Rally to End the War on Drugs

Several organizations opposed to the drug war, including the Utah Libertarians, will be holding a rally to promote bringing an end to drug prohibition. Speakers, music, good people, and opportunities to get involved in ending the war on drugs. Andrew McCullough, LP Utah Chair, will speak. Come out and bring a friend, and help us end the war which uses too much of our resources and which makes criminals out of our young people. The cost of incarceration in most states ranges from $25,000 up to $35,000 in relation to the cost of more effective rehabilitation ($5,000-10,000). There is a growing number of police and corrections officers that are calling for an end to drug prohibition. The national organization, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, is an organization made up of corrections officers, police officers, and other members of the legal community that see, firsthand, the failings and negative social ramifications of the drug war. Beyond the economic stastics, the effect that drug prohibition has on society needs to be considered. There are many articles on the racial bias in enforcement and incarceration that has a detrimental effect on black communities.There is also evidence that many drug users are afraid to seek treatment for fear of punishment under the law and the younger generations consider it the forbidden fruit which entices experimentation and oftimes addiction. There is another way the youth have been negatively affected by the drug war. As dealers on the street, children are considered expendable because if they are arrested the dealer only loses the drugs the youth was caught with. To keep the kids from turning in the kingpins of the operation, people who narc on others are treated very harshly. Additionally the drive to stay one step ahead of law enforcement has created an extremely violent and careless gang community. Such communities are funded by the black market laws of addiction, supply, and demand. An innocent bystander in all of this is hemp. The reality is that until people in society have a better understanding of this issue and start pressuring their representatives to change the law, we will continue to build more prisons than schools, and that, my friends, is not very smart.