1. Back of theYards
Community Profile
Assessing underage drinking using the Strategic Prevention Framework of
the Illinois Statewide Incentive Grant
2. Dear Community Partners,
I was born and raised in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. As many Chicagoans do, I feel a strong connec-‐
on and affinity for my community. Growing up in Back of the Yards helped shape me to become the person I
am today. Also, the Back of the Yards has always been an immigrant community where hope for the future is at
a premium. Because of that strong connec on and to pass hope on to future genera ons, I believe it is impor-‐
tant to undertake the Strategic Preven on Framework Project. Underage drinking is one of many serious issues
facing the community. The Back of the Yards is a very young underserved neighborhood. It is cri cal to guide
the many young people to give them an understanding of what gives life and what does not give life. Having a
mentor, a posi ve role model, an en re community commi ed to peace and educa on, can make all the dif-‐
ference in choices young people make. For this, I invite you to join us in changing the underage drinking issue
in Back of the Yards. In this booklet you will see a profile describing Back of the Yards, including demographics
and a descrip on of the underage drinking problem in the community.
There are many difficult issues to deal with in the community and my hope is that this project will not only
tackle underage drinking but will also deal with the violence that is o en the result of drinking. Economic strife
in the family environment challenges the rela onship of many couples. Unfortunately, they turn to alcohol or
drugs to try and avoid the reali es of life. Children learn from their parents and they grow up in an environ-‐
ment where alcohol consump on is o en the norm. Domes c violence is o en the end result of this type of
behavior and violence is also expressed on the street because of this.
The Back of the Yards is a very young immigrant community with limited resources. It is also one of the few
neighborhoods in the city of Chicago with a strong produc ve alliance of not-‐for-‐profits, schools, parishes and
other community based organiza ons. Principals, pastors, neighborhood directors and business leaders gather
on a monthly basis to collaborate in finding ways to reduce violence and make the community a safer place for
all of our families.
My hope for this project is that it will be another tool that allows us to bring peace in our neighborhood and
promote the educa on of every child. We want them to keep their dream alive. We know that when children
have dreams they are more likely to walk away from violence and serve others for peace.
Last year we provided 57 college scholarships to youth from our community with all of the money being raised
locally. Every year we have a youth summit which brings together children from all the schools in our commu-‐
nity with the intent to break down barriers and get them to know each other. We marched for peace. All of this
is done to encourage our young people to be peacemakers and leaders in our neighborhood. Lives have been
saved and our youth have been given opportuni es to succeed. But there is s ll more work to do – and I invite
you to join us.
Sincerely,
Paul Lopez,
President of the Peace and Educa on Coali on
Back of the Yards, New City
3. Peace and Educa on Coali on
Mission Statement: The mission of the Peace and Educa on Coali on (PEC) is to foster rela onships between
local community stakeholders. The Coali on members work to create a united vision to help our children,
especially those trapped in a cycle of poverty and violence. The coali on serves at-‐risk and high-‐risk youth by
promo ng peace and educa on in the Back of the Yards, New City community. We strive to guide our children
with hope, a future and opportuni es to reach their poten al.
Peace and Educa on Coali on History: In November of 1997, six principals represen ng the neighborhood
schools, leaders of faith-‐based neighborhood ins tu ons, neighborhood community-‐based organiza ons
(CBO’s), schools, parks, law enforcement officials, community businesses, elected officials, and other interest-‐
ed par es met for the first me around the issue of violence in the community. For the past few years prior to
the Coali on’s forma on, twenty to twenty-‐five youth were buried, fallen vic ms of neighborhood violence.
This is the issue that united the efforts of the group later to become the not-‐for-‐profit group known as the
Peace and Educa on Coali on of the Back of the Yards, New City. This group and other interested par es have
met monthly since November, 1997 to address issues surrounding the youth and their families most-‐in-‐need
and develop strategies to address those needs to provide a healthier and safer neighborhood. This Coali on
progressed in their efforts and a ained a not-‐for-‐profit status in 2004. As a 501(c) 3 with no administra ve
overhead, the growing demands of needed funding for projects require assistance through grants, dona ons,
and other fundraising efforts. The leadership is commi ed through their deep passion for the Back of the
Yards and the families within. The Board of Directors are all founding members and do not receive compensa-‐
on for their effort.
Current Services: The Peace and Educa on Coali on serves youth and families within the community through
a variety of avenues including, but not limited to:
• 16 – 21 year old drops-‐outs can return to school and receive a high school
diploma at one of PEC’s two alterna ve high school campuses.
