Persuasive Essay On Decriminalizing All Drugs

Portugal's success would be the ideal model for Canada to base decriminalization of illicit drugs. Although Canada does not have as much of a drug epidemic that Portugal had before decriminalization, statistics show the country has rising rates of both heroin and meth use. Treating this evident problem with a different approach has been gathering heavy support over the years. Support behind this legal movement in Canada includes the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition and the Green Party of Canada. Not only were drugs decriminalized in Portugal, the entire system was reconstructed to aid those addicted. Both the reduce in law enforcement towards illicit drugs and the increase in funding towards treatment paid off greatly for Portugal. Overdose death went down by 72% while the spread of HIV went down by 94%. Canada has prioritized the war on drugs, although the method being followed does not prove effective. It might prove better to abandon this current war in favour for public health, following Portugal's lead in providing harm reduction treatment and treating the addiction as the public health crisis that it

“Drug policy regarding the control of the traditional illicit substances (opiates, cocaine, cannabis) is currently moving through upbeat times in almost all Western countries. Prohibition on the basis of repressive law enforcement not only seems to fail on a large scale, but also to create vast additional costs, problems, and harm for drug consumers, who often find themselves in extreme social, economic, and health conditions” (Fischer 1995: 389).

The systematic scheduling of drugs in the United States is arbitrary which leads to a discriminative social injustice. Some psychedelic substances such as Psilocybin are schedule 1 drugs, while alcohol and nicotine are legal. According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) both alcohol and nicotine are proven to be harmful and addictive (2017). Conversely, Psychedelic substances have not been proven to be addictive. This equates to a social injustice that discriminates over someone who may prefer the effects of psilocybin to nicotine, even under the science that has shown nicotine and alcohol have a higher potential for abuse. Unfortunately, many political factors come into play regarding the legal status of drugs and industries such as the pharmaceutical, tobacco and alcohol industries, who harbor the most money and have an influence in the legality of drugs whether they are safe or not. While legalizing psychedelic substances would most likely cut into profits for these large industries they would bring about economic benefits as well.

In July, 2001 Portugal 's Law 30/20001 decriminalized all drugs. Under the new law, possession of small amounts of drugs (~10 days or less worth of personal use), while still legally prohibited, were no longer grounds for criminal offense. This approach was taken from a public health perspective and was accompanied by a concurrent increase in treatment and harm-reduction options.2 The combination of decriminalization, taking drug-users out of the criminal justice system, and investment in harm-reduction, providing users with effective treatment options, led to material gains in public health, including significant reductions of drug overdose death and HIV infection.3

We should decriminalize drugs in the U.S. instead of legalizing them. Decriminalization refers to the lessening of criminal penalties of certain acts. According to De Marneffe, “… the legalization of drugs … [is] the removal of criminal penalties for the manufacture, sale, and possession of large quantities of recretational drugs, such as marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine” (346).

Just Say No.” This phrase was uttered in 1982 by Nancy Reagan, the first lady of the United States, in response to a schoolgirl’s question of what she should do if offered drugs (Weinraub A5). These words became the slogan for a nationwide substance abuse prevention program that followed the then recently enacted drug policies intended to discourage the manufacture, sale, and use of illicit drugs in the United States. These zero tolerance policies carried harsh penalties and strict enforcement for all drug related offenses. Almost four decades later, these policies are still in effect, as is their focus on criminalization as a means to reduce the availability and usage of drugs. Their ineffectiveness is evidenced by the facts that drug use rates have remained steady over the past four decades and incarceration rates have exponentially rose during that same period. I believe that a new course of action should be taken, and a bold new drug policy should be enacted. Decriminalization would result in a substantial decrease of the prison population, relieve the unnecessary burden that has been placed on our criminal justice system, shift the paradigm from drug enforcement to drug treatment, reduce the health risk of HIV, AIDS, and heroin related deaths; and provide unprecedented benefits from the regulation of the manufacturing and sales of substances that are currently illegal.

With addiction rates rising every year, the overwhelming drug dilemma has opened the eyes of numerous governments around the world. This paper will discuss what decriminalization is and if decriminalizing drugs in the United States will lead to lower crime rates and lower incarceration rates. In addition, it will discuss the impact decriminalization will have on society, the effect it will have on the economy and finally how it influences the now addicted, should legalization occur. Currently, Portugal has decriminalized all drugs in every drug classification for recreational use. Furthermore, Colorado is the only state in the United States, to have decriminalized marijuana. In looking at the drug laws in Portugal, Colorado, Mexico, and the Netherlands this review will examine what appears to be working and not working of both decriminalizing and keeping certain drug classifications illegal. Multiple web-based articles, books, and peer-reviewed articles were the many sources used in researching this paper. Can drug decriminalization be a practical way to cut down on drug related crimes? Will it benefit society, boost the economy, and help the addict? Based on this research I have concluded at a federal level, the United States should decriminalize

