Tag: Monthly Mosaic

TAKE ACTION Do an SSDP DARE and add your points on the SSDP Chapter Activity Tracker! Share this Monthly Mosaic on Facebook or Twitter using #MonthlyMosaic. (10 points)Submit a story/testimonial HERE for International Overdose Awareness Day 2017 — this can be anonymous (10 points)Write a paragraph in response to the Monthly Mosaic, and email it to Elise to be included

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The 2014 police killing of unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri caught heavy media attention, sparking a national conversation about police brutality and the propulsion of the Black Lives Matter movement into that conversation.The strong reaction from the Ferguson community, supported by concerned citizens across the country and globe, set a precedent for community mobilization and involvement in instances

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June 2017 Monthly Mosaic Intersecting Stigmas: LGBTQ People and Drug Use Our apologies for the late delivery of the June Monthly Mosaic. Please also welcome Elise Szabo as the Mosaic’s newest co-editor. Thank you to Em Basso for their dedicated service. And, a special thank you to UT Austin chapter leader Andrew Hood, who contributed heavily to this issue. In

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IS THE WAR ON DRUGS A WAR ON THE ENVIRONMENT? The War on Drugs has a complex and multi-layered relationship with the environment, often bordering on a full-scale War on the Environment. Drug war policies are frequently overtly damaging to the environment, such as the massive environmental destruction at the hands of government agencies using dangerous chemical pesticides to eradicate

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Is the War on Drugs a War on the Environment? The War on Drugs has a complex and multi-layered relationship with the environment, often bordering on a full-scale War on the Environment. Read more in our April/May issue of the Monthly Mosaic here. Then, check out the below resources to learn more about the intersection of the social and environmental crises

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A hearty welcome to SSDP2017 from SSDP’s Diversity, Awareness, Reflection, & Education (SSDP-DARE) committee! Because the consequences of drug prohibition are far-reaching in their impact on different communities across the globe, exposing oneself to new perspectives is crucial to understanding  the totality of the drug war. We hope that you’ll seize the opportunity presented by SSDP2017 to make lasting connections

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In the 1980s, the Partnership for a Drug-Free America released a television advertisement showing a rat, alone, in a cage. The rat had been given two water bottles: one with plain water, and one laced with cocaine. “Only one drug is so addictive, nine out of ten laboratory rats will use it. And use it. And use it. Until dead.

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IMMIGRATION AND THE WAR ON DRUGS Simple drug use or possession, particularly of marijuana, is one of the most common reasons that people are criminalized in the United States. In some cases, individuals with drug charges are even asked to leave the United States. This is how the War on Drugs disenfranchises immigrants. Drug laws passed in the 1980s and

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On May 9th of this year, Rodrigo Duterte was elected President of the Philippines in a landslide, thanks in large part to an aggressively pro-drug war agenda. Duterte campaigned on a “tough on crime” platform centered around a plan to offer bounties to those who turn in drug lords, dead or alive, and has since encouraged Filipino citizens take to

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The days are quickly ticking down to November 8th, and we’re all feeling the pressure to make sure we’re informed, registered to vote, and know who and what we’ll be voting for. The U.S. is gearing up to chose our next president, cannabis initiatives are on the ballot in nine states, and, of course, there are several down ballot elections

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STATE-SPONSORED REPRESSION AND THE WAR ON DRUGS Two years ago today, 43 students of la Escuela Normal Raúl Isidro Burgos, also known as  the Normal Rural de Ayotzinapa—a residential college for peasant farmers studying to become teachers serving in their own rural communities—disappeared in Iguala, Guerrero. Rural normal colleges, such as the Normal Rural de Ayotzinapa, are a legacy of

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Back-to-School: Building an Inclusive Chapter Summer is coming to an end, and, if it hasn’t started already, the beginning of the school year is quickly approaching. Recruiting members is one of the first and most important actions that chapters can take to build their network and engage other student activists. Planning out how you will conduct outreach and organize actions

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July 2016 Monthly Mosaic The Prison Industrial Complex and the War on Drugs Students for Sensible Drug Policy’s original motto was “Schools Not Prisons,” in response to the “Aid Elimination Penalty,” an amendment added to the Higher Education Act in 1998, which excluded students with drug convictions from receiving federal financial aid to attend institutions of higher learning. In early

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In mainstream conversations about families and drugs, parents are tasked with protecting their children from the evils of drug abuse. However, this narrative drastically oversimplifies the many ways in which families experience drugs and drug use, glossing over the serious problems caused by drug war policies themselves. Even otherwise positive drug policy reforms frequently overlook parents and families, perpetuating the

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In 1980, there were 40,900 people incarcerated for drug offenses; by 2013, this number increased to 489,000. The vast majority of drug arrests are for possession, leaving the criminal justice system to address substance use and addiction, which it often does inadequately at best. According to a Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report issued in 2006, slightly more than half

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  It’s conference time! Today marks the first day of SSDP2016—the biggest and best SSDP conference we’ve had to date. With UNGASS 2016—a United Nations’ General Assembly special session on “the world drug problem”—around the corner, drug policy reformers from around the world have been working overtime mobilizing, strategizing, and strengthening their coordinated efforts to change global perceptions and policy

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Women and the War on Drugs Though men are often seen as the primary targets of the drug war, women have long been on the frontlines. Women comprise one of the fastest growing segments of the U.S. prison population. Two-thirds of women in federal prison are there for nonviolent drug offenses. Three quarters are mothers—many of them sole caregivers. Pregnant women

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Black Lives Matter and the War on Drugs The War on Drugs was founded on racist principles, so it’s no surprise that the movement to reform drug policy has strong ties to the civil rights movement for people of color. However, with the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, the implicit racism inherent in the War on Drugs has

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January Monthly Mosaic New Year’s Resolutions Happy New Year from SSDP’s Diversity Awareness, Response and Education Committee! While we usually use this space to educate about an area of intersectionality with drug policy, in celebration of the new year, this Monthly Mosaic is dedicated to some New Year’s resolutions we’re making. We hope you’ll not only join us, but share

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Note: You may have received this email blast by mistake today. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. If you are interested in receiving these emails, please email Frances at frances@ssdp.org. Thank you! In the modern American context, religious communities are often viewed as natural enemies of drug policy reform. However, not only is there a growing movement

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Transgender Awareness and the Drug War On June 28, 1969, the Stonewall Riots marked the beginning of the modern LGBTQ movement. Forty-six years later, to the month,  the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, a historic victory that has opened up the way for further reforms. Just as marijuana legalization can be considered the “face” of the drug policy reform

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