• 6th – 8th grade students are brought together twice a year for a Youth Sum-‐
mit to discuss community as well as adolescent issues.
• Parent training through “Padres Ayudando Padres” (Parents Helping Parents)
and Girls and Boys Town Common Sense Paren ng.
• GED and ESL classes, high school bridge program and employment through a
partnership with Ins tuto del Progresso La no.
• Family housing needs through Neighborhood Housing Services.
• A er School Programming through Holy Cross Church and Cesar Chavez 21st
Century Grant.
• Mul -‐Systemic Therapy through Youth Outreach Services.
• Counseling, Street Interven on and Day Care through Catholic Chari es.
• Youth Mentoring through Holy Cross Church and Girls & Boys Town of Nebraska, as
well as collabora on with several area agencies.
• Annual Basketball & Soccer Tournaments through the local public schools and
Chicago Park District.
4. The Community of Back of the Yards
History: The Back of the Yards/New City is a neighborhood primed with history. Upton Sinclair’s, The Jungle
depicts the rich history of this neighborhood. The paramount challenge this neighborhood faces is the over-‐
whelming poverty and peripheral issues of poverty within the community. As a gateway community, many of
the cons tuents have ‘pending’ documenta on issues. Without appropriate documenta on, access to food
subsidy, adequate housing, healthcare and gainful employment is difficult at best. Gangs, drugs, and violence
thrive in this type of environment. Finally, con nuing an educa on while acquiring a second language pres-‐
ents addi onal challenges. The Back of the Yards/New City is a ten by ten block area that is home to more
than 5,000 elementary age students. Nearly 100% of the school age popula on qualifies for Free and Reduced
Lunch indica ng a high poverty index. Almost 70% of the popula on is under the age of eighteen.
FIGURE 1-‐BACK OF THE YARDS COMMUNITY SERVICE AREA
What Does Our Community Look Like?
The Back of the Yards community encompasses most of the larger community area of New City. The area
is predominantly La no; in 2005 it is es mated that the La no popula on was 55% of the total popula on.
Between 2000 and 2005 it is es mated this popula on increased by 6.3 percent. The African-‐American and
White popula ons decreased by more than 10% during this me period. This data suggests that the La no
popula on in Back of the Yards is increasing heavily. Another important considera on to take into account is
that the youth popula on in the community is increasing at a 6.5 percent. Given the suspected high levels of
undocumented residents of the community, it is a probability that informa on about these residents is not
captured in this data.
5. In addi on, the data in this graph also shows that the popula on of youth ages 18 to 24 is increasing at 6.5 per-‐
cent. Due to this increase, to avoid youth involvement in violent ac vi es in the community and to stop the
prevalence of gang ac vity it is important to increase community service programming that not only fosters a er
schools ac vi es but also enriches and enhances youth’s poten al in order to prevent their possible involvement
gang and violent ac vi es.
The data in the graphics below has been obtained from the 2005 Census. This informa on does not present the
current demographics of the community but instead it is an es mate based on the data obtained from 2005.
FIGURE 2-‐BACK OF THE YARDS, NEW CITY DEMOGRAPHICS
New City
2005 Est % of
Total
Change
2000-05
Median Household
Income
27,533 2%
Employed, Total (Pop
16+)
15,516 54% 1%
Employed, Males (Pop
16+)
9,119 32% 0.20%
Employed, Females (Pop
16+)
6,397 22% -2.6%
Unemployed, Male 1118 4% -21%
Unemployed, Female 1198 4% -10.50%
Not in the Labor Force
Male (Pop 16+)
6,807 24% 4.1
Not in the Labor Force
Female (Pop 16+)
9,009 31% -2
New City
2005 Est % of
Total
Change
2000-05
Total Population 49,909 100.0%
White 15,857 31.8% -11.3
Black or African Ameri-
can
16,590 33.2% -10.3
Asian 229 0.5% 5.5
Hispanic Or Latino 27,576 55.3% 6.3
White Non Hispanic 5,719 11.5% -15.8
Other Population 17,233 34.5% 13.8
Age 18-24 7,022 14.1% 6.5
Female Householder, No
Husband Present
3,559 7.1% -2.9
Female Householder, No
Husband Present with
Children Under 18
2,178 4.4% -2.6
Only 54% of those over 16 are employed, com-‐
pared to an employment rate of 61% in Chicago.
The median income of $27,533 is only 67% of
Chicago’s. This data suggests that almost half the
popula on in this community is unemployed. In
addi on, a 4.1 percent increase of the number of
males not in the labor force makes the unemploy-‐
ment issue in the community of great concern.