The complete banning of all drugs means that each user is a criminal; illegal purchasing, illegal means of financing the addiction, and association with fellow criminals of varying degrees. By studying the interactions between addicts and their dealers there is a clear cycle of dependency. Addicts are spending well above their means to fund their problem and making their money in illegal activities. Decreasing criminal activity by making drug substances legal, affordable, and accessible sounds bleak breaking the cycle is the plausible solution no matter political or personal

should legalize drugs, so that the health issue such as drug addiction, could be treated as such: a health issue. There are numerous health benefits to nationwide drug legalization: regulation, realistic drug education, and public rehabilitation or addiction treatment centers. Regulation would greatly improve the safety of drugs because the user would know, with 100% certainty, that they were ingesting the drugs they intended to take, rather than taking a chance with a black market product. A revamped drug education system would also greatly improve the safety of drug consumption. Similar to the issue of sex ed in high school, an abstinence only policy for drugs and sex alike seems unrealistic- in fact, states with abstinence only public school sex ed are also states with the highest teen pregnancy rates. Public rehabilitation centers would be necessary assets in the transitional years of drug legalization. Though some argue that these centers would be too expensive, at the high end, total rehabilitation would be a one time cost of $20,000 per addict- stacked up against the annual $31,000 per year for inmates, this process would save the U.S. money. Nations with legalized drugs also face less overdose deaths per year. Portugal, a country which has legalized nearly all drugs face 3 deaths from overdose per 1,000,000 people, compared to the U.S. which faces an average of 14 deaths from overdose per 100,000

“The United States is home to less that 5 percent of the world’s population but nearly 25 percent of its prisoners, in part because of the overly harsh consequences of a drug conviction. Many of the 2.3 million people behind bars (and 5 million under criminal justice supervision) in this country are being punished for a drug offense.” (“Mass Criminalization” 1) Did you know that in the United States, we have the “largest prison population in the world’ and “more than half a million people are incarcerated for a drug law violation.” (Branson, Richard 1) By decriminalizing the usage of drugs, it would reduce the offenders criminal penalty as well as their conviction. If a citizen was caught, the state may or could take the drug they have in their possession, issue a fine or require them to seek counseling. Or we could possibly follow Portugal’s path: “If someone is found in the possession of less than a 10-day supply of anything from marijuana to heroin, he or she is sent to a three-person Commission for the Dissuasion of Drug Addiction, typically made up of a lawyer, a doctor and a social worker. The commission recommends treatment or a minor fine; otherwise, the person is sent off without any penalty. A vast majority of the time, there is no penalty.” (Aleem, Zeeshan

As seen in countries like Portugal, where all drugs have been decriminalized and looked at a public health issue rather than a crime, drug use among young adults have gone down. Overall adult use has cutback slightly, and HIV infections and drug-related deaths have remarkably

Across Europe the trend to and argument for decriminalization is on the rise. Advocates for legalization of drugs across Europe have touted Portugal 's success and have tried to use it as a unilateral expression of decriminalization as a complete success. Portugal 's success is very much also attributed to an overhaul on the healthcare and treatment of drug addicts rather than being the simple result of decriminalization (Aleem). The Czech Republic recently joined Portugal in decriminalizing drugs in 2010. The mainufacture and distribution of drugs are still highly illegal, but drug users who simply possess or even use are now free of the fear of persecution. Possession of up to 15 grams of marijuana, five grams of hash, 40 psychodelic mushrooms, one and a half grams of heroin, and a gram of cocaine are considered a usable supply of drugs in the Czech Republic. Success within the country can be measured in that roughly 70 percent of the nation 's problematic drug users maintain regular contact with outreach programs and needle exchange programs. The Netherlands has noted a drop in opiate dependencies thanks to a long-established needle exchange program along with allowing the prescription of maintenance doses of diamorphine and methadone (O 'Neill).

I learnt from this class that addiction can be managed if people are educated about what drugs are and how it will affect them. Before addiction though, it has to be understood that not everybody who takes drugs get addicted to it. A large number of people take some form of drugs but do not abuse it; they are usually not forthcoming with this information because of the stigma attached to taking drugs and the legal implications of their actions. However, if anyone does become addicted then the best way is to advocate for them is to campaign for the decriminalization of all drugs in this country. If we follow the Portuguese model, it will prevent us from sending large number of people to prisons for non violent crimes like possession. Spending

The subject of drugs has certainly been an issue that has been widely discussed. Over the years, it has always boiled down to whether all drugs should be legalized or not. While the United States has been arguing over the topic of for many years, countries, such as Portugal, have taken an alternative and very unique way to fight the war on drugs. In 2001, the Portuguese government decided to flip its war on drugs strategy entirely: It decriminalized them all (Aleem). At first, this strategy was greatly criticized because people believed that decriminalizing drugs would not solve Portugal’s problem. They believed that the country would fall into the abyss of increased drug usage, criminals, and corruption. Actually, none of that has happened, and 15 years later, the country is doing much better than it has before, especially in terms of usage rate and health (Aleem). I believe the United States should decriminalize drugs just like how Portugal did because decriminalizing drugs can actually reduce drug use and its consequences, improve public safety and health, and can make a positive economic impact.

Us as a country need to look at the changes Portugal has taken, our drug problem is at a all time high, if we where to relax and monitor the drug epidemic our country could win in so many ways. If they where to take the approach that officer Peter Christ was stating that if the government would change the law like they did with alcohol in the 1930s, or the tobacco industry the laws they changed to help control any of those industries. He made it clear if we make it accessible to get the chances of someone to comment a crime to receive the drugs could go down. Because when you look at the war on drugs we as a country we are loosing. A 30 year war on drugs and the epidemic is out of control. Also the amount of income the country could gain instead if spending billions of dollars to fight that is a on going fight. If they where to legalize it a least we can educate, monitor and benefit from it. Our prison system wouldn’t be as crowed. I also feel that it would create jobs, and the level of crime could go down. Yes it would be ups and downs at first but you don’t know till you