ADVOCACY

LARA is committed to speaking on behalf of individuals seeking or recovering from
substance use disorder, especially Latinos who speak Spanish and are often not offered
life-saving treatment and support services.

  • LARA is the first advocacy organization for Latinos in recovery to promote recovery services in Spanish, advocate for changing policies to improve cultural competency, and provide culturally appropriate services.
  • The word “advocacy” comes from the Latin’ advocare’ and literally means ‘to call out for support’
  • LARA is particularly interested in SYSTEMS ADVOCACY, to push for policies, laws, or rules that impact individuals in recovery.
  • We seek to influence policy and practices, and public opinion, around addiction recovery and the solutions available to assist those in recovery.
  • We aim to advance the system of care in recovery to evolve in culturally competent ways and to include Latinos, especially those whose primary language is Spanish.
  • LARA also believes in teaching the recovery community about SELF-ADVOCACY. We empower individuals by teaching them tools to advocate for themselves and find the resources they need to begin or strengthen their recovery journey.

GOALS.

  1. To provide advocacy in the field of recovery
  2. To advocate for Latinos in recovery
  3. To promote recovery services in Spanish

OBJECTIVES.

  1. To partner with at least three organizations on advocacy issues.
  2. To attend at least three recovery conferences per year
  3. To present to elected officials, representatives, leaders in organizations
  4. about the need for recovery services in Spanish, that are culturally
  5. competent and informed.