Browsing: Latin America

The federal government’s effort to battle drug abuse has been a tragic and expensive failure. But of course, admitting that would make politicians, who regularly endorse it to sound tough, seem foolish and careless with taxpayer dollars. So the War on Drugs continues, while of necessity it slowly morphs into new forms of federal waste and unnecessary intrusion into people’s lives.
Activism

A host of academic, legal, health, political and social figures are joining together to back a campaign to decriminalise drug use in Brazil, as tens of thousands of consumers uninvolved in the drug trade are currently jailed.

The Drug War is over. The U.S. government hasn't stopped arresting people for using pot and other illicit substances. But no one seriously believes Washington is going to "win," whatever that means. The Drug War is on autopilot, with American politicians afraid to admit the obvious.

When President Obama arrives in Colombia for a hemispheric summit this weekend, he will hear Latin American leaders say that the U.S.-orchestrated war on drugs, which criminalizes drug use and employs military tactics to fight gangs, is failing and that sweeping changes need to be considered.
Activism

Vice President Joe Biden heads to Latin America Sunday amid unprecedented pressure from political and business leaders to talk about something U.S. officials have no interest in debating: decriminalizing drugs.

Drug trafficking violence claimed thousands of lives across Latin America in 2011 as drug use soared, illustrating the failure of regional anti-narcotics policies and reviving a legalization debate.
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