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(renamed "Drug War Chronicle" effective issue #300, August 2003) Issue #208, 10/26/01
"Raising Awareness of the Consequences of Drug Prohibition" Phillip S. Smith, Editor
subscribe for FREE now! ---- make a donation ---- search TABLE OF CONTENTS
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1. Students for Sensible Drug Policy Conference Drawing Hundreds to Washington, DC Two weeks from now, hundreds of students will converge in Washington, DC for the third annual Students for Sensible Drug Policy conference. Youth activists from high schools and universities across the country will meet in the Capital to listen to renowned speakers, take part in strategy and training workshops, and meet with other like-minded activists. With over 190 confirmed registrations plus the usual last-minute shows, the conference will likely be the largest gathering yet of students committed to reforming the nation's drug policies. "The movement is getting bigger, better organized and more strategic each year," said Shawn Heller, National Director of SSDP. "We are bringing together a politically diverse group of people to strengthen the movement to end the War on Drugs." Consumer advocate Ralph Nader will deliver one of three keynote addresses. During the last presidential election, Nader ran on the Green Party Ticket, and advocated the legalization of marijuana as part of a an overhaul of current "self-defeating and antiquated drug laws." Of course, not everyone attending the conference will identify with the political left. Russell Means, a Native American activist, actor of "Last of the Mohicans" fame and libertarian candidate for governor of New Mexico, will also deliver a keynote address. While Nader and Means may agree on the need to reform current drug policies, the two speakers will undoubtedly appeal to different tactics and approaches. The Libertarian Party itself sees the SSDP conference as an opportunity to help make sure the libertarian voice is also strong within the drug reform movement. LP campus coordinator Marc Brandl, in fact, believes the appearance of the left of center Nader will help spur libertarian students, whose views are socially liberal but economically conservative, to get to the conference. While SSDP members will comprise a majority of attendees, students from the National Organization to Reform Marijuana Laws (NORML) will be present, as will members of DanceSafe chapters from across the country. The conference will feature two days of seminars and workshops, as well as the annual SSDP Congress. One focus of the conference will be the Higher Education Act Drug Provision, which denies federal financial aid to students with drug convictions. As many as 40,000 students are currently without aid due to the drug provision. 73 student governments to date have called for the repeal of the drug provision, and 55 members of Congress have cosponsored Rep. Barney Frank's (D-MA) bill to repeal it. Members of Congress credit the increased support for repeal in part to the attention SSDP has brought to the issue. Another focus of the conference will be the upcoming SSDP Week of Action, when hundreds of chapters will put on demonstrations and events to protest the War on Drugs. Plenary sessions include "Connecting the Dots: Why Everyone Has a Stake in Ending the War on Drugs" and "The Movement to End the War on Drugs." "Students breathe new life into socio-political movements," said Charles Thomas, president of Unitarian Universalists for Drug Policy Reform, who will speak at the first seminar. "As each generation grows older, the students inspire us with their energy and idealism. They show us that there is hope for the future, especially in the drug policy reform movement. I mean, this is the D.A.R.E. generation! They grew up watching Partnership for a Drug-Free America commercials. Now we see that the prohibitionists' propaganda not only failed, but it backfired." Strategy and training workshops will be a crucial part of the conference. Veteran drug policy activists will provide important tips on the "how-to" of drug policy reform. Topics range from harm reduction at raves to zero tolerance policies on campus, from grassroots legislative training to media guidance. "Currently SSDP has over 160 chapters nationwide," said Scarlett Swerdlow, a UC Berkeley student and member of SSDP's national Board of Directors. "The conference will be an awesome opportunity to harness the brilliance and passion of so many dedicated activists." Youth activists look forward to the annual conference. While students are united by national campaigns, the focus of SSDP is on-campus activism and community outreach. The conference allows students to connect a face to an e-mail address at the very least, but also to brainstorm and exchange ideas. "Aside from getting to hear people like Ralph Nader speak," explained David Brown of Seminole High School, "I'm most looking forward to getting a chance to meet people that I've been talking to for so long now." Visit http://www.ssdp.org/conference2001/ for further information or to register. ORGANIZATIONS: Tables are available at $200 for nonprofits or $300 for commercial businesses, proceeds will help provide scholarships to student attendees.
