Friend, today marks 52 years since President Nixon officially declared the war on drugs and claimed drug abuse as public enemy number one.
Watch our video about why it’s clear that the real enemy is the drug war itself. It was never about drugs. It’s always been a tool of racial and social control to criminalize, surveil, and punish us and our loved ones. Because of targeted enforcement, it is Black, Latinx, and Indigenous communities that are suffering most.
The drug war is causing immense devastation:
- Of the nearly 2 million people incarcerated in the U.S., 1 in 5 is locked up for a drug offense.
- Every 31 seconds someone is arrested for a drug offense. A majority of arrests - around 85% - are for possession alone.
- And more than 107,000 people tragically died of preventable drug overdose in just 2021.
Today the public agrees that the drug war has failed to protect us and supports a new way forward. With your help, we are leading the fight to end the drug war and build a future shaped by love, not war.
Our win making Oregon the first state in the nation to decriminalize drugs and invest in health has showed it’s possible to offer people support instead of punishment. Drug possession arrests significantly decreased. And more than 300 million dollars has already been invested in addiction services and social supports. We are working to replicate that nationwide to end arrest and jail for personal drug possession and invest savings from enforcement into health services and supports people need to thrive.
We made history when the nation’s first overdose prevention centers (OPCs) opened in New York City. And they are saving lives with more than 900 overdoses reversed in just the first 18 months of operation. We are advocating for OPCs in places coast to coast to reduce overdose deaths and connect people to ongoing care.
Moving away from punishment towards these health-based solutions will help keep people safer with the support they deserve. But we also need to address how drug prohibition created the unregulated, unpredictable drug supply that is driving overdose deaths. That’s why we are exploring safer supply which can help keep people alive by reducing the risks of consuming unknown substances.
These are just a few of ways we are fighting back against decades of the devastating drug war. Please learn more and take action to help us end the drug war, repair its harms, and build a non-punitive, equitable, and regulated drug market.
