Bill Wilson: The Story of Alcoholics Anonymous, Memphis 1947

• During 1947, Bill toured the United States and Canada drumming up support for the 12 Traditions.
• The membership, not aware of the wide range of problems the New York Office had been addressing since AA became popular in the early 1940s, often saw no need for the Traditions.
• They were not enthusiastic about a code of conduct that they might be expected to adhere to, and most of them were unaware of totality of difficulties Groups throughout AA were beset by.
• Bill used the story of AA itself to illustrate the need for what was then billed as the "Twelve Points for Our Future".
• In this roundabout way, Bill makes the point that as an organization dedicated to the sole purpose of helping alcoholics recover, Alcoholics Anonymous needs the 12 Traditions because of what it is and we as individual Alcoholics need the 12 Traditions because of who we are.
• Without the directions the 12 Traditions provide, the membership would tear itself apart, but with them we can enjoy fantastic unity and purpose.
• Bill tells his own story and then the story of meeting Dr. Bob and then AA #3 Bill Dotson
• Bill recounts how the early AA Groups were founded and spread
• Bill describes how the Big Book was written and published
• The growth of AA into a nationwide organization during the 1940s
• Bill introduces: Twelve Points to Assure Our Future: An Alcoholics Anonymous Tradition of Relations
• He then talks about the need for the Traditions and then presents each of the 12 Traditions one by one getting to the heart of the matter of each of them.
• Finally he appeals to those present to support the adoption of the 12 Traditions.