2. Tide Shifting: Senate Votes to Reduce Foreign Drug War Budget, Suspends Certification The Senate this week handed critics of the US-led Andean drug war an unexpected victory. Having received a $731 million budget request by the Bush administration for their "Andean Initiative," the foreign operations panel of the Appropriations Committee cut the request by $164 million down to $567 million, according to the Associated Press. Even more significantly, the Senate approved a one-year moratorium on the annual "certification" process, in which the State Department decides which nations are fully cooperating in the drug war, with those not so certified being subject to denial of certain aid and economic benefits. Commenting on the funding, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), who chairs the foreign operations panel, observed, "We're spending four times more on the Andean drug program... than what we're doing to stop disease -- smallpox or tuberculosis, malaria, ebola, plague -- from coming into our country," according to the AP. Leahy continued, "We keep pouring money down here. We don't know where it's going. We don't know how it's being spent. We know it's not effective. We know it hasn't stopped drugs coming up here." Visit http://www.wola.org and http://www.lawg.org for further information on these issues.
3. Interview: Charles Thomas, Unitarian Universalists for Drug Policy Reform Unitarian Universalists for
Drug Policy Reform (http://www.uudpr.org)
is one of the strongest faith-based drug reform groups in the country.
The Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) is a small but vital denomination,
and its governing body has set the faith's members -- which number 250,000
members in 1,000 congregations -- the task of arriving at a statement of
conscience regarding drug policy by next June. UUDPR is an affiliate
of the UUA, working to facilitate this process and spread the word to the
general public. DRCNet spoke with UUDPR's Charles Thomas last week
to learn more about this exciting new project.
4. Interview: Kendra Wright of Family Watch Family Watch (http://www.familywatch.org)
is a nonprofit organization concerned about the way drug policy impacts
on the lives of women, children, and families. DRCNet spoke with
the group's executive director, Kendra Wright, last week.
5. Reams "Reeferendum" Heads Into Home Stretch in Virginia Relying on campaign appearances, a few radio ads paid for by supporters, electronic word-of-mouth, and the media attention it has been able to generate, the low-budget Gary Reams campaign for lieutenant governor of Virginia is headed for the November 6 state elections, hoping to draw the votes of tens of thousands of Virginians who want to end marijuana prohibition. Reams is campaigning against Democrat Tim Kaine and Republican Jay Katzen for the largely ceremonial post, but his sole purpose for running is to use the race as a de facto referendum -- the "Reams Reeferendum" (http://www.reamsreeferendum.com), on the current marijuana laws in Virginia. "This is not a vote for Gary Reams, or the Libertarian Party, or libertarianism, this is a vote for marijuana reform," Reams told DRCNet in August. "In a state that does not have an initiative process, this is as close as we can get to a true referendum on the marijuana laws." It is a theme he has never strayed from in his single-refrain campaign. In meetings with small town and big city newspaper editors, addressing students at Charlottesville, or calling in to candidate radio debates from which he was excluded, the Fairfax County (suburban Washington, DC) resident has stayed relentlessly on message. When Charlottesville's WVTF Evening Edition, hosted by Daily Progress political writer Bob Gibson, aired a debate between Kaine and Katzen on August 28, Reams called in to urge support for the Reeferendum and criticize his opponents for supporting prohibition. "It amazes me that these experienced politicians could turn their backs to this constituency," Reams said, telling listeners that other states allowed medical