omaha Field Division Acting Special Agent in Charge Rafael Mattei said. “This is a time to remember and reflect on Kiki’s career and the sacrifice he made. It’s also a time to discuss the deadly drug threats impacting every corner of our nation. Join us this week by wearing red, reminding those around you of the lethal consequences of drug experimentation and committing to a drug-free lifestyle.”

Governors in Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota signed proclamations declaring October 23-31 as Red Ribbon Week while multiple landmarks across the Division will be lit red beginning October 23. Among the list of landmarks is the Nebraska State Capitol (Lincoln, Nebraska), City Hall (Sioux City, Iowa) and 35W Bridge (Minneapolis, Minnesota).

Through the first nine months of 2026, DEA investigators have removed more than five million deadly doses of fentanyl from communities in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. Fentanyl, the nation’s deadliest drug threat, has been seen in both pill and powder form in an array of colors. A lethal dose, just 2 milligrams, can often go undetected and has been seen mixed with other substances. Learn more about the drug threats touching our nation in the recently released 2026 Drugs of Abuse publication.