We can’t blame a local policy for national issues
Friend, last week I shared why we at DPA do this vital work to end the drug war. It's because we have all been touched by its harms in some way. Supporters like you also know this is personal and help us tell the stories that power our fight to end the drug war and do what’s right.
Sadly, much of the reporting hasn’t been accurate on drug decriminalization in Oregon. Many stories spread fear, lies, and misinformation rather than facts. Media, politicians, and drug war defenders are trying to sell the public on the false promise that the solution is simple — that criminalization will be a “quick fix” to the suffering we see in our communities. But criminalization has never and will never work.
Fortunately, you are helping us tell the full story. Please check out How Oregon Became a Linchpin for the Country’s Drug Policies, the latest from Maia Szalavitz in today’s New York Times.
=============
Read here: [link removed]
=============
And spread the word by sharing it:
Facebook [link removed]
Twitter [link removed]
Instagram [link removed]
LinkedIn [link removed]
=============
Maia Szalavitz is one of few reporters who gets it right. She cuts through misinformation that has dominated headlines: “If we really want to end the overdose and homelessness crises — in Oregon and around the country — we have to understand and follow the evidence, not the fearmongering...Repealing decriminalization would be a mistake.”
Drug decriminalization in Oregon via Measure 110 did not create public suffering that people are concerned about. Homelessness increased due to a lack of housing and eviction. Overdose deaths surged due to fentanyl saturating the drug supply, which is exactly what happened when it appeared everywhere else. In fact, “Every region across the country shows a nearly identical skyrocketing death toll when fentanyl saturates its market—regardless of whether it’s a tough-on-crime state like Texas, or a progressive bastion like California.”
We can’t blame a local policy for national issues. Yet that’s what lawmakers, talking heads, and drug war defenders are doing to double down on the failed drug war. Today, Oregon’s session began, and legislators could recriminalize drugs in a matter of weeks.
Missing from the stories are Measure 110’s positive impacts:
--It provided over $300 million for addiction services and social supports. The number of people accessing these services has increased dramatically, including a 143% increase in substance use disorder treatment and 296% increase in housing services [link removed]
--Arrests for low-level possession significantly declined after decriminalization took effect, saving thousands of Oregonians from being arrested and saddled with criminal records that create lifelong barriers to jobs, housing, education, and so much more. (here [link removed] and here [link removed] )
--And no longer arresting, incarcerating, and supervising people for drug possession has saved nearly $40 million from reduced criminal legal system costs and reinvested it into addiction services and social supports. [link removed]
We can’t let them go backward. Lawmakers must advocate for real solutions to public suffering: [link removed] That includes increasing street outreach, creating community-led crisis-response teams, increasing access to evidence-based treatment, and allowing overdose prevention centers (which brings drug use indoors and connects people to care).
We need evidence-based health approaches to drugs, not more criminalization and punishment. With your support, we are doing everything we can to spread the facts and fight against a potential setback in Oregon.
Share the New York Times story to help us do it and show your support for ending the drug war: [link removed]
Sincerely,
Brian Pacheco
Managing Director, Communications and Marketing
Drug Policy Alliance
Donate: [link removed]
Follow Us:
[link removed]
[link removed]
[link removed]
[link removed]
[link removed]
[link removed]
You have received this email because
[email protected] is a member of the Drug Policy Alliance mailing list.
Copyright © 2024 Drug Policy Alliance. All Rights Reserved.
131 West 33rd St., 15th Floor, New York, NY 10001
Terms and Conditions [link removed]
Privacy Policy [link removed]
Email Preferences [link removed]