marijuana. Back in August, Reams told DRCNet that if he got above 2% to 3% of the vote -- the high water mark for third-party candidates in Virginia so far -- he would consider the campaign successful. Campaign manager Jim Turney doesn't want to talk precise numbers now, however. "We're hoping that we'd get better than expected," was all he would tell DRCNet. "That would get the attention of the politicians. They and the media have to wake up on the morning of November 7 and find something they didn't expect to see. If we can do that, we will have achieved our objective." National Libertarian Party chairman James Lark, a systems engineering professor at the University of Virginia, was asked by the Cavalier Daily student newspaper if Reams could break the 10% mark. "It's not likely, but it's possible," he said. "Reams has done hardly any TV or radio ads, but he has been showing up in the polls lately.' That was news to Turney. "I don't have any polling numbers," he said. "Nobody polls for lieutenant governor." For Turney, it is now a matter of getting media coverage and spreading the word electronically, in part to make up for public and media attention lost in the wake of the September 11 attacks. "We went over a speed bump with the terrorist attack," he told DRCNet. "We depend on the attention of the media to get the word out. We don't have money for TV, we're doing a few small radio ads, but that money is coming from supporters," he said. Reams did manage to get on a debate televised by Virginia PBS affiliates on October 17, where the Republican Katzen declined to participate, leaving Reams alone with Democrat Kaine for an hour. He stayed right on message: A vote for Reams is a vote to end marijuana prohibition. The campaign continues to court the press across Virginia, said Turney. "We'll be doing more of the same; we don't have enough money for TV ads, so we'll continue to visit the media. We hope to get some favorable attention in newspaper endorsements, if not actual endorsements themselves," he said. "The state press has been excellent, they have published many articles and they have understood our message. The only exceptions have been the Washington Post and the Washington Times. They would barely listen to us, let alone cover us." Turley also implored anyone who agreed with the Reams anti-prohibitionist message to help get the word out. "If you know someone in Virginia, tell those people who are already in basic agreement with us about the campaign, and those people need to tell more. And then pass it on again. Our success critically depends on getting the word out," he said. "I'm hoping for a big surprise on November 6," he added.
6. Newsbrief: FBI Report Finds 1.6 Million Drug Arrests Made in 2000 According to the FBI's year 2000 Uniform Crime Report, 1.6 million arrests were made for drug law violations last year. Arrests for drug law violations exceeded all other categories. 81% of drug arrests were for simple possession, and 41% (647,662) were for possession of marijuana. The 2000 UCR was released on Monday (10/22) and can be viewed at http://www.fbi.gov/pressrel/pressrel01/cius2000.htm online.
7. Newsbrief: Netherlands May Add Medical Marijuana to National Health Plan The Dutch government is considering legislation that would add medical marijuana to the pharmacopeia supported under the nation's public health insurance plan. Passed by the Cabinet, the bill would authorize pharmacies to fill medical marijuana prescriptions and be reimbursed by the government, and would supply pharmaceutical quality marijuana to the pharmacies. According to the Associated Press, a government statement said that "[a]n increasing number of patients suffering illnesses such as cancer, AIDS and multiple sclerosis received medicinal cannabis." Though patients are largely using the drug without professional assistance, the statement observed, "[e]xperiences are positive: less pain, less nausea after chemotherapy, less stiffness with MS." The 150-seat Parliament is expected to vote on the proposal within the next few months.
