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At the Anti-Stigma Network, we believe that challenging stigma means amplifying real voices to help how people understand substance use and recovery. Storytelling - especially when led by lived experience, is one of the most powerful ways to do this. We’re proud to share this blog from the Recovery Street Film Festival, which creates a platform for people to “rewrite the script” and move beyond…
Is it time to dump the term “substance misuse”? We explore whether the language we use unintentionally reinforces stigma and question whether it’s time for something better. What do you think? Read the blog and join the conversation.
Tom Wright, Head of Operations for Phoenix Futures reflects on substance use stigma in the prison system.
Even the most carefully chosen words can miss the mark if the communication behind them carries hierarchy, ambiguity, or unintended judgement. Read why dignity, agency, and fairness must sit at the heart of every interaction.
In this guest blog, recovery advocate and founder of No More Pretending, Navi Dhesi reflects on the importance of shared experience, visibility, and open conversation in addressing alcohol harm within South Asian communities.
Drawing on her own recovery journey, Wezz Killinaul explores why recognising LGBTQIA+ experiences matters in addiction treatment and how listening to lived experience can help create services that work for everyone.
As we launch our new Stigma-Free Organisations Toolkit, we explore the "responsibilisation trap" and why people with alcohol problems are often blamed twice: first for developing a problem, and then for struggling to recover from it.
What happens when the alcohol industry becomes the voice of “responsible drinking”? This blog examines how brands are increasingly positioning themselves as advisers and guardians of public wellbeing - and why that may deepen stigma and shift attention away from the structural causes of alcohol harm.
Why does alcohol advertising dominate culture while treatment and recovery remain so heavily stigmatised? James Armstrong explores the unequal battle between the alcohol industry’s multi-million-pound marketing machine and under-resourced public health messaging.
Are moderation campaigns in football really reducing alcohol harm? This blog explores the limits of “drink responsibly” messaging, arguing that while well-intentioned, these approaches often shift responsibility onto individuals, overlook structural drivers, and risk reinforcing stigma rather than reducing it.
