On Thursday the former presidents of several countries, former UN secretary general Kofi Annan, former U.S. secretary of state George Shultz, former U.S. Fed chairman Paul Volcker and other luminaries will release a report calling the global "war on drugs" a failure and encouraging nations to pursue legalizing and regulating drugs as a way to put a stop the the violence inherent in the illegal drug market.
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, a group of police, prosecutors and judges who have waged the "drug war" on its front lines, is cheering the report and its conclusions.
"It's no longer a question of whether legalizing drugs is a serious topic of debate for serious people," said Neill Franklin, LEAP's executive director and a 34-year veteran police officer from Baltimore, Maryland. "These former presidents and other international leaders have placed drug legalization squarely on the table as an important solution that policymakers need to consider. As a narcotics cop on the streets, I saw how the prohibition approach not only doesn't reduce drug abuse but how it causes violence and crime that affect all citizens and taxpayers, whether they use drugs or not."
Some of the world leaders who signed on to the report will speak at a press conference and teleconference on Thursday:
When: Thursday, June 2 at 11 am, EST
Where: The Waldorf Astoria Hotel, 301 Park Avenue, New York (Beekman Suite)
By Phone:
USA -- 1-800-311-9404 (Password: Global Commission)
From Outside the USA -- 1-334-323-7224 (Password: Global Commission)
The full report will be available at http://www.globalcommissionondrugs.org/
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NEWS ADVISORY: June 1, 2011
CONTACT: Tom Angell - (202) 557-4979 or media//at//leap/dot//cc
Do you have any U.S. polls showing what percent of police officers favor ending prohibition?
ReplyDeleteAs a retired police officer, I have made the observation that once a law enforcement official has retired and no longer faces retribution for speaking out against the drug war, the percentage increases exponentially.
ReplyDeleteHi JD, we would love to have you apply to be a speaker for LEAP. Please contact us at speakers@leap.cc
ReplyDeleteTo answer your question, 67% of chiefs of police have declared the drug war a failure, according to this source: Police Foundation/Drug Strategies. (December 2004). Drugs and Crime Across America: Police Chiefs Speak Out. http://www.policefoundation.org/pdf/PolicePollFinal.pdf