Watch Video"Take It Back" cracks down on underage drinking
David Ortiviz
There's a nationwide youth movement Thursday night to crack down on underage drinking. The event is called "Take It Back." Young people and adults across the country, including in Pueblo, are meeting to talk about the dangers of drinking alcohol.
According to statistics, three teens in the U.S. die in drinking and driving car crashes every day. Also, more than 3 million teens are considered regular drinkers. Take It Back organizers hope to reduce those numbers.
"In our community it is a problem," said Cheryl Reid, Director of Prevention at Crossroads Turning Points in Pueblo.
Just this week a Pueblo teacher, Amanda Tilley, was sentenced to 6 months in jail for providing students alcohol.
"It's so prevalent they're getting it from friends, from parents who have it in their home," said Dr. David Brown, Supervisor of the behavioral medicine division at Parkview Medical Center.
We've seen deadly outcomes from teen drinking. In 2004, three young people died in a drinking and driving crash, so horrible, it stunned the community. "We said no more we can't keep doing that, we need to be proactive and make a difference," said Reid.
The Pueblo Coalition to Prevent Underage Drinking and Drugging helped organize the Take It Back movement in Pueblo. They've been working with teens to study the problem of underage drinking so they can better educate the public. "Youth want to take their communities back. They're not going to let advertisers influence their decisions or peer pressure to influence them, they're going to take back the power, and take back their rights," said Reid.
Doctors in Pueblo say the problem is worse than some people think. "We've seen kids as young as 13 and 14 have severe alcohol addiction, where the first thing they do in the morning is wake up and start drinking alcohol," said Dr. Brown.
Pueblo Police issued more than a thousand citations to teens got caught drinking booze last year. "And actually those are the lucky ones who get caught, because those who get caught can get some prevention and intervention and some education not to go out and do the same thing," said Reid.
But the coalition knows they can't tackle this issue alone. So they're urging parents and youth to get involved--to make a difference.
The Take It Back community briefing will take place at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 5 at the Rawlings Public Library.
