Managing Early HIV Infection, Quick Reference Guide for Clinicians Number 7

8 Pages·1994·0.37 MB·English

by  Agency for Health Care Policy and Research

SubstanceAbuseandMentalHealthServicesAdministration
CenterforSubstanceAbusePrevention
Technical Assistance Bulletin
Urban Youth Public Education
for the African American Community
The Urban Youth Public Education campaign'sprocesses and strategiesprovide
an important modelfor theprevention community. This technical assistance
bulletin synthesizes the lessons learned so that otherAfrican American
communities can replicate the campaignfor theiryouth. It also shows how effective
it can be to target aprogram to a specific racialpopulation.
Research increasingly indicates that the
unique experiences ofcommunities of Researching African
—
color African American, Asian American, American Youth
Hispanic/—Latino, American Indian, Pacific
Islander require programmatic responses Effective targeted programming requires in-
based on the cultural norms, beliefs, and depth research into the realities and con-
needs ofeach community. The emphasis on cerns ofthe population. The Urban Youth
programming targeted for each community Public Ed—ucation campaign's market
grows out ofthis newly gained respect and research exploratory d—iscussions, focus
appreciation for the diversity evident in groups, literature review has provided a
America's population. wealth ofinformation about the attitudes
and beliefs ofyoung, urban African Ameri-
The Urban Youth Public Education
cans and their communities.
campaign was a Center for Substance Abuse
Among the findings:
Prevention (CSAP) initiative that embodied
the concept oftargeted programming not Among urban African Americans under
only in terms ofcultural sensitivity but also the age of 16, substance use is
ofcommunity participation. The campaign, increasing but remains relatively low
which began in 1990, targeted inner-city compared to whites, contrary to
African American children, youth, and commonly held beliefs.
families. The initial 14 campaign sites in- A picture ofresiliency and strength, and
cluded Atlanta, Baltimore, Dallas/Fort Worth,
a vote ofconfidence for African
Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Memphis,
NewYork, Philadelphia, Raleigh/Durham, American youth emerges that
counteracts the stereotypical images
and Washington, DC. Additional campaign
ofhopelessness and despair often
sites have included Boston, Nashville,
associated with the African American
Newark, and Seattle.
community.
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Community members view unfair church deacons, orvolunteers working with
stigmatization in the media as the primary neighborhood youth.
cause ofpervasive negative impressions.
These meetings provide information about
African American youth are highly the campaign to gatekeepers and answer
influenced by—African American adults. their questions. The meetings also provide
These adults —mothers, fathers, uncles, opportunities to obtain information on key
grandmothers provide the role models contacts and to collect resource materials.
who have the most impact on the formation They help position the campaign as a major
ofattitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of initiative and demonstrate a commitment to
community youth. But these adults may also community involvement and control. The
expose children and youth to drugs and meetings also help identify and address
alcohol and/or victimize them through community concerns and frustrations.
violence or neglect. Forming community coalitions. A central
The p—ositive messages inherent in these find- feature ofany plan for local ownership of
ings that in the face ofoverwhelming odds a campaign is forming a community
many African American youth manage to evade coalition to serve as an advisory group.
the lure ofdrugs, that the role ofAfr—ican Ameri- Coalitions generally have between 20 and
can adults is influential and positive rebuke 40 members and represent a broad range of
the media stereotypes. They also effectively citywide and neighborhood organizations
clarify campaign goals and provide direction for and services.
prevention themes and messages.
Identifying a lead agency. A lead agency,
which takes the responsibility for day-
to-day campaign operations and for
supervising onsite staff, is typically selected
Replicating the Campaign in from the ranks ofthe local coalition. This
lead agency should be African American
Other Communities
controlled (in terms offounding mission,
Preparation, flexibility, and innovation are staff, and/or clients served). For a successful
important elements in establishing an Urban campaign, a lead agency should also (1)
Youth Public Education campaign (see box). have citywide jurisdiction. (2) have
Also important are creating community owner- demonstrated fiscal accountability, (3) have
ship, establishing campaign themes and mes- a solid community reputation, (4) have
sages, and using multiple channels and formats. been operating in the community for at least
5 years, (5) be legally established
(incorporated), and (6) have broad-based
Create Community Ownership support.
