I recently stumbled upon an article called: Section Yellow offers sober Green Bay Packers fans an ‘oasis’ in a sea of game day alcohol. Articles like this infuse my resentful veins with joy. People are finally catching on to the dangers associated with the normalization of alcohol. The Packers seem to be ahead of the curve with this trend. My hope is that all sports teams will soon follow suit.
John Plageman, the founder of Section Yellow said, “It’s a simple idea. But it has such a strong impact and such big support, because there are a ton of Packer fans that are sober that will not go to games because of the drinking culture.” Currently Section Yellow has 1,200 members and that number is growing. It makes me emotional to hear about sober communities forming out in the real world, especially in environments where binge drinking is the norm. There is nothing more badass than going against the grain.
However, my joyful bubble burst when I scrolled to the bottom of the article and read the comments. Someone said, "Too bad this breaks one of the fundamental traditions of AA (anonymity)." My first reaction to this comment was quite strong. I thought: "Good! It’s about damn time someone broke free from the idea that us sober folks need to keep quiet, that we need to be hidden away in dingy church basements. We belong out in the real world just like everyone else. Fuck AA and fuck the idea that anonymity is helpful. We should be shouting from the rooftops that Section Yellow exists, not hiding further."
Something about that comment awoke my anger, which means something much deeper was triggered inside of me. I think many common AA beliefs make me crazy because I carry so much guilt and shame for having zero success within the Twelve Step framework. I worry I sound ungrateful for saying that Twelve Step based programs were, for me, more traumatizing than healing. Just yesterday my therapist diagnosed me with PTSD for the first time in my life. The majority of my flashbacks and nightmares revolve around my experienves at three different grossly underfunded and dehumanizing Twelve Step based inpatient rehab facilities. That comment struck a trauma-based nerve. Of course I reacted with anger.
This is not an AA bashing post. There is no denying that AA has saved countless lives. But the truth is, AA was founded in the 1930s by a cishet privileged white guy after he took a hallucinogen. It was not designed for minorities or women. It was not designed with evidence based or holistic care in mind. I am sick of living in a world where AA is the only way. I am sick of doctors and the criminal justice system telling me that I am forever doomed if I choose to not claim the alcoholic label. Attempting to function in the real world while keeping this huge part of myself locked away in anonymity is exhausting. I'm over it.
It’s confusing that mainstream recovery modalities work so hard to keep people trapped in their anonymity, trapped in silence, trapped without agency. It’s confusing that anyone, except maybe Big Alcohol, would have an issue with Section Yellow.
John Plageman and Section Yellow are part of a revolution. A revolution that was started last year with Holly Whitaker and her trip to Notre Dame. Stop what you're doing if you haven’t seen this YouTube video about the normalization of alcohol and tailgating on college campuses. It’s a must-watch.
“You have to be brave enough to call bullshit on something that might not make you entirely popular with various groups, but will save a lot of lives,” Holly says. “One in ten Americans ages 18-62 will die an alcohol related death. And that number is going up.”
We still have a longgg way to go, but the Green Bay Packer's Section Yellow group is the definition of progress in a culture that is blind to the normalization and glorification of alcohol.
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