What is Alcoholics Anonymous?*
Alcoholics Anonymous is an informal society of more than 2,000,000 recovered alcoholics in the United States, Canada, and other countries. These people meet in local groups, which range in size from a handful in some localities to many hundreds in larger communities whether in-person or virtually.
Who we are
We are people who have discovered, and admitted, that we cannot control alcohol. We have but one primary purpose: to stay sober ourselves and to help others who may turn to us for help in achieving sobriety. We are not reformers, and we’re not allied with any group, cause, or religious denomination. We have no wish to “dry up” the world. We don’t recruit new members, but we do welcome them. We don’t impose our experience with problem drinking on others, but we do share it when we’re asked to do so. We don’t think we are the only people who have the answer to problem drinking. We know that the A.A. program works for us, and we have seen it work for many who wanted to quit drinking. Through A.A., we’ve learned a number of things about alcoholism and about ourselves.
Who are our members?
A.A. strives to be inclusive, and never exclusive. As a Fellowship we seek to support the wellbeing of all members as we evolve toward greater diversity, equity, and inclusivity. A.A. members include those with varying abilities, sexual identities, races, ethnicities, gender identities, religions, or no religion,
languages, neighborhoods, socioeconomic backgrounds, and ages. Any person who is seeking help with a drinking problem can call themselves a member.
A person is a member if they say they are a member. It’s that simple.
What we offer
• A.A. services supported through the voluntary contributions of its members
• Access to A.A.’s program of recovery in a variety of formats and languages
• A new way of living: Freedom from the pain and loneliness of active alcoholism
• In-person and online meetings at no cost for regular connection with fellow members
• A non-professional mutual aid environment of alcoholics sharing how they recovered with other alcoholics
• No costs, dues, or membership fees
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If you have a desire to stop drinking and want to learn more, call 507-218-4773 or email Recovery Is Happening or visit “new to aa” on aa.org.
*Text taken from this document on aa.org