The following information is from The Parents Empowered Campaign:
Usually parents remind teens not to drink. This holiday season, larger-than-life cutouts of teens are greeting shoppers at local alcohol stores and reminding them to keep alcohol away from kids. The teens will be introduced on Monday, December 20, 2010, from 11 a.m. to noon at the Utah State Liquor Store at 1814 E. Murray-Holladay Road. Cutouts will hang from the ceiling and peer through the door with messages telling parents to keep alcohol inaccessible to kids. They are “hanging out” in all 42 state liquor stores and will stay throughout the year to remind parents to set clear rules and expectations for their children about no alcohol use.
A representative from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (DABC), the president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and state prevention specialists will be available for media interviews.
According to the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, sales jump substantially during the holiday season – more than a $12 million increase from November to December last year – thus making alcohol more readily available in homes and more obtainable by teens. Sales comparisons released by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control for the two months of November and December 2009 show:
Sales in November 2009 were $21,352,400.
Sales in December 2009 were $34,731,624 (up $13,379,224 or 63% from November).
Messages on the cutouts read:
Getting alcohol is hard for kids. Please don’t make it easier. Most underage drinkers get their alcohol from home.
Keep alcohol out of reach. Most kids get their alcohol from home.
Keep alcohol out of reach. Teen drinkers are five times more likely than adults to become addicted.