Drugs and Stuff: A Podcast from the Drug Policy Alliance

Under the Controlled Substances Act, drugs are classified into legal, regulatory categories by the Drug Enforcement Administration. This is known as “drug scheduling”, and it’s generally guided by a drug’s potential for abuse, and its medical value – and then the idea of classwide scheduling came along. In 2018, in a misaligned approach to addressing the overdose crisis, President Trump used classwide scheduling to classify all fentanyl-related substances (FRS) as Schedule I controlled substances. This means that any substance that was structurally similar enough to fentanyl became subject to harsh criminal penalties, regardless of its effects on the body. President Biden, despite apologizing for his tough-on-crime past and promising real criminal justice reform, is advocating to make this Trump-era decision permanent, and it's now up to Congress to decide. In February of 2022, the House voted to extend the policy yet again through March 11, and it’s unclear how long the extensions will continue – the longer they do, the more harm they bring. DPA’s Maritza Perez invited FRS expert and criminal defense attorney Patricia Richman to the podcast to explain more about what classwide scheduling means, and why we are fighting against it. For more information on fentanyl and related substances, visit https://drugpolicy.org/drug-facts/synthetic-opioids-fentanyl. Special thanks to DPA’s Communications intern Matthew Gonzalez for his help on this episode.

The harm reduction movement began as a reaction against drug war policies that criminalize, punish, and hurt people – and a need to save lives. As a public health approach that aims to reduce the harms related to drug use and minimize risk, it offers a fresh and compassionate alternative to the war on drugs. In her new book, New York Times bestselling author Maia Szalavitz chronicles the fascinating and impactful history of this movement. DPA's Sheila Vakharia sat down with Maia to talk about her research, her book's timeliness, and where the movement can go from here, including the decriminalization and legal regulation of drugs. You can keep up with Maia’s work at her website, maiasz.com. Her new book, Undoing Drugs: The Untold Story of Harm Reduction and the Future of Addiction, is available wherever books are sold.

The drug war has impacted nearly every aspect of our lives—and it’s time to uproot it. The Drug Policy Alliance has been working closely with other advocacy organizations to create Uprooting the Drug War, a project that shines a spotlight on the insidious ways the drug war has spread into the systems of child welfare, public benefits, employment, immigration, housing, and education. This episode is the third in our monthly podcast series featuring a DPA partner sharing their experiences fighting the drug war in one of those six systems. The Brotherhood Sister Sol’s Dr. Marsha Jean-Charles and DPA’s Gabriella Miyares discuss how the drug war has manifested itself into our education system, including but not limited to mass surveillance, poor drug education, and lasting yet ineffective punishments for drug use. DPA is proud to partner with The Brotherhood SisterSol through our Advocacy Grants Program. To learn more about grants opportunities, visit drugpolicy.org/grants. Special thanks to our intern Jake Samieske for his help on this episode.

In this episode of “Puff or Pass”, our series on the portrayal of drugs and drug users in popular culture, DPA’s former digital communications interns Dilara Balkan and Marisa Hetzler take us on a journey through fashion, irony, and drug (mis)education with an exploration of the D.A.R.E. shirt. How did the infamous D.A.R.E. program transition from failed Copaganda “drug education” to a counterculture sartorial statement? Listen to find out -- and learn why D.A.R.E.’s abstinence-based approach to drug education was so unsuccessful, what alternatives exist, and where you can get yourself some D.A.R.E. merch to pull off the 90s alt-aesthetic you’ve always wanted. To learn more about DPA’s harm-reduction based drug education curriculum Safety First, visit drugpolicy.org/safetyfirst. Special thanks to our intern Jake Samieske for his help on this episode.

Have you ever noticed just how many series, films and documentaries focus on the drug trade? The “narcos” narrative is so popular, and so ingrained, that it’s universally known. It's also really problematic, and on this episode, we'll do some digging into why. Screenwriter and director Priscila García-Jacquier was born and raised in Colombia, whose economy, people, and reputation have been intimately affected by drugs. “For countries so shaped by the drug trade, whenever I read about it, it feels more like I'm doing 23andme than just like reading about history, you know?" Priscila connected with Jeannette Zanipatin, DPA’s California State Director, and Alexis Martin, DPA’s Development Manager, to talk about challenging the story we so often see, while also considering larger questions around cultural perspective, Latinx identity, and harmful stereotypes. You can keep up with Priscila’s work at her website, priscilagarciajacquier.com, and on her Instagram @priscilagarciajacquier and Twitter @priscilagarciaj. Her show Blindspotting is currently airing on Starz.

The drug war has impacted nearly every aspect of our lives—and it’s time to uproot it. The Drug Policy Alliance has been working closely with other advocacy organizations to create Uprooting the Drug War, a project that shines a spotlight on the insidious ways the drug war has spread into the systems of child welfare, public benefits, employment, immigration, housing, and education. This episode is the second in our monthly podcast series featuring a DPA partner sharing their experiences fighting the drug war in one of those six systems. The Ordinary People Society’s Pastor Kenneth Glasgow and DPA’s Gabriella Miyares discuss how the drug war and the poisonous mentality around it have kept people in poverty and unable to access crucial public benefits. DPA is proud to partner with The Ordinary People Society through our Advocacy Grants Program. To learn more about grants opportunities, visit drugpolicy.org/grants.

