A Guide to MADD Sites Essay

Advertisements posted on the website facesofdrunkdriving.com share multiple stories of people who were unexpectedly struck by drunk drivers. There was one story in particular that stood out to me more than the others and that was Jacqueline Saburido’s. This advertisement makes a powerful statement about how drunk driving can not only kill someone, but can also scar someone for life. The goal of the organization that posted this advertisement is to never drink and drive. It is not worth risking your life, someone else’s life, or putting anyone at risk of lifelong hardships and injuries. They present

In the very beginning, MADD stood for Mothers Against Drunk Drivers and there initial mission was "to mobilize victims and their allies to establish the public conviction that impaired driving is unacceptable and criminal in order to promote corresponding public policy, programs and personal accountability" (MADD Homepage). According to the cite, in 1984 they changed it to Mothers Against Drunk Driving and they mainly focused on eliminating the crime and prevent the actual act of drinking and driving. They wanted to stop drunk driving and help the victims that were affected by this violent crime. As the years go by, MADD slightly changes their mission. Now, they want to stop drunken driving, supports the victims of this crime, and to prevent underage drinking (MADD Homepage).

First you might ask what is the MADD and what do those letters stand for? Well I will tell you MADD is a lobby group for drinking and driving and they’re a huge organization throughout North America. MADD stands for Mothers Against Drunk Driving and they’re main goal is to prevent people from drinking and driving because it is a huge killer in Canada and US. MADD has helped save more than 268,000 lives

Drunk driving is an issue that effects many people across our nation. People do not realize the affects alcohol can have on the body and mind that slow decision making while driving. This issue begins in the home. Children see their parents, or other adults figures, have a beer or a cocktail and get in the car. Thus, making it seem like it is acceptable to drink and drive. “One in three people will be involved in an alcohol-related crash in their lifetime” (MADD).

Mothers Against Drunk Driving wants to send the message that drunk driving is bad and hurts people, however one of the only images of a person in a bad situation that they can conjure up is a child with a physical disability. Not only do they use the image of a person in a wheelchair to scare people

In essence, the purpose of the NMDA act was to decrease the number of drunk driving fatalities. The number of drunk driving fatalities has decreased and underage drunk drivers are involved in less than half as many today as they were back then. The NMDA act can be seen as successful, only if we skim it and don’t pay attention to the details. The decrease in drunk driving fatalities isn’t mainly due to the NMDA act, and can in fact be credited due to the increase of several safety measures being taken, mandatory laws for airbags and seatbelts, increase in overall awareness, as well as stricter punishments and more serious consequences. The tendency of people to drink and drive could also be credited here.(2)

Mothers Against Drunk Drivers also known as MADD is an organization of individuals that was started about 32 years ago as a way to crack down on the number of drunk drivers on t since MADD's inception, he road and the number of drunk driving-related deaths. The MADD organization was first created in 1980 when the founder, Candy Lightner, had a daughter that was killed by a repeat drunk driving offender. MADD supports the law enforcement heroes that to keep the roads safe. MADD also strives to support policy change like the policy that requires convicted drunk drivers to use in car breathalyzers. All convicted drunk drivers must prove they are sober before the car will start. Drunk driving fatalities are on the decline dropping 12 percent from 2006 to 2008, which proves that they are helping even if it isn’t a great amount it is something. MADD has helped in saving over 300,000 lives and counting in the years since the program has been created. Still there are thousands of people that are killed each year as a result of drunk driving. “The goal of the MADD is to change this number and decrease drunk

M.A.D.D. is a political interest group for all mothers against drunk driving. It was specifically created for mothers of kids who have fallen victim to drunk drivers, whether it be in injury or in death. Founded on September 5th 1980, M.A.D.D. has made a huge impact on the government today and an even bigger impact on society. The idea of M.A.D.D. was first introduced by a mother, Candice Lightner, who lost her thirteen year old daughter in a car accident killed by an intoxicated driver. She took action and initiative after the loss of her daughter to help prevent drunk driving accidents so other parents wouldn’t have to go through the grief of the loss of a loved one, especially their son or daughter. Whether it be spreading awareness,

