Dear Heathen:
LEAP's speakers deliver our message to audiences all over the world through a variety of avenues, and one of the most gratifying is attending conferences.
In July, LEAP Executive Director Jack Cole and retired Chief of Police Tim Datig attended the National Conference of State Legislators in Philadelphia. The NCSL is a bipartisan organization that serves all United States legislators and their staffs, and holds an annual summit which about twenty percent of the nation's state legislators attend. Speakers at the 2009 conference included Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, economist David Wyss, and our ownJack Cole, who spoke on the panel "Drug Demand and Diversion," where he emphasized the need to end prohibition. The LEAP booth, staffed by Jack, Tim, new LEAP Speakers Bureau Director Shaleen Aghi Title, and volunteer Project Coordinator EthelRowland, was one of the busiest, talking to dozens of legislators each day and signing up over one hundred new members. And, as usual, well over seventy percent of those who talked to the booth staffers stated that they agreed with LEAP's mission.
 A few days before the NCSL, LEAP attended DemocracyFest in Burlington, Vermont, where Department of Corrections Superintendent Richard Van Wickler and retired Deputy Chief of Police Joseph Brooks staffed the LEAP booth. Rick also gave a presentation, which was chosen as one of the sessions to be taped by CCTV Channel 17.
Speaking of conferences, LEAP is co-sponsoring the 2009 International Drug Policy Reform Conference November 12-14… so save the date!
Here are just a few of the issues our speakers addressed in July. We hope you'll share "Dispatches from the Front Line…" with a friend.
-LEAP Staff
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Walter Cronkite Recognized the Drug War Failure and the Ending Prohibition Solution
 Walter Cronkite, America's trusted broadcaster and father figure to a nation for decades, died in New York at the age of 92 on July 17. To the last, Cronkite was perceptive and engaged in the well-being of his country and the world.
In the final four years of his life, he publicly recognized what is perhaps America's greatest and most perverse, if as yet unclaimed, nemesis - the failed war on drugs.
Cronkite on LEAP's End Prohibition Now DVD:
"Anyone concerned about the failure of our $69 billion-a-year War on Drugs should watch this 12-minute program. You will meet front line, ranking police officers who give us a devastating report on why it cannot work. It is a must-see for any journalist or public official dealing with this issue."
For more on Walter Cronkite, please view the complete article by James Gierach, and Jim Doherty's letter to the Seattle Times.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Tobacco Precedent
 Any law disobeyed by more than 100 million Americans, the number who've tried marijuana at least once, is bad public policy. As a 34-year police veteran, I've seen how marijuana prohibition breeds disrespect for the law, and contempt for those who enforce it..
Let's examine arguments against legalizing marijuana: use and abuse would skyrocket; the increased potency of today's marijuana would exacerbate social and medical problems; and legalization would send the wrong message to our children.
It's reasonable to expect a certain percentage of adults, respectful or fearful of the current prohibition, would give pot a first try if it were made legal. But, given that the U.S. is already the world's leading per capita marijuana consumer (despite our relatively harsh penalties), it's hard to imagine a large and lasting surge in consumption. Further, under a system of regulated legalization and taxation, the government would be in a position to offer both prevention programs and medical treatment and counseling for those currently abusing the drug. It's even possible we'd see an actual reduction in use and abuse, just as we've halved tobacco consumption through public education - without a single arrest…
To continue reading Norm Stamper's NYTimes.com "Room for Debate" blog, please click here.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LEAP Speakers in the News
 Our speakers were especially busy with radio, television and print interviews in July, helping to shape the emerging national debate about drug policy. Neill Franklin was on the air in Utah, Judge Jim Gray on NBC4 in Los Angeles, Mike Gilbert spoke on the radio in El Paso, Texas and Ann Arbor, Michigan, James Anthony in Santa Cruz, California, Tony Ryan (pictured) and LEAP were the main focus of a TV story in Missouri, Peter Christ was all over the radio in Houston, Santa Fe, and Las Vegas, andJack Cole and Jerry Paradis also contributed some radio in Houston. LEAP is certainly gaining interest among talk radio hosts, due in large part to great work by Whitney Garlinghouse, a volunteer of the highest regard who pursues the producers of these shows and doggedly gets LEAP speakers on the air. With Norm Stamper now a guest columnist on "The Huffington Post", which is read by media around the world, we're getting numerous Stamper interview requests - at least 8 interviews in July alone! Norm also appeared in The Economist, the Washington Post, NYTimes.com, and CBSNews.com (with fellow LEAP speaker Carol Ruth Silver, former director of prison legal services for the San Francisco Sheriff's Department).
