Fighting Back

Fighting Back is a comprehensive substance abuse program funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Its purpose is to develop communitywide projects and initiatives to reduce the demand for alcohol and illegal drugs. The program currently operates in 14 American communities: Columbia, South Carolina; Charlotte, North Carolina; Kansas City, Missouri, Little Rock, Arkansas; northwest New Mexico; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; New Haven, Connecticut; Newark, New Jersey; Oakland, California; San Antonio, Texas; Santa Barbara, California; Vallejo, California; Washington, D.C.; and Worcester, Massachusetts.

According to Spickard, Dixon, and Sarver (1994), each of these communities has made promising progress in addressing alcohol and drug issues:

• The Greater Columbia Fighting Back project in Columbia, South Carolina, was instrumental in leading the Richland County School District to ban the use of tobacco products on school grounds and school-sponsored activities.

• Project NeighborH.O.O.D. in Kansas City, Missouri, hired organizers and mobilized citizens to fight visible, street-level drug problems.

• Little Rock Fighting Back in Little Rock, Arkansas, "implemented 'Insure the Children'--an insurance program covering a wide range of substance abuse problems for 26,000 youth in public schools" (p. 121). Also, the Little Rock Neighborhood Alert System created nine neighborhood centers to fight the symptoms of declining neighborhoods. With a staff of police officers, a code enforcement official, a neighborhood facilitator, and a receptionist, each center works to eliminate "crack houses" as well excessive noise and junk cars.

• Northwest New Mexico Fighting Back worked to elimiate drive-up window sales of alcohol. It also helped to a build an Alcohol Crisis Center and to pass a local excise tax allocated for treatment of alcohol abuse.

• Milwaukee Fighting Back in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, sponsored an "Erase and Replace" campaign to help reduce the number of billboards and signs advertising alcohol and tobacco products.

• New Haven Fighting Back in New Haven, Connecticut, worked to expand an after-school program offering activities, courses, and recreation for area youth.

• Newark Fighting Back in Newark, New Jersey, developed the Public Inebriation Nuisance and Trash (PINT) Program to deal with the problem of public drinking near liquor stores. "PINT teams, composed of city sanitation workers, alcoholic beverage control officers, police officers, and addications treatment providers, have set up a schedule of 'sweeps' around well-known trouble spots in the city. The sweeps involve citations to liquor dealers for any violations of law, a clean-up of the area by sanitation crews, distribution of treatment information and Alcoholics Anonymous schedules and meeting places by treatment providers, and protection of the effort by police officers" (p. 123).

• East Oakland Fighting Back in East Oakland, California, developed the Grandparents as Second Parents (GASP) program, a support network for grandparents who are primary caregivers for children.

• San Antonio Fighting Back in San Antonio, Texas, co-developed the "La Salida" program, a weekend program to help youth build confidence, discipline, and self-esteem.

• Santa Barbara Fighting Back in Santa Barbara, California, provides an early identification specialist in the local hospital emergency room during evening hours. "The specialist guides emergency room patients to alcohol and drug services when their injuries or illnesses seem to be related to substance abuse. This opportunistic intervention appears to be an efficient and effective way to target high-risk behavior at a teachable moment" (p. 123).

• Vallejo Fighting Back in Vallejo, California, helped the city to develop "one of the toughest 'conditional use permits' in the state of California" (p. 124).

• The Fighting Back Project of the Marshall Heights Community Development Organization in Washington, D.C., operates an Intake Center to help place people into treatment or aftercare programs.

• Worcester Fights Back in Worcester, Massachusetts, established the Treatment Readiness Project, which matches treatment approaches with people seeking help for substance abuse.