National Substance Abuse Prevention Month, 2011

Proclamation 8728 of October 3, 2011

National Substance Abuse Prevention Month, 2011

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

By providing strong support systems for our loved ones,
and by talking with our children about the dangers of
alcohol and other drugs, we can increase their chances
of living long, healthy, and productive lives. During
National Substance Abuse Prevention Month, we celebrate
those dedicated to prevention efforts, and we renew our
commitment to the well-being of all Americans.

The damage done by drugs is felt far beyond the
millions of Americans with diagnosable substance abuse
or dependence problems--countless families and
communities also live with the pain and heartbreak it
causes. Relationships are destroyed, crime and violence
blight communities, and dreams are shattered. Substance
abuse touches every sector of our society, straining
our health care and criminal justice systems.

For all these reasons, my Administration has made
prevention a central component of our National Drug
Control Strategy, and we have developed the first-ever
National Prevention Strategy. These strategies,
inspired by the thousands of drug-free coalitions
across our country, recognize the power of community-
based prevention organizations, and suggest that
prevention activities are most effective when informed
by science, driven by State and local partnerships, and
tuned to the specific needs of a community.

By investing in evidence-based prevention, we can also
decrease emergency room visits and lower rates of
chronic disease, easing the burden on America's health
care system. We can improve student achievement and
workforce readiness. Most importantly, we must continue
to support the efforts of parents and guardians, our
children's first teachers and role models, whose
positive influence is the most effective deterrent to
alcohol and other drug use and the strongest influence
for making health choices.

Through national collaboration, community programs, and
the help of engaged youth, parents, guardians,
educators, law enforcement officers, clergy, and
others, we can build a stronger, healthier America.
This month and throughout the year, let us teach our
Nation's young people to tackle life's challenges with
resilience, hope, and determination.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim October 2011 as
National Substance Abuse Prevention Month. I call upon
all Americans to engage in appropriate programs and
activities to promote comprehensive substance abuse
prevention efforts within their communities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
third day of October, in the year of our Lord two
thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.