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A criminal prosecutor discusses the illegal drug trade and the
failure of the so-called "War on Drugs" to stop it. In 1971,
President Richard Nixon coined the term "War on Drugs." His
campaign to eradicate illegal drug use was picked up by the media
and championed by succeeding presidents, including Reagan. Canada
was a willing ally in this "war," and is currently cracking down on
drug offences at a time when even the U.S. is beginning to climb
down from its reliance on incarceration. Elsewhere in the world,
there has been a sea change. The Global Commission on Drug Policy,
including international luminaries like Kofi Annan, declared that
the War on Drugs "has not, and cannot, be won." Former heads of
state and drug warriors have come out in favour of this
perspective. Former presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton agree
with legions of public health officials, scientists, politicians,
and police officers that a new approach is essential. Paula Mallea,
in The War on Drugs, approaches this issue from a variety of points
of view, offering insight into the history of drug use and abuse in
the twentieth century; the pharmacology of illegal drugs; the
economy of the illegal drug trade; and the complete lack of success
that the war on drugs has had on drug cartels and the drug supply.
She also looks ahead and discusses what can and is being done in
Canada, the U.S., and the rest of the world to move on from the
"war" and find better ways to address the issue of illegal drugs
and their distribution, use, and abuse.
A call to replace Canada's incarceration model, which has proven
destructive, discriminatory, expensive, counterproductive, and -
most of all - unnecessary. Imprisonment developed in the Western
world as the punishment to suit all offences, from violent assault
to victimless drug use. Centuries ago, incarcerating convicts
represented progress on society's part, since it came as a
replacement for capital punishment, maiming, and torture. Our
current model - taking away convicts' freedom and holding them in
degrading and unhealthy prison conditions - promotes recidivism and
jeopardizes public safety. It is highly discriminatory, with
disproportionate numbers of ethnic, indigenous, mentally ill,
drug-dependent, poor, and otherwise marginalized people imprisoned.
It is also ruinously expensive. Elsewhere, alternative correctional
systems successfully rehabilitate offenders while treating them
with dignity and respect. This book lays out the case for a
complete overhaul of Canada's ineffective incarceration model of
criminal justice and for a new approach.
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