Communities Talk: Prevent Underage Drinking

The City of Atlanta is known for its tourist attractions, its proud athletics teams, and its historic heritage. However, several communities within Atlanta experience significant disparities compared to their neighbors—poverty, homelessness, blighted communities, drug trafficking, prostitution, 24-hour beer and wine retailers, and poor health outcomes. These factors may contribute to the use of substances among youth, young adults, and adults.

• Securing a second location

Unfortunately, the first location where we wanted to host our event informed us of a conflict that did not allow us to use their facility. We then contacted another partnering organization and were able to host our event at that location.

• StopAlcoholAbuse.gov website
• Communities Talk website
• Communities Talk toolkits

• Educated youth and parents
• Made making good health behavior choices fun and engaging
• Raised awareness of substance abuse and/or underage drinking issues in our community

Parents and youth attended our substance use prevention event and participated in a round table discussion on the consequences of underage drinking, their environment, and methods to prevent substance use. They also participated in a quiz created and led by youth. Parents learned vital information on keeping their children safe and drug free. We plan to host another health education session with more parents and youth.