FIGURE 3-‐ INCOME AND EMPLOYMENT
6. In the Back of the Yards, 51.3% of people
of age 25 and older have less than a high
school diploma and another 24.7 percent
have only a high school diploma. On a pos-‐
i ve note, this data suggest that 14.2% of
people of age 25 and older have a ended
college, which is an increase of 2.8 percent
between 2000 and 2005.
The data in this chart reveals two very
strong indicators in the Back of the Yards,
New City community. The first indicator is
the large percentage of primarily Spanish
speaking community members that reside
in the community. The data indicates that
51% of the community. According to data
from the 2005 US census, the percentage
o he popula on that speaks Spanish at
home is increasing by 4.6% annually. The
second factor to no ce is that the popula-‐
on of this same community that speak
English as a first language at home is
decreasing at a rapid rate. According to the
data from the 2005 US census this popula-‐
on has decreased by 9.7 percent between
2000 and 2005. This indicates that new
members of this community speak Spanish
as a primary language
New City
EDUCATIONAL AT-
TAINMENT (Pop 25+)
2005 Est % of
Total
Change
2000-05
Less than high school 12,674 51.3% -6.8
High school (Pop 25+) 6,116 24.7% -2.4
Some college (Pop 25+) 3,501 14.2% 2.8
Associate degree (Pop
25+)
783 3.2% 0.9
Bachelor’s degree (Pop
25+)
1,078 4.4% 5.2
Graduate Degree (Pop
25+)
573 2.3% 6.7
FIGURE 4-‐EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT
New City
LANGUAGE SPOKEN
AT HOME (Pop 5+)
2005 Est % of
Total
Change
2000-05
Speaks English 21,198 48.7% -9.7
Speaks Spanish 22,207 51.0% 4.6
Speaks Other Indo-Euro-
pean Languages
984 2.3% -3.5
Speaks Asian or Pacific
Island Language
98 0.2% 3.2
Speaks Other Language 146 0.3% -5.8
FIGURE 5-‐ LANGUAGES SPOKEN
7.
The Strategic Preven on Framework Process
The Strategic Preven on Framework (SPF) is an underage drinking preven on tool designed to help commu-‐
ni es across the State of Illinois to build the infrastructure necessary to ba le underage drinking at a local
level. The SPF is based on a five step model process which can be adapted to fit the needs of every commu-‐
nity.
In the Back of the Yards, the SPF has been an integral element for gathering data at the elementary and high
school level. In the first step of this model, the assessment phase, data was acquired primarily through the
administra on of the Illinois Youth Survey, which is an instrument designed to provide informa on on the
accurate rates of substance abuse for youth in the community. It measures key risk factors, in addi on to
providing insights to youth violence. In this phase, data was also gathered by an environmental scan of the
community in which the retail availability of alcohol was assessed by observing the retail establishments
that sell liquor. In addi on, some key factors that contribute to youth underage drinking were also assessed;
these include community norms, social access to alcohol, price of alcohol, enforcement of policies against
underage drinking, and media promo on of alcohol.
The capacity phase has been essen al in developing the support and collabora on of community stake-‐
holders represen ng the non-‐profit, faith-‐based, private, educa on, government, and health sectors. This
phase provided the community with tools that helped develop leadership and par cipa on from community
members. Par cularly, the SPF Sub-‐commi ee of the Peace and Educa on Coali on has grown from five
ini al members to nineteen members presently collabora ng together to jointly tackle the underage drink-‐
ing issue in the community. In the planning process, the members of the SPF Sub-‐commi ee have dedicated
their me and effort to crea ng a strategic plan that not only outlines the underage drinking problem in the
community but also provides strategies to reduce underage drinking in the community. Given their efforts,
the next phase, implementa on, will be achieved through a process of networking and community out-‐
reach. Ins tu ons from all different sectors in the community have agreed to collaborate to work united in
the strategy implementa on process in order to make a greater impact in the community. Then in the last
phase, evalua on, all the efforts by the community will be evaluated to determine if in fact the SPF sub-‐com-‐
mi ee was successful in reducing underage drinking in the community.