The drug war has impacted nearly every aspect of our lives—and it’s time to uproot it. The Drug Policy Alliance has been working closely with other advocacy organizations to create Uprooting the Drug War, a project that shines a spotlight on the insidious ways the drug war has spread into the systems of child welfare or family regulation, public benefits, employment, immigration, housing, and education. Today we kick off a new monthly series on Drugs & Stuff, with each episode featuring a DPA partner sharing their experiences fighting the drug war in one of those six systems. We begin with Movement for Family Power’s Co-Founder and Co-Director Lisa Sangoi and DPA’s Gabriella Miyares discussing the difficulties families face in the family regulation system, and what we can do to fight for family power. DPA is proud to partner with Movement for Family Power through our Advocacy Grants Program. To learn more about grants opportunities, visit drugpolicy.org/grants. To learn more about how the Family Regulation System became Ground Zero for the drug war, check out the Ground Zero Report, a collaboration among MFP, DPA, and the NYU Family Defense Clinic. For more information on the resources Sangoi mentions in the episode, visit: The Bronx Defenders—Family Defense Practice National Council for Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women & Girls Email repealasfa@gmail.com to get involved with the campaign to repeal the Adoption and Safe Families Act Visit the Reimagine Support campaign page to learn more about the campaign to challenge unconsented drug testing of pregnant people, new parents and newborns and reporting to the family regulation system in NY State Elizabeth Brico’s blog Betty’s Battleground Dinah Ortiz, Vice Chair of North Carolina’s Survivor Union J Mac for Families Parent Legislative Action Network Bobbie Butts and Vonya Quarles Family Reunification, Equity, and Empowerment Kelis Houston of the NAACP Minneapolis Elephant Circle Shattered Bonds: The Color of Child Welfare, book by Dorothy Roberts

As we approach the one-year anniversary of Breonna Taylor's killing, the connection between deeply problematic policing and the criminalization of drugs has never been more apparent. On this episode, we take a deep dive into the changes that some communities are already making. Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty sat down with DPA Senior Staff Attorney Grey Gardner to discuss the exciting new all drug decriminalization law in Oregon, Measure 110, as well as a community safety initiative in Portland that offers an alternative to policing. As a community leader and advocate for the last few decades, Commissioner Hardesty shares her observations on how the drug war impacts policing, and her thoughts on why a drastic change is needed. For more information on DPA’s work around policing, visit drugpolicy.org/policing. Special thanks to DPA’s Digital Communications intern Dilara Balkan for her help on this episode.

Today, news broke that the Department of Justice has reached an $8 billion-plus settlement with Purdue Pharma for its role in the opioid crisis. This money should be used to combat the public health emergency of overdose deaths, but another public health emergency -- the COVID-19 pandemic -- has taken hold of media coverage and government spending. As overdose deaths continue to increase, where will this money actually go? We sat down with Christine Minhee, an expert on opioid litigation and creator of the opioid settlement tracker: a project that asks, "Will opioid settlements actually be spent in ways that bolster the public health response to drug addiction?" She spoke with Mary Sylla, a senior staff attorney with DPA, about what opioid litigation is, why it’s so complex, how it ties into our current moment, and what her pie in the sky dream for a settlement would look like. To see more of Christine’s work, visit opioidsettlementtracker.com. For more information on DPA’s work to prevent fatal overdose, visit drugpolicy.org/overdose.

Jessie Dunleavy always knew her son Paul was unique. He struggled throughout his life -- to learn, to be accepted -- and she tried however she could to help him along the way. But as he got older, and began to struggle with drug use, system after system began to shut them out. Where he needed hope, he got silence; where he needed support, he got punishment. In April 2017, Paul overdosed and died. Devastated by his passing, Jessie began to learn as much as she could. In the process, she uncovered unknown details of her son’s life, glimpsed the depth of the injustices he was subjected to, and realized that his death had been preventable. In her new memoir, Cover My Dreams in Ink, she chronicles her journey from concerned mother to outspoken advocate. Visit Jessie’s website for more information about her work and her book. To learn more about the Baltimore Harm Reduction Coalition and The Maryland Harm Reduction Action Network, visit baltimoreharmreduction.org and/or check out @BmoreHRC on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. For DPA’s work around overdose prevention, visit drugpolicy.org/overdose.

Keri Blakinger has worked for years as a journalist (currently at The Marshall Project) covering the criminal justice system and exposing the abuses within it. She comes with experience that most reporters don’t -- in 2010, she was arrested for drug possession and spent two years in the system herself. Matt Sutton, DPA's Director of Media Relations, who also has first-hand experience of the system due to a drug charge, sat down to talk with her. In their discussion, they reflect on the obstacles they have faced in their lives as a result of having a record, how it affects Keri’s reporting, and what changes are needed in a system that still prioritizes punitive measures over anything else. You can follow Keri @keribla on Twitter. To learn more about DPA’s work on these issues, visit drugpolicy.org/criminaljustice.