The third interest group of topic is a single interest group called Mothers Against Drunk Driving, also known as MADD. A single interest group is a group of persons working on behalf of or strongly supporting a particular cause, such as an item of legislation, an industry, or a special segment of society. (Answer.com) Mothers against Drunk Driving (MADD) is a non-profit organization seeking to stop drunk driving, support victims of drunk driving, prevent underage drinking, and push for stricter alcohol policy overall. MADD was incorporated on September 5, 1980, the purposes of MADD as stated in its Articles of Incorporation were “To aid the victims of crimes performed by individuals driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, to aid

In 2013, 10,076 people were killed in drunk driving incidents. Out of those people, 65% (6,515) were drivers, 27% (2,724) were passengers, and 8% (837) were non-passengers (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). Over half of those fatalities (67.1%) involved blood alcohol levels over .15% (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). The legal blood-alcohol content is .08%. Drunk driving caused 31% of deaths in car crashes in 2013 (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). In 2012, 402 people were killed by alcohol impairment in North Carolina (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). These numbers, though they seem astonishing, have been cut in half since 1991 (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). Even though the number of fatalities has been lowered, that number is not low enough. Most drunk drivers are repeat offenders. Lives are being taken because of the careless attitude of the drunk drivers. Drunk driving is selfish; those who commit this crime do not think about the extreme consequences of their actions. In North America it is estimated that 1-5 drivers has been drinking and 1 in 10 is legally impaired on any Friday or Saturday night (Root). Many groups, including MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), are fighting to stop drunk driving. Unfortunately, drunk driving cannot be stopped. People will always commit this heinous crime. The numbers may go down, but unfortunately there will always be a number. The only way to continually decrease the amount of lives lost is to increase punishments for drunk driving.

MADD Canada is a very positive social movement. It has changed the way our society views impaired driving since it was created. This organization is constantly evolving and changing to make sure that the future of Canadians and other worldwide are safe from impaired driving. It has tackled a major issue that can affect many people since people do drive drunk. It has not eradicated impaired driving, but it has made society more knowledgable about it and understanding the signs of drunk driving. Without this organization, many victims and survivors would not have somewhere to turn to for help and counselling. It has also changed some laws in regards to person under 21 having zero blood alcohol content. This is important as young people are beginning

U.S. Department of Transportation. "About Drunk Driving." MADD - About Drunk Driving. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 25 Jan. 2011. Web. 23

In 1984, MADD changed its name from Mothers Against Drunk Drivers to Mothers Against Drunk Driving. This carefully considered change was made because MADD is opposed to the criminal act of drunk driving, not individuals. MADD also updated its mission statement to “Mothers Against Drunk Driving provides grassroots leadership to create major social change in the attitude and behavior of Americans toward drunk driving."

This social movement has a victim hotline. The victim hotline is available for free for survivors and victims of impaired driving accidents. This hotline is available 24 hours a day seven days a week and provides support to victims. By calling this hotline the survivor can get help about where to go for counselling or any other services which the MADD member can supply them with. Victims can also email the Victim Services Manager. They provide the same support as over the phone, but some individuals may not be as open asking questions over the phone. These two support lines enables the victim to get help and it is anonymous. It provides resources to victims who lost loved ones or received injuries from an impaired accident and they are on their road to recovery.

The organization MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) was formed in the nineteen eighties and has been trying to spread the message to people of all ages that “impaired driving is unacceptable and criminal” (About MADD: History, 2017, p. 1). They use their platform as a way to reach out to victims of this crime and end drunk driving. This campaign has four initiatives to make a change. The first one is to support more high visibility law enforcement, such as DUI checkpoints. If drivers know there is a high chance of them getting caught, they are less likely to do it. The second vision they wish to be enforced is ignition interlocks or in-car breathalyzers for all convicted drunk drivers. Along the lines of this and projecting more into the future, the third desire is advanced vehicle technology. A breath/touch sensor would be inserted in cars to ensure the driver’s blood alcohol level is below point zero eight