Colorado Band iZCALLi Appears in Bilingual Impaired Driving PSA
Colorado rock en tu idioma band, iZCALLi, is joining forces with CDOT and the Colorado State Patrol to raise awareness among the state's younger Hispanic drivers in a new bilingual PSA video.
Every year over 26,000 people are arrested for DUI in Colorado, with over 150 fatalities occurring from alcohol-related crashes. According to a 2015 CDOT survey, 70% of males age 21 to 35 believe they're safe to drive after one or 2 drinks, though numbers in alcohol-related traffic fatalities show otherwise.
"This false sense of security that you can have 2 or 3 drinks and still get behind the wheel of a vehicle needs to be challenged," said Sam Cole, CDOT's Traffic Safety Communications Manager, in a news release. "You are 400% more likely to crash when impaired."
Local band iZCALLi has accepted that challenge and are the stars of CDOT's latest PSA on the dangers of drinking and driving.
"We all like to live life fast and loud but you gotta stay in control," said lead singer and guitarist, Miguel Avina. "Many people have destroyed their lives driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol and if you don't think it can happen to you, you're wrong! Behind every drunk driving statistic is a person who was someone's mother, father, son, daughter, brother, sister, aunt, or uncle."
Avina and his band mates feel strongly about this life-saving message and are known for regularly reminding their audiences to not drive after their shows if they've been drinking.
Colorado's Hispanic population is 21% with a median age of 27 compared to the median age of 40 for non-Hispanic Whites. CDOT says 53% of the state's Hispanic housholds speak some level of Spanish, with 47% speaking only English.
Watch the English version of iZCALLi and CDOT's impaired driving PSA below.
CDOT PSA iZCALLi ENG 3 from Hispanidad on Vimeo.