Fighting firewater fictions : moving beyond the disease model of alcoholism in First Nations / Richard W. Thatcher.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 359-390) and index.

"In Fighting Firewater Fictions, Richard W. Thatcher describes and explains the emergence and perpetuation of the 'firewater complex' - the cultural construct of understandings and stereotypes surrounding alcoholism in First Nations reserve communities." "Alcoholism has been considered by many to be an inevitability in the First Nations. Thatcher explores how this attitude has resulted in certain aspects of collective and personal responsibility being neglected in favour of a reliance on therapeutic interventions, often of questionable merit. He argues that this situation has had the effect of relieving government policy makers and reserve leadership from accountability for problematic community development strategies that have long outgrown their usefulness." "Thatcher contends that the conditions that give rise to high alcohol abuse rates in First Nations can be traced to a large extent to feelings of hopelessness associated with multi-generational unemployment. Fighting Firewater Fictions calls for community reorganization around a band development policy that looks beyond the reserve, and outlines a strategy that involves a shift from the current emphasis on the treatment of alcoholics towards a more holistic approach, including counselling and non-residential services that address the real needs of potential or actual problem drinkers. This is essential reading for anybody working in, or seeking to understand, aboriginal communities that are experiencing problems with alcoholism."--Jacket

'More dry, more wet': drinking as pastime and problem in first nations -- Alcohol abuse: a social problem inviting various control strategies -- Alcoholism as pathology: the reasoning and allure of the disease perspective -- Challenges to the disease model as an explanation of problem drinking -- An unhealthy relationship: the profession of medicine and alcohol abuse treatment -- From myth to reification: the firewater complex -- Violence and the firewater complex -- Explanations of problem drinking in first nations that fall 'outside the pathology box' -- The genesis of alcohol abuse norms in first nation reserve communities: an explanatory outline -- Goverrnmental and community reinforcement of the firewater complex -- An effective alcohol abuse service system for first nations: philosophical foundations -- Structural change: targeting the 'root system' of problem drinking on reserves -- Effective prevention programming directly targeted on alcohol abuse -- Principles and issues in direct intervention: an overview -- Effective therapies for problem drinkers and alcohol-dependent clients -- Conclusion.

English.

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