8. Walters Drug Czar Nomination Under Contention in Senate The Bush nomination for director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy ("drug czar"), John Walters, is proving to be much less of a shoo-in than supporters and opponents previously thought. A number of Senators on the Judiciary Committee, which must make a recommendation to the full Senate, for or against, were critical of Walters. The following quotes and info were provided by The Lindesmith Center-Drug Policy Foundation (http://www.drugpolicy.org): Senator Joe Biden (D-DE), who chaired the hearing, gave the hearing's opening remarks. Much of what he said was critical of Walters. While he emphasized that he had the utmost respect for John Walters, he noted that there are a number of issues on which he and Walters disagree. "I am particularly troubled by Mr. Walters' many writings regarding drug treatment," he said. "He has written that the 'view that therapy by a team of counselors, physicians and specialists is the only effective way to reduce drug use' is a 'myth.' In contrast, the top doctors and scientists in the field of addiction believe that addiction is a chronic, relapsing brain disease and that addiction treatment is as successful as treatment for other chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and asthma." Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, was equally critical of Walters. "I do not doubt that John Walters has thought seriously about our nation's drug problems," Leahy said, "but I do doubt the conclusions that he has reached and forcefully expressed on issues ranging from drug treatment to interdiction to sentencing issues... In short, I'm not yet convinced that he is the right person to head the Office of National Drug Control Policy." Leahy criticized Walters heavily in four areas: Walters' lack of commitment to treatment: "Although Mr. Walters has not developed a lengthy record on treatment questions, some of his statements have caused great concern among those who care about treating drug addiction." Walters' punitive criminal justice views: "Many of us -- Democrats and Republicans -- have come to question our reliance on mandatory minimum sentences for a wide variety of drug offenses, as well as the 100 to 1 disparity under current law between sentences for crack and powder cocaine. In his writings and statements, Mr. Walters has been hostile to reconsideration of these issues." Walters' opposition to state medical marijuana laws: "Mr. Walters has responded to this trend by advocating that the federal government use the Controlled Substances Act to take away the federal licenses from any physician who prescribes marijuana to a patient in states that permit the practice... In addition to running roughshod over any federalism concerns whatsoever, Mr. Walters' draconian response raises questions about his sense of proportion." Walters' support for escalation of the Latin American drug war: "I am concerned that Mr. Walters will seek to have the United States overextend its anti-drug role in Latin America... The costs -- both financial and political -- of our involvement in the internal affairs of Latin American nations require close scrutiny." Other Senators that criticized Walters on various grounds included Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA), Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Senator Herbert Kohl (D-WI). Senators that praised Walters included Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) and Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS).
9. Britain Announces Plan to Abolish Marijuana Possession Arrests (courtesy NORML Foundation, http://www.norml.org) Possession of marijuana will no longer be an arrestable offense, Britain's Home Secretary David Blunkett announced Tuesday, in a move marking the first major relaxation of England's marijuana laws in 30 years. Under the new national policy, marijuana will be reclassified as a "Class C" or "soft" drug, putting it in the same category as anti-depressants and steroids. "In spite of our focus on hard drugs, the majority of police time is currently spent handling cannabis offenses," Blunkett said, noting that nearly 7 out every 10 British drug arrests are pot-related. "It is time for an honest and common sense approach focusing effectively on drugs that cause the most harm. Given this background, and the very clear difference between cannabis and 'Class A' drugs [such as heroin and cocaine], I want to... reclassify cannabis from 'Class B' to 'Class C.'" Although possession of Class C drugs technically carries a two-year maximum prison term, only offenses punishable by at least five years imprisonment are arrestable in England. Therefore, marijuana smokers will unlikely face any serious legal consequences other than a verbal warning or a court summons if they are caught will small amounts. "[Police] will still have plenty of powers to stop people, but possession of cannabis won't be one of them," a Home Office spokesman told The Guardian newspaper. NORML Executive Director Keith Stroup praised Blunkett's decision, calling the UK's impending policy de-facto decriminalization. "By eliminating the threat of arrest and jail for responsible adult marijuana smokers, police and criminal justice resources can be focused on more serious and violent crimes," Stroup said. England's pot-law change will not be enacted legislatively, but instead by an executive order, the BBC reported. The new law will likely take effect early next year. This week's announcement by the Home Office is the latest in a series of drug policy reforms occurring throughout Europe. Earlier this year, governments in Belgium, Luxembourg and Portugal decriminalized the use and possession of marijuana. In contrast, the US FBI revealed Monday that a record 734,498 Americans were arrested for marijuana violations last year.
