As the leaves start to turn, the days shorten and the morning air gets crisp, Halloween lights emerge in our little neighborhood. This indicates the beginning of the winter holiday season. The holiday season starts on October 31st with Halloween, which has become a notorious holiday for youth trick-or-treating and adult drinking.
Although it is not explicitly stated, everyone knows the house that has a beer keg for the adults along with treats for children, as it is a popular stop for the free booze. The parents go around the corner to help themselves to a red cup and free flowing beer, while the kids trot around to the front to ring the doorbell and say “trick or treat”. This scenario may look different in various neighborhoods, however, it is a commonality in Marin.
Adult drinking is a Halloween norm that our kids see annually which normalizes this alcohol consumption habit in our kids’ minds. Sometimes we forget that our kids are watching us - and are wired to mimic our behaviors. According to the CDC and SAMHSA, watching adults drink frequently is linked to the development of a young person’s positive expectations of their own use of alcohol which can lead to use at an early age.
Raising the Bar was founded in 2017 based on data collected from the California Healthy Kids Survey which showed Marin teen substance use among the highest in the state. Marin County also ranked higher than 90% of all counties in the state for excessive adult alcohol consumption.
Raising the Bar works in collaboration with Marin Healthy Youth Partnerships, Marin Prevention Network, local schools, and other youth organizations. There are more than 3 dozen schools and organizations that promote healthy modeling. These groups request that their members abstain from using alcohol or other substances at youth-centered events.
Trick-or-treating is an exciting, fun and special ritual for young children. This is a good opportunity for parents and caregivers to model healthy behavior and show that we can all have a good time without drinking or using substances. Let's encourage our kids to be kids and enjoy trick-or-treating without alcohol or substance use being a factor.
Raising the Bar is not opposed to adult use of alcohol and other legal substances. The focus is on avoiding the association of alcohol accompanying youth events as is often the case in our community. This is just one strategy to address the dangerously high rates of drug and alcohol use among Marin youth and the negative, and sometimes tragic, consequences.
Join the movement! By working together, we can help reduce the social norm of excessive alcohol consumption and have a direct impact on the health of our local youth and decrease the short and long-term consequences to adolescents, families, and our community as a whole.
Please contact Lisa@mhyp.org to learn more and get involved.