Prevention is a Privilege: Black Drug-free Community Leaders Implementing Drug-free Community Coalitions in Black Communities

Abstract

Community-based interventions for youth substance use prevention require high levels of capacity to organize and coordinate community resources to support youth development and create opportunities to prevent youth substance use. This project aimed to better understand what Black prevention practitioners perceive as the requirements for a successful drug-free community coalition. Black prevention practitioners, who were engaged in drug-free community funded coalitions had discussions about coalitions as a strategy for youth substance use prevention in Black communities. These facilitated discussions resulted in consensus over a set of nine core principles regarding successful youth substance use prevention coalition building in these communities.