Response of African-American Communities to Alcohol and Other Drug Problems: An Opportunity for Treatment Providers

• NCJ Number: 200213
• Journal: Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly Volume: 20 Issue: 3/4 Dated: 2002 Pages: 167-174
• Author(s): Mark Sanders LCSW
• Date Published: 2002
• Length: 8 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Historical Overview
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article describes the growing indigenous addiction recovery movements within African-American communities and discusses the potential for delivering culturally relevant treatment programs through collaboration.

Abstract

During the 1960’s and 1970’s, there was a growing response to the problem of alcoholism, with treatment centers cropping up around the Nation. There was also a growing awareness of alcoholism as a major problem within African-American communities. The author describes the emergence and growth of indigenous addiction recovery movements in African-American communities as an effort to deliver culturally sensitive and relevant alcoholism treatment. Five recovery movements are discussed in some detail: Glide Memorial Methodist Church, One Church-One Addict, Free-N-One, Nation of Islam, and African-American Survivors Organization. The author notes that the professional treatment community is faced with an unprecedented opportunity to learn from these indigenous movements how best to treat and heal members of the African-American communities; collaboration between indigenous healers and treatment providers is recommended. References