8. Describing the Underage Drinking Problem in Back of the Yards
According to IYS data, youth in the Back of the Yards are beginning to drink at young ages and are also re-‐
por ng incidents of binge drinking. In 2006, the 6th grade 30 day use rate for the Back of the Yards (12.7%)
is lower than the City of Chicago use rate of 18%. Worryingly, for the Back of the Yards, the 8th grade 30
day use rate is over 3 mes the 6th grade, whereas for the City, the 30 day use rate only increases by about
50% between 6th and 8th grade. In 2006, 36.2% of 8th grade Back of the Yard youth reported drinking in the
past 30 days, which is higher than the City of Chicago 30 day use rate of 21%. This indicates that in Back of
the Yards, the heaviest problem resides with the 8th grade 30 day increase rate from 12.7% in 6th graders to
36.2% in 8th graders. Research tells us that the younger youth start drinking, the more likely they will be to
develop problems with alcohol use (and the accompanying host of other problems) as an adult, such as mari-‐
juana, and other drug use. That 12.7% of Back of the Yards youth report drinking in the 6th grade is cause
for concern, but the large increase of youth repor ng alcohol use in the 8th grade is even more worrisome.
By 10th grade, almost half of youth surveyed in Back of the Yards (46%) reported using alcohol in the past 30
days. Clearly the trend is that the use rate increases in higher grades, but as the City data shows, the trend
across me is also of increasing use. Between 2004 and 2006, the percentage of youth who reported drink-‐
ing in the 6th grade doubled. If this trend is mirrored in the Back of the Yards for 2006 to 2008, this would
mean a quarter of 6th graders surveyed (25.4%) would report using alcohol in the past 30 days.
Unfortunately, one of the issues in the community that has an immediate and las ng impact on the youth
is violence. Research has shown that violence and alcohol use are in mately related. If the violence isn’t
caused by arguments exacerbated by impaired judgment, then perhaps the alcohol is used to dull the pain
caused by grief and fear.
Par ally due to the Community’s large Hispanic popula on, the culture of the Back of the Yards community
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
National (2007) Chicago (2006) Back of the Yards (2008)
FIGURE 6-‐ 8th GRADE 30 DAY ALCOHOL USE RATE
9. This brochure was created with funding from the State of Illinois
Department of Human Services- Division of Community Based Prevention
has a certain tolerance of alcohol use by minors. Alcohol is o en present at family par es, and o en the youth
are permi ed access to alcohol at these events. Addi onally, even if the use is not permi ed, these family
func ons provide easy access to alcohol without the parents’ permission. Also, the idea that drinking alcohol
makes a boy a man and that real men can handle their alcohol con nue to pervade not only this community,
but the society at large. This idea does not explain the increased use of alcohol by La na girls. One suggested
explana on for this is the increased produc on and marke ng of fruity malt beverages, such as Mike’s Hard
Lemonade or Smirnoff Ice. Though the alcohol industry denies marke ng to youth, they con nue to produce
beverages that look and taste like candy or soda. Research has shown that Hispanic youth see more alcohol
adver sements than other youth, and they seem to be responding to these ad campaigns. Ul mately, the so-‐
cial access youth have to alcohol mostly happens at family gatherings and par es. Thus, community norms and
social access greatly influence to the consump on of alcohol by youth in Back of the Yards.
10. Preven on Strategies
Under the Strategic Preven on Framework, the Peace and Educa on Coali on has developed three main
strategies for decreasing 30-‐day alcohol use rate of 8th
graders in Back of the Yards to the city average for 8th
graders. Each strategy is meant to achieve a specific preven on objec ve by addressing one or more of the
intervening variables priori zed during the strategic planning process.
Strategy Objec ve (for June 2010) Intervening
Variable
Communica on Campaign
(Parent Patrol)
1. A 5% decrease of 8th
graders
repor ng acquisi on of alcohol from
their parents.
Social Access
Social Norms
(Parent Patrol)
2. A 7% increase in 8th
graders
repor ng their parent/guardian talked
to them about drug/alcohol use.
Social Norms
(Marke ng Campaign)
3. A 10% increase in 8th
graders
hearing preven on messages within
the past 12 months.
Social Norms
(Marke ng Campaign) 4. A 4% decrease of youth between
the ages 13-‐17 repor ng access to
alcohol from friends.
Social Access
Social Norms
Party Patrol 5. A 3% decrease of youth between
the ages 13-‐17 repor ng access to
alcohol at par es.
Social Access
Enforcement
Compliance Checks 6. A 2% decrease of youth between
the ages of 13-‐17 repor ng access to
alcohol from retail outlets by using
compliance checks and innova ve
punishments and sanc ons.
Enforcement
Retail Access
Preven on as Social Capital Development
Although the table above highlights the strategies and their specific purposes, it does not illustrate how
these strategies will work and how they will also build the community’s capacity to prevent violence, improve
educa on, or address other issues of importance. In order to understand exactly how these strategies
can achieve all of this, it is useful to think about the preven on strategies as strategies for social capital
development in the community.
