#anti-drinking

On This Day in History February 13, 1826: Faced with an ever increasing amount of drinking in the United States and the social ills that accompanied the overindulgence of drinking, The American Temperance Society (ATS), also known as the American Society for the Promotion of Temperance was established in Boston, MA for the “suppression of the intemperate use of intoxicating liquors.” The group was formed by Presbyterian ministers, Dr. Justin Edwards and Lyman Beecher (the father of Harriet Beecher Stowe author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin).

According to the post The American Temperance Society from the Alcohol: Problems and Solutions website:

The formation of the American Temperance Society marked the beginning of the first formal national temperance movement in the US. Within five years there were 2,220 local chapters in the country with 170,000 members and within ten years there were over 8,000 local groups and more than 1,500,000 members who had taken a pledge to abstain from drinking distilled spirits.

The American Temperance Society, like most other temperance groups at the time, called for abstention from drinking distilled spirits but not from beer and wine. This reflected the myth that distilled spirits were more alcoholic than the other beverages. However, standard drinks of beer, wine and distilled spirits all contain an equivalent amount of alcohol -- 0.6 ounces per drink.

With the passage of time temperance groups increasingly pressed for abstention from all alcoholic beverages, including beer and wine, and then pushed for the mandatory prohibition of alcohol rather than for voluntary abstinence.

The efforts of the ATS and other temperance groups throughout the country came to head with the National Prohibition Act aka Volstead Act in the form of the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which established the prohibition of liquors and spirits.

For Further Reading:

The Temperance Movement and the Campaign for Moral Reform from Boundless.com

The American Temperance Society from the Alcohol: Problems and Solutions website

American Society for the Promotion of Temperance founded from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

The Temperance Exhibit of the Lost Museum Archive of the City University of New York (CUNY)

The Temperance Manual of the American Temperance Society for the Young Men of the United States 1836 from Google Books

This Powerful Anti-Drinking Ad From Finland Shows How Kids See Their Parents Who Drink.

This anti-drinking ad shown in Finland asks a simple question: “How do children see their parents when they’re drunk?” The answer to that question is both poignant and terrifying, but necessary for a country where alcohol is a major cause of death.

The ad depicts terrified children living in a world full of monsters. As the ad goes on and the horror movie music builds, the camera cuts to what the…

Monsters - Fragile Childhood (Anti-Drinking PSA Commercial in Finland)

While I was in London earlier this month, I came across this:

It immediately upset me. During my year abroad, one professor in particular made me acutely aware of just how often young women are used in advertisements speaking out against partying. Think about it - how often do you see a male model used to encourage today's youth to lay off the booze? Not very often.

Because if a woman gets drunk, it's not very becoming. Her bad choices could lead to sexual assault (forget about the bad choices of the perpetrator). It essentially boils down to the "fact" that partying and getting drunk is not ladylike behavior and the media has this silly desire to control the actions of young women - what they should wear, eat, how thin or how curvy they should be, when it's appropriate to have sex. And have you ever seen a man front and center in a commercial about cleaning? Gender roles are constantly shoved down our throats.

I think the most important thing is recognizing sexism - even if you feel that you're being nitpicky. Pay attention to billboards and television commercials and you'll see it everywhere. 

For future reference, here are the first five Google image results (featuring people) from the search "anti-drinking advertisements":

Look at all those ladies making bad life choices!

Side Note: I did a little more research on drinkaware's ad campaign (because I don't believe in condemning something without being properly educated and aware). Turns out, they do have one advertisement featuring a man: