Break the silence: UNITE to Face Addiction

June 25, 2015

Pat Taylor
Community Outreach Coordinator
UNITE to Face Addiction

On October 4, 2015, tens of thousands of people representing organizations and families from the prevention, treatment, criminal justice, health and recovery communities will convene on the National Mall in Washington, DC. We’re grateful to the National ATTC Network and NIATx for standing up as one of the founding partner organizations for the UNITE to Face Addiction rally and for your help in mobilizing people to join us.

We are coming together to let policymakers, the media and our friends and neighbors know that addiction is preventable and treatable, that far too many of those affected have been incarcerated, and that people can and do get well.  As a member of the ATTC Network, you are needed to ignite and grow a movement that will demand solutions to the addiction crisis.

One of our nation’s best-kept secrets is that long-term recovery from addiction is a reality for over 23 million Americans. Regardless of the paths people choose to achieve recovery, their lives and the lives of their families, friends, neighbors, co-workers and communities are vastly improved. People in recovery and their allies are the living proof that there are real solutions to the devastation of addiction.

Although millions prove that recovery is real, more than 350 lives are lost each day to alcohol and other drugs – some 135,000 people each year – more than who die from either homicides or motor vehicle accidents. Another 22 million Americans are still suffering from addiction and the majority never receive any help.

Where is the national outrage about this needless loss of life, the costs to families and the economy, and more importantly, the demand for solutions? It’s time to speak up about the failed policies and poor care due to long-standing stigma and discriminatory public policies. For too long, a great majority of people connected to addiction have remained silent.

The time is now to break that silence.

Why 2015 and Why Washington, D.C.?

• The grassroots constituency that has developed over the last 15 years is organized
• To build on greater acceptance of treating alcohol and other drug problems as health issues
• Too many Americans lack access to the individualized treatment and other recovery support services they need to get their lives on track
• Introduction of the bi-partisan Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) in Congress and other public policy initiatives to address addiction and discrimination
• Across the political spectrum, there is an understanding that current rates of incarceration, including for alcohol- and other drug-related offenses, can’t be sustained

We’ve developed an array of resources that you can use to let other people know about UNITE to Face Addiction that can be downloaded from our web site. We also have a team of field organizers who are mobilizing people in communities across the country to get to Washington, DC for the rally on October 4 and for our Advocacy Day on Capital Hill on October 5. We’re going to make history when we demand solutions to the addiction crisis. Together, we can end the silence.

What you can do:
1. Go to www.facingaddiction.org and sign up to get updates and information about how you can get involved.
2. Contact the field organizer working in your state who is ready to help you mobilize.
3. Share your story about why you’re going to DC on our web page.
4. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter
5. Tell your friends that you’ll be in Washington, DC on 10.4.15 and ask them to join you!

See you in October!

Pat Taylor has over 40 years of experience developing and managing local and national public interest advocacy campaigns on a range of issues including healthcare, the environment, community development and philanthropy.  Most recently she served as Executive Director of Faces & Voices of Recovery from 2003-2014, where she led the development of the organization into the national voice of the organized addiction recovery community.