History of Mothers Against Drunk Driving

Mothers Against Drunk Driving, often known as MADD, works to prevent drinking and driving. In this article, we take a look at the history of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

Devastating events can often give rise to inspiring efforts. Such is the case with Mothers Against Drunk Driving. “MADD” was formed in 1980 by Candice Lightner. She had suffered something every parent fears. Her 13 year old daughter, Cari, was hit by a drunk driver while walking down the street. Cari suffered massive injuries. The driver left the scene without doing anything. Cari died and her mother vowed to take action against drunk drivers.

The story was obviously horrific. It served as a mission statement of sorts for Mothers Against Drunk Driving. A movie was made in 1983 regarding Cari’s death and the group received a lot of publicity. The organization teamed up with Senator Frank Lautenberg from New Jersey to fight minor drinking. At the time, the states all had different drinking ages for minors. Some were set at 18 and some at 21. New Jersey was set at 21, while New York was set at 18.

The Senator and MADD moved to create a national minimum drinking age. In 1984, the National Minimum Drinking Age Act was passed. It set a national drinking age of 21. States did not have to comply with the Act, but there was a big penalty. If they failed to do so, they forfeited up to 10 percent of the federal highway funds allocated for their state. This was a huge sum and most states complied with the statute.

With the passage of the Act, Mothers Against Drunk Driving became the preeminent anti-drunk driving group in the United States. In 1990, it set out to cut the number of alcohol related fatalities on the road by 20 percent nationally by 2000. MADD more then met the target – accomplishing their goal by 1997. In the late 1990s, the organization was voted the most popular charitable organization in the United States. It has since spread to other countries and expanded its efforts to fight drunk driving.

In 2006, the history of Mothers Against Drunk Driving took another startling turn. The organization announced a new plan to eliminate drunk driving entirely. The plan involves increased law enforcement action, but also the implementation of technology like ignition breath analyzers to keep people from drinking and driving. Will the plan work? Given the history of MADD successfully pushing through new laws, don’t bet against them.

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