Five key tasks set the stage for community Recruiting a local coordinator. The lead
ownership ofan Urban Youth Public Education agency will recruit a local coordinator to
campaign: oversee day-to-day activities. In most cases,
the local coordinator is the only paid staff
Holding gatekeeper meetings. Meet with
for a campaign, with staffrepresentatives of
community gatekeepers, including State the lead agency and the local coalition
officials, local CSAP grantees, city officials, serving as volunteers. Local coordinator
and community leaders. In addition to responsibilities include coordinating local
formally recognized community leaders, materials development, assisting national
include those nonofficial leaders who oft—en staffwith pretesting national campaign
exist in the African American community products, conducting ongoing public
men and women held in high esteem, often relations activities, maintaining local
as result oftheirwork as block captains, campaign records and other documentation.
K+Hl
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Helpful Hints for Replicating the
Campaign in the Community
Preparation, flexibiMty, and innova- In addition:
tion are key:
Make no assumptions about the target
Prepare the community to undertake audience. Conduct market research to
a prevention campaign. Take test and validate messages and
advantage ofavailable training and methodologies.
networking opportunities and utilize
Build in sufficient time to conduct
available resources.
market research and gather community
Be flexible. Plans may change, support.
coalitions may fracture, deadlines
may be missed. Flexibility helps to Involve the target audience in the
ensure that opportunities are development of campaign themes and
maximized. messages.
Be innovative. Emphasize the Make sure the local coordinator
strategies that best suit the needs and staffare located—right in the
ofthe African American children, targeted community not downtown
youth, and families in the community. or in some other remote location.
Do not force fit "tried and true"
solutions. Respect each community's Address critics; answer questions;
respond to feedback.
uniqueness.
Develop evaluation strategies to gauge
the impact ofthe campaign efforts.
and planning local kickoffactivities and For a successful campaign, select males and
other special events. females in equal numbers and representative
ofa broad range ofpersonalities and back-
Forming a youth advisory panel. The advice
grounds. Base the selections on recommenda-
and consent ofyouth are an important
tions from coalition members, but look
demonstration ofa campaign's commitment
to African American youth. A community beyond the typical "good student" and include
youth advisory panel, typically composed of all types ofyoung people. Consider leadership
potential as well as grade point average. For
8 to 10 youth, ages 9 to 17, advises the local
coalition on how to develop strategies and example, an advisory panel could include
students from vocational and alternative
activities that appeal to youth and reach the
school settings as well as average students
greatest number oflocal youth. Remember
with strong histories ofcommunity service
that parental consent for participation is
volunteer work.
required.
better things to do than drugs." Teachers,
Establish Campaign Themes clergy, children, parents, and other community
and Messages members applauded the campaign for success-
fully articulating a positive message about
To magnify the positive messages from the African American youth.
market research findings, the campaign's
messages should stress that it is important for
adults to serve as role models and that adult
behavior sets an example foryouth. Campaign
messages should also strive to help youth reach Use Multiple Channels and
maturitywith a sense ofcompetence, respect Formats
for others, and hope for the future. The African
proverb "It takes a whole village to raise a Encourage innovation and promote the Urban
child" epitomizes this concept. By Our Own Youth Public Education campaign through a
Hands, the Urban Youth Public Education variety oftraditional and nontraditional commu-
campaign's slogan, and the circle ofhands nication channels. Include, for example, televi-
joined together that is the campaign's logo, sion and radio public service announcements,
further emphasize this sense ofthe community billboards, and bus and subway posters as well
working together, hand in hand, to solve as bumper stickers, T-shirts, baseball caps,
problems in a spirit ofcooperation and collabo- church fans, book marks, coffee mugs, and note
ration. cards. Enlist local sponsors, develop local and
educational materials, and sponsor special
Campaign messages thus should refute negative
events.
images ofAfrican American youth, support
these youth by celebrating the positive aspects Enlisting local sponsors. Businesses and
oftheir lives and communities, publicize their corporations are an important component of
lower usage rates, and address other ways the the local community. Among incentives for
youth are affected by drugs. All campaign their support ofa campaign are goodwill,
messages can make the following clear: opportunities for name recognition and
product promotion, and exposure to other
African American youth are valued by their
business people in the community.
communities.