10. Alerts: HEA Drug Provision, Drug Czar Nomination, DEA Hemp Ban, Ecstasy Bill, Mandatory Minimums, Medical Marijuana Click on the links below for information on these issues and web forms to help you contact Congress: Repeal the Higher Education Act Drug Provision (Please submit listings of events concerning drug policy and related topics to [email protected].) October 26, 4:30-6:00pm, Albuquerque, NM, "There's Something Fishy About The War on Drugs." At the New Bernalillo Courthouse, 400 Lomas NW. For further information, call (505) 342-8090. October 26-27, Cortland, NY, "Thinking About Prisons: Theory and Practice." At SUNY Cortland, on I-81 between Binghamton and Syracuse, see http://www.cortland.edu/www/philosophy/prisons.htm. November 1, 10:00am, Washington, DC, ACLU Forum on Terrorism and Civil Liberties. At the Washington Court Hotel, 525 New Jersey Avenue NW, e-mail [email protected] to reserve a space. November 8, 9:30am, Philadelphia, PA, "Drug War Reality Tour: The Philadelphia-Plan Colombia Connection." Hosted by the Kensington Welfare Rights Union and the Politics of Recovery Committee. Meeting at 2825 N. 5th St., visit http://www.kwru.org or call (215) 203-1945 for further information. November 10-11, Washington, DC, Students for Sensible Drug Policy 3rd Annual Conference, at The George Washington University. Call (202) 293-4414, e-mail [email protected] or visit http://www.ssdp.org for further information. November 13, 6:00-8:00pm, New York, NY, "Women, Prison and Family." At Audrey Cohen College, 75 Varick St., for information call (212) 343-1234. November 14-16, Barcelona, Spain, First Latin Conference on the Reduction of Drug Related Harm. For further information, e-mail [email protected], visit http://www.igia.org/clat/ or call Enric Granados at 00 34 93 415 25 99. November 15, 6:00pm, Berkeley, CA, "Marijuana: What DARE Didn't Teach You." Forum sponsored by UC Berkeley Students for Sensible Drug Policy with other campus and community organizations. Contact Scarlett at [email protected] for information. December 14 & 15, 8:00pm, Philadelphia, PA, "Corner Wars," play by Tim Dowlin, hosted by the Kensington Welfare Rights Union. At the Tomlinson Theatre, 13th & Norris, Temple University Main Campus. Visit http://www.kwru.org or call (215) 203-1945 for tickets or for further information. February 28-March 1, 2002, New York, NY, "Problem Solving Courts: From Adversarial Litigation to Innovative Jurisprudence." Panelists include former Attorney General Janet Reno, Rev. Al Sharpton and Mary Barr, Exec. Dir. Conextions. At Fordham University Law School, take the A, B, C, D, 1, and 9 subway trains to 59th Street/Columbus Circle and walk one block west. For further information, call (656) 345-5352 or e-mail [email protected]. March 3-7, 2002, Ljubljana, Slovenia, 13th International Conference on the Reduction of Drug Related Harm and 2nd International Harm Reduction Congress on Women and Drugs. Sponsored by the International Harm Reduction Association, visit http://www.ihrc2002.net or e-mail [email protected] for further information. May 3-4, 2002, Portland, OR, Second National Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics, focus on Analgesia and Other Indications. Sponsored by Patients Out of Time and Legacy Emmanuel Hospital, for further information visit http://www.medicalcannabis.com or call (804) 263-4484. December 1-4, 2002, Seattle, WA, Fourth National Harm Reduction Conference. Featuring keynote speaker Dr. Joycelyn Elders, former US Surgeon General, at the Sheraton Seattle. For further information, visit http://www.harmreduction.org or call (212) 213-6376. If you like what you see here and want to get these bulletins by e-mail, please fill out our quick signup form at https://stopthedrugwar.org/WOLSignup.shtml. PERMISSION to reprint or redistribute any or all of the contents of Drug War Chronicle is hereby granted. We ask that any use of these materials include proper credit and, where appropriate, a link to one or more of our web sites. If your publication customarily pays for publication, DRCNet requests checks payable to the organization. If your publication does not pay for materials, you are free to use the materials gratis. In all cases, we request notification for our records, including physical copies where material has appeared in print. Contact: StoptheDrugWar.org: the Drug Reform Coordination Network, P.O. Box 18402, Washington, DC 20036, (202) 293-8340 (voice), (202) 293-8344 (fax), e-mail [email protected]. Thank you. Articles of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear courtesy of the DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise noted.
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