Dear Journalist, In the 1960s, tough-minded journalists around the world began asking the hard questions about America's policy in Vietnam that inevitably led to the end of a failed policy and the end of a tragic war. In this war, governments are corrupted. The environment is degraded. Hundreds of thousands are incarcerated. AIDS, hepatitis and other diseases spread.
Criminal cartels grow in influence.
And drugs become cheaper and more available. The time for frank, honest assessment and open debate is now. From June 8-10, the United Nations General Assembly convenes in Special Session to discuss Drug Control Policy. We at The Lindesmith Center are helping to coordinate a response to the UN Summit, trying to make sure that the public and the press have access to reliable data and to experts who are willing to challenge policies that are, for the time being, politically popular even as they grow increasingly costly and counterproductive. We believe this war is now causing more harm than drug abuse itself.