Malden Overcoming Addiction Announces New Program on Stop The Stigma Day

Recently, Malden Overcoming Addiction (MOA) visited all the Malden Public Schools on national Stop The Stigma Day. 

At 1:30 they arrived at Malden High School and spoke to Health and Physical Education classes about the new program they were going to start.

The program entails being at Malden High School once a week to aid students struggling with addiction, answer questions, and provide advice. They are now located in the Teen Health Clinic Center on Wednesdays from 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM. 

The group of speakers included ex-principal of Malden High School Dana Brown, Superintendent Ligia Noriega-Murphy, MOA President Paul Hammersley, and board member Paul “PJ” Bell. Notably, Brown, Hammersley, and Bell shared their own stories of addiction and recovery.

Though students did not have many questions, the speakers said they could not leave “without at least answering three questions.” 

They explained that students could go to the clinic to simply ask questions and they would have full confidentiality.

This is important as often students fear getting punished for their actions. However, the MOA assured that they were there not to punish, but to support. Brown stated that anything spoken between the student and MOA staff was not to be repeated to anyone and they would not call home.

He also stated that the MOA has decided to stop using the phrase “just say no.”

For many years, Just Say No has been a nation-wide campaign, but Brown and Hammersley believe that this is too harsh and people need to understand that it is not that simple.

Rather than simply saying no, they want young people to think about the consequences of what drugs and alcohol can have. They want people to stop stigmatizing addiction so that the youth is more inclined to search for help and realize why it is dangerous before it is too late.

Hammersley shared his own story of addiction and mentioned that it started at a young age, around ten. He mentioned how the important factor that helped him was having people who stood by him no matter what. They let him know that they were willing to help him recover when he was ready.

This is part of the MOA’s mission. They understand that sometimes people do not want to go into recovery and so they strive to be the little angel on their shoulder encouraging them until they are finally ready.

However, their mission is not limited to addiction. Their doors will always be open to helping those struggling with mental health issues, domestic issues, and even bullying.

Now, one must remember that stigma affects everyone. Whether it be about race, gender identity, sexuality, mental health, or addiction, stigma is never helpful. It is important to be open-minded and uncritical because it can help save many lives.