Story & photo Eve Jeffery
Last Friday high school students from across Byron Shire gathered at Apex Park on Main Beach for the launch of Cringe the Binge, a national campaign to reverse youth binge drinking in Australia initiated by the Byron Youth Service.
Led by the ever-present ‘Dancing Tommy’, the students and local youth jumped in feet first to launch the event scheduled for November 9 to 11.
Cringe the Binge is a grassroots initiative that aims to reverse youth binge drinking by supporting individual and community action.
The initiative asks that all members of the community work together – families, young people, the business and school communities, and government agencies – to change the culture of binge drinking in our country.
The campaign aims to draw awareness to the serious and increasingly dangerous issue of youth binge drinking in Australia. Over the November weekend, Australians are asked to pause and reflect on their drinking habits and donate what they would normally spend on alcohol to the Cringe the Binge campaign via the website, which says: ‘It’s time to stop the madness. We want to reduce the insanely high levels of alcohol-fuelled violence, sexual assault and drink-driving that occur in our community and across Australia.’
For more information visit www.cringethebinge.com.au.
