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Dear ______,
On June 8-10, 1998, the United Nations will be conducting its first-ever
special session on narcotics. The session was originally proposed by the
Mexican Government as a means to assess the costs and effectiveness of the
American-led War on Drugs. Mexico, as other "source" or "transshipment
point" nations have endured the proliferation of violence and official
corruption as well as the significant weakening of democratic institutions
in service to this failed policy. This session would have been an historic
occasion and one which would have focused world attention on both the
cruelty and the absurdity of the international War.
Such measured reflection is not to be, however. The agenda for the session
has been drafted to allow only the discussion of how to strengthen current
policies, with no assessment of the paradigm itself, and no alternatives to
be considered. It has become vital, therefore, for citizens of the world
to use this opportunity to call into question that which has been deemed
unquestionable. Specifically, has violence and repression in the name of
"drug control" been effective in "controlling" either the availability or
the use of these substances anywhere in the world? Can it? And exactly
how high a cost should the world be willing to pay to reap even modest
successes in suppression? Surely a policy based upon rationality and facts,
especially one which has proven as violent and costly as the War on Drugs,
could, and should stand up to the scrutiny of international discussion?
In response to this special session, an international coalition of
organizations and individuals will be participating in "Global
Anti-Prohibition Days", a weekend-long series of events and demonstrations,
across the globe, to protest the fact that this failed policy is not,
apparently, even open to question. Participants in these events represent
an extraordinarily broad spectrum of political and social viewpoints. We
do not agree on everything, and there are wide differences of opinion on
the scope and nature of necessary reform. But there is one uniting truth:
VIOLENCE AND REPRESSION HAS NOT, CANNOT, CONTROL THE INTERNATIONAL OR
INTRANATIONAL FLOW OF DRUGS, AND THE TIME HAS COME FOR A DISCUSSION OF
ALTERNATIVE POLICIES.
So, whether your primary concern is for the democratic futures of Latin
American nations and peoples, the future of our children under a system
which has put them in harmAs way while providing them unprecedented access
to dangerous substances, the negative racial consequences of current
policies, the adoption of Harm Reduction strategies, the decriminalization
of marijuana, the erosion of civil rights in the name of the Drug War,
prison issues, questions of official corruption, the criminalization of
pain control, or the waste of taxpayersA resources on a failed and
unworkable policy, we would like you to join us.
HOW: If you would like to sponsor an event in your area, or to find out
whatAs already being planned and how you can help, simply visit DRCNetAs
web site and follow the link to "Global Weekend for Drug Policy Reform."
YouAll find everything you need to get you thinking about how you or your
organization can best get involved.
WHEN: Activities, including lectures, events and demonstrations will take
place in the weeks leading up to, and during the weekend of June 6-8th,
1998. These will culminate with a demonstration in New York, outside of
the UN building, on June 8th, the opening day of the Special Session on
Narcotics.
WHERE: Activities will be taking place across the globe as well as in most
major cities in the US. Some of these events will be large, and some will
be small. The goal is to show that there is rational and informed
opposition to this policy all over the world, and to raise the awareness of
those who have yet to seriously consider this vital issue. Every UN
member-nation will participate in this Special Session, and all of them
need to know that their citizens are watching.
WHAT WE EXPECT: The coalition is hoping to raise the visibility of the
issue and the Session in the world and US press. Because the "movement"
toward a more rational drug policy is far more advanced internationally
than in the US, we are hoping to use this event to raise awareness in
America as to the alternatives being discussed around the world to a
problem which our government has seen fit to deal with only through
violence and incarceration.
SO: Come take part in the most important political statement of 1998.
Come learn more about the issues, or use this weekend as a platform from
which to teach others what you already know all too well. It is time for
the voices of reason to rise as one. The world will be watching.
