Patrick Norton, Pennsylvania Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth, National Association of African American for Positive Imagery, 1231 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122, 215-235-6488, penncamy@yahoo.com

This presentation provides a case study in how new research can be put into practice to change unhealthy local environments. The research reports produced by the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth (CAMY), a project of The Pew Charitable Trusts and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, have created new opportunities for advancing debate at the local level about how to protect youth from alcohol industry marketing practices that jeopardize the health and safety of young people. First Amendment concerns have often kept local jurisdictions from acting to restrict alcohol marketing. CAMY’s research has clarified the legal options available to localities to restrict alcohol sponsorships at family-oriented events sponsored by municipalities themselves on public property. This presentation will describe a statewide campaign to change municipal policies in a diverse group of communities in Texas, building on the CAMY research reports. The presentation will outline the efforts of Texans Standing Tall to educate and energize local coalitions, bring attention to the issue in the news media and among opinion leaders and policy makers, and promote policy debate and change at the local level.

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