Examples oflocal support include a savings
African American youth have demonstrated and loan association in Los Angeles that
impressive resiliency in the face of provided meeting space, giveaways, and
adversity. cash contributions; a local utility company
that funded a campaign reception in Adanta;
African American youth are engaged in a and a local museum that provided staff
wide variety ofpositive activities.
support, art supplies, and exhibit space in
African American youth need the support Detroit.
and attention ofadults to remain drug free. Developing local materials. For example,
Each community must fine tune these themes in Baltimore the local campaign
and messages to meet its specific needs, espe- collaborated with the State attorneys office
cially as they appear in campaign materials. In and the school system to develop an anti-
one community's campaign draft poster, for drug-use poetry book that featured poems
example, the teenagers appeared to be dancing. by inner-city school children. For another
Both youth and adults in the community viewed example, in Houston the local campaign
this as stereotypical. The final version depicted received funding to develop a locally
youth in many activities, including working on produced television public service
the computer, playing instruments, reading, and announcement written and performed by
talking together, and emphasized "We have youth. And in Los Angeles, the local
L
campaign developed a traveling exhibit Sponsoring special events. To kick
highlighting the artistic talents and offthe campaign, hold an essay, rap, poster,
accomplishments ofAfrican American youth or poetry contest. Or hold a
that has been installed at local art galleries communitywide rally and a workshop on
and in public libraries. drug prevention issues. Feature music and
Developing educational materials. drama performances by local African
Highlight findings from market research in American youth. Ask city leadership to
honor the kickoffdaywith an official
educational materials that are targeted to
proclamation orwith other support.
adults and intermediaries and that suggest
ways they can help African American youth Sponsor ongoing activities in the
continue to resist drug use or involvement. community, such as sports, games, health
These materials might include fact sheets, fairs, and other community events. These
an activity planner, and a 10-step guide for activities help keep the community focused
parents. Consider developing additional on the goals and progress ofthe campaign.
educational materials for members ofthe
media to suggest how drug abuse problems
within the African American community can
be coveredwith fairness and sensitivity.
Resources
Center for Substance Abuse Prevention Techni- Center for Substance Abuse Prevention. Cultural
cal Assistance Bulletins. The following titles in Competence Series. The Challenge ofParticipa-
the series are especially relevant and are avail- toryResearch: PreventingAlcohol-Related
able from the National Clearinghouse for Problems in Ethnic Communities, 1995. Avail-
Alcohol and Drug Information (NCADI). able from NCADI.
Identifying the TargetAudience, 1997. National Clearinghouse forAlcohol and Drug
Information, Box 2345, Rockville, MD 20852,
A Key Step In DevelopingPrevention Materi-
[phone] or [phone]. Internet
alsIs To Obtain Expert and Gatekeeper WorldWide Web address: http://www.health.
Reviews, 1994.
org. Provides information on substance abuse
Pretesting IsEssential; You Can ChooseFrom research literature, programs, and educational
VariousMethods, 1994. materials.
You CanAvoid Common ErrorsAs You Office ofCancer Communications, National
Develop Prevention Materials, 1994. Cancer Institute. Making Health Communica-
tion Programs Work: A Planners Guide. 1989.
You Can Use CommunicationsPrinciples Provides information on all aspects ofhealth
To Create Culturally Sensitive andEffective communications including readability and
Materials, 1994. pretesting. To order, call 1-800-4-CANCER.
Pleasefeelfree to be a "copy cat" and
make all the copiesyou want.
You have ourpermission!
Developed and Produced by the CSAP Communications Team.
Patricia A. Wright, Ed.D., Managing Editor
Joan White Quinlan, M.A., CSAP Project Officer
Distributed by the National Clearinghouse forAlcohol and Drug Information, P.O. Box 2345,
MD
Rockville, 20852.
This bulletin is one in a series developed to assist programs that are working to prevent substance
abuse problems. We welcomeyour suggestions regarding information that may be included in
future bulletins. Forhelp in learning aboutyour audience, developing messages and materials, and
evaluating communication programs, contact the CSAP Communications Team, 7200 Wisconsin
MD
Avenue, Suite 500, Bethesda, 20814-4820, [phone].
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