Social capital is a term that refers to social networks and the norms and sanc ons that govern their character.
Examples of social networks range from families, to poli cal par es, to soccer leagues. In order to gain or
maintain successful access to any of these networks, its members must behave and act in an acceptable way to
others within the network. Without behavioral guidelines (norms) and sanc ons for those who do no comply
with norms, stability and trust are hard to achieve and social networks disintegrate or fragment. In summary,
11. the concept of social capital illustrates that communi es are not made up of atomized individuals, nor are
they a homogeneous block of people. Rather, communi es are made up of a variety of social networks and
the nature of rela onships within these networks greatly affects with whom and how community members
interact.
Studies show that communi es with healthy and diverse amounts of social capital are more likely to mobilize
and take collec ve ac on when faced with a common problem. This is why social capital is so important
to preven on efforts in the Back of the Yards community. However, there are few exis ng social networks,
community social norms, and effec ve sanc ons that prevent youth from consuming alcohol. This is why our
preven on strategies not only seek to achieve specific objec ves of the SPF framework; they also build the
social capital infrastructure needed for community ac on.
While the Communica on Campaign has four specific preven on objec ves, it also seeks to create new
networks of parents and students at 6 area elementary schools that can mobilize for ac on, disseminate
preven on messages, and foster new norms that encourage non-‐use of alcohol by youth in the community.
By establishing volunteer parent patrols at each school, and implemen ng a social norms marke ng campaign
aimed especially at youth, the Peace and Educa on Coali on will help foster norms in the community through
new grassroots networks that are essen al to reducing access to alcohol at par es, at home, and in the wider
community.
Modeling
the Parent Patrol
Network
While PEC can establish norms through its communica on campaigns, it does not have the authority to
sanc on those who do not comply with these norms, making new community norms much less effec ve.
However, by crea ng closer links to the Police Department, it can work through allies at District 9 to implement
effec ve sanc ons that will aide the preven on objec ves and building stronger social capital.
The Party Patrol strategy will allow PEC to create sanc ons for youth who drink at par es by employing off-‐
duty police officers to search for par es where minors might be on Saturday nights. A hotline manned by HAS
PEC
Chavez
Parent
Patrol
San
Miguel
Parent
Patrol
Seward
Parent
Patrol
Daley
Parent
Patrol
Hedges
Parent
PatrolParents
Community members
Lara
Parent
Patrol
12. staff will also be established for members of the parent patrol and other concerned community members to
call if they have any ps about underage drinking par es. HAS staff then ps off the party patrol, the patrol
confirms the presence of minors at a party and calls uniformed officers to officially enforce underage drinking
laws. Youth who are caught viola ng the law will then be sanc oned by performing community service for the
Coali on.
The second sanc on-‐crea ng strategy seeks to ensure retailer compliance of all appropriate laws and training
associated with selling alcohol to minors. Again, PEC will partner with District 9 to carry out the enforcement.
In contrast to the Party Patrol strategy, however, the Compliance Checks strategy does not seek to create a new
system of sanc ons. Rather, it ensures that District 9 police are enforcing the established laws surrounding the
preven on of youth from buying alcohol, seeking to sanc on retailers, not youth.
Social Capital Objec ves
In summary, the preven on strategies not only seek to decrease 30-‐day use rates of 8th
graders in the Back of
the Yards community, they also seek to create a community with strong social capital. The networks, norms,
and sanc ons that are necessary for the successful implementa on of our preven on strategies will also create
the social infrastructure that fosters healthy behaviors and rela onships in the Back of the Yards community.
Community Levels
New Networks New Norms New Sanc ons
Community-‐
wide
-‐Youth Network
-‐CPD-‐PEC
-‐Parents-‐PEC
-‐Youth donn’t drink
at par es
-‐Retailers don’t sell
to minors
-‐Retailers who
do not meet
compliance checks
are punished
-‐Youth caught
drinking at par es
will be punished
School -‐Parent Patrols
-‐Parents
communicate with
each other at school
Family/
Household
-‐Youth shouldn’t
drink alcohol
-‐Parents should
talk to the children
about dangers of
alcohol/drug use
-‐Families establish
consequences for
children caught
drinking
From be er performance of social service agencies to improvements in health outcomes, studies show that
communi es benefit in a variety of ways from strong social capital. In our case, developing social capital in
Back of the Yards is not just a preven on strategy for youth alcohol consump on. Developing social capital can
also lead to more effec ve strategies for violence preven on and be er educa onal outcomes for children. In
general, it increases a community’s capacity to solve the problems it faces.
