Community Updates

#MeToo & The Importance of Parents Having Tough Conversations

Published 7 years ago | About a 3 minute read

#MeToo is exposing the scale of sexual assault and harassment for women worldwide, prompting parents to bring up tough subjects with their children. The Health Alliance on Alcohol (HAA) has been working with Dr. Karen Soren, a professor of pediatrics at Columbia University Medical Center, on how parents can talk to their kids about alcohol use, sexual assault, and consent.

Parents are charged with having conversations with their children about several challenging topics, including sexual assault, alcohol and drug abuse, and more. To that end, HAA provides parents and mentors with resources on how to talk to teens about alcohol, and recently released a video that encourages parents to have these ‘tough talks.’

By age 15, about 33 percent of teens have had at least one drink, which can have serious, sometimes life-threatening repercussions. Take Bryan Fitzgerald, for example. Bryan started abusing alcohol at age 15, leading him to live in a world of lies. This mini documentary highlights Bryan’s story, and includes insights from his parents on having tough conversations early on.

The HAA highlights that these ‘tough talks’ should not be passing, one-off conversations. Parents should be consistent with their message and clear that it applies not only in homes but in communities as well. After all, children will be asked to make decisions about risk and safety outside their own homes.

As we work together to promote responsible consumption and safer communities, we encourage you to have tough conversations with the teenagers in your life. We can all help make a difference.

Please share on Twitter: Have tough conversations with #teens & address #underagedrinking. This @DiscussAlcohol video shows why: http://bit.ly/2yLf9LA