This month we made presentations in fourteen states, two countries and were featured in at least four national stories including the Associated Press. Want to make a difference? Help book these presentations or support, financially, our efforts to do this. Contact Shaleen Title, speakers bureau director, to participate in this vital effort to book presentations.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|
Ready to do more?
Want to help LEAP
while having fun?
Join the LEAP Rapid Response Team to help shape the conversation around the world.
It is easy, quick and can be done from home.
Learn More |
|
Harm Reduction and the War on Drugs
 A report released on September 15, 2008 by U.N. special envoy on extra-judicial killings, Philip Alston, shows that Brazilian police carried out a significant proportion of the 48,000 murders that swept Brazil in 2007. According to the report, police murder three people a day on average in Rio de Janeiro, making them responsible for one in five killings in the city, which is plagued by drug-gang violence and roving militias of off-duty police.
I live in Rio de Janeiro, and I worked here as a judge for almost twenty years. I can say that unfortunately these tragic data are not something exceptional that happened only in 2007.
In fact, at least in the last ten years, 20% of all murders in Rio de Janeiro have been summary executions that happen during police operations against drug dealers in the "favelas". This is Brazil's own war on drugs…
To continue reading Maria Lucia Karam's blog, please click here.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Police Officer Supports Drug Legalization
 Darcey McLaughlin made a strong argument in favour of legalizing marijuana in his July 1 column, but he didn't go far enough.
I'm a Canadian police officer who supports gradually legalizing and regulating all drugs. This includes marijuana as well as ecstasy, heroin and other substances. The argument in favour of legalizing these drugs is not that they are beneficial or fun, but rather that drugs are so dangerous they need to be regulated and controlled by the government. Under prohibition the government has no control.
It is the drug dealer who chooses price, purity, cutting agents as well as business location and operating hours. And these dealers certainly are not asking minors for ID, nor are they encouraging their customers to get addiction treatment.
As a member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, I recognize that Canadian drug laws consume enormous police resources while paying few, if any, dividends…
To continue reading David Bratzer's letter to the Miramichi Leader, please click here.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 A special thanks to LEAP volunteer Bill Dake, organizer of the annual Freedom Road 5k and Jefferson Mile to benefit Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. Held on July 4 in San Francisco, 2009 marked the race's third year, and it was so well-organized and well-attended that it brought in $850 for LEAP. Bill is an excellent example of how valuable the contributions of our volunteers are.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
All of this work happens because of generous donations from our supporters.
Your gift to LEAP is tax-deductible. Donate now to show your commitment to ending the war on drugs.
    
121 Mystic Ave. Suites 8&9
Medford, MA 01255
(781) 393-6985 info@leap.cc Law Enforcement Against Prohibition is an ever-expanding group of criminal justice professionals and civilian supporters calling for an end to the war on drugs. Trained criminal justice professionals are available to speak to your club or association about their experiences in the drug war and the need to create drug policies that stand the test of reason. Invite a speaker to your town today.
You received this e-mail because you are a supporter of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. We need help growing our all-encompassing movement of citizens who want to end the failed "war on drugs," so please invite your family and friends to learn about LEAP.
Click here if you no longer wish to receive e-mail from us. |