In her own community in Santa Fe, New Mexico, DPA Senior Director Emily Kaltenbach sees police with assault rifles, submachine guns, grenade launchers, and even tanks. To help us understand the far-reaching implications of the presence of this military equipment, Emily joined us to explain the policy, practices, and history behind the militarization of police, and how deeply embedded it is as a tactic of fighting the failed drug war. As an expert in local-level reform, she lays out the key reform initiatives necessary to demilitarize police and ensure real public safety.

On the latest edition of our “Puff or Pass” series examining how drugs and people who use drugs are portrayed in pop culture, DPA’s marketing coordinator Ifetayo Harvey digs into a recent episode of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. In a dramatic episode that covers many angles -- from problematic drug use to corrupt medical providers, from the intersection of drug policy with other systems to opioid overdose -- one question ties it all together: are the cops portrayed in SVU an accurate reflection of the cops we see in reality? Note that the opinions on Puff or Pass are the guest's own, and don't necessarily represent the official position of DPA.

Drug courts -- programs that seek to reduce drug use through mandated treatment and close judicial oversight -- sound like a good alternative to incarceration. In theory they are thought to save money and increase access to treatment but in practice they cherry-pick eligible participants and allow judges to preside over treatment decisions. Kerwin Kaye, Associate Professor of Sociology, American Studies, and Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Wesleyan University, recently published a book entitled "Enforcing Freedom: Drug Courts, Therapeutic Communities, and the Intimacies of the State." He sat down with Deputy Director of DPA’s Department of Research and Academic Engagement Dr. Sheila P. Vakharia -- whose background in social work makes her no stranger to drug courts -- for a fascinating conversation that dove deep into his ethnographic research and the many issues with the drug court model. They discussed how drug court practices often discriminate against and penalize Black and poor users while insulating those who are white and more class privileged. Kaye’s insights are particularly timely, as we see increasing calls for decriminalization and alternatives to incarceration. Kerwin Kaye’s book is available through Columbia University Press. To read DPA’s 2011 report on drug courts, visit https://www.drugpolicy.org/drugcourts.

When the Drug Policy Alliance publicly released our harm reduction-based drug education curriculum Safety First in October, the world was a different place. In the months since, it’s evolved into an even more crucial resource. We’ve had continuing conversations with students, parents and teachers; a collaboration with the mental health foundation Made of Millions; and adaptations for Google Classroom. I talked to Senior Program Manager Sasha Simon about how and why we’re continuing the push to make thoughtful and compassionate drug education part of more people’s lives. For a look back at the program’s launch, listen to Episode 27. You can download the curriculum on our website for free, and give your feedback.

We’ve all been there: you’re watching TV or a movie, playing a video game or listening to some music, when drugs enter the storyline. This can go well -- and it can also go really badly. On this episode, we’re introducing a new series we call “Puff or Pass.” It examines how drugs and people who use drugs are portrayed in pop culture, for better or worse. Kicking this series off for us is Brian Hackel, currently interning for DPA’s communications team. He digs into a recent episode of The Simpsons called “Highway to Well” -- and his analysis is as brilliant as it is hilarious. Will he puff or pass on this portrayal? Listen to find out. Note that the opinions on Puff or Pass are the guest's own, and don't necessarily represent the official position of DPA.

Immigrant detention centers are bleak places in the best of times, but during a pandemic they are absolutely dangerous. And yet U.S. immigration enforcement has carried on as COVID-19 continues to spread, exacerbating the stress and anxiety that people who are non-citizens and/or undocumented already feel when dealing with a system that is unforgiving in its measures. This week activist Alejandra Pablos joins us to share her experience in one of these centers, in conversation with DPA’s Director of National Affairs Maritza Perez and DPA’s California State Director Jeannette Zanipatin. They examine how the drug war drives much of what’s happening at the federal, state, and local levels with immigration court and ICE raids, and share the urgent need for decarceration and calls for advocacy. This episode’s guests have listed some resources below for listeners who’d like to take a deeper dive. This Teen Vogue articlecontains various actions readers can take to help immigrants rights now, including actions around the #FreeThemAll campaign. The Farmworkers COVID-19 Pandemic Relief Fundcontributes directly to farmworkers who have been left out of Congressional relief packages.Immigrant leaders with the Cosecha Movement launched a national immigrant worker fund to distribute immediate emergency relief to undocumented workers who have been excluded from receiving any federal aid. You can pledge to donate here. TheFree Them All action toolkitfrom Detention Watch Network is an essential guide to supporting the #FreeThemAll movement at this time.ICE’s official guidance on the COVID-19 pandemiccan be found here. Vox analyzed the policy and the discrepancies within it in an article here. This op-edby a co-director and assistant director at Cal ACLU’s immigration response committee outlines the many issues with immigration detention during a pandemic and links to petitions.DPA’sCOVID-19 response pagecontains sign on letters and other actions around immigration and other issues related to drug policy in the pandemic.

On previous episodes, we’ve talked about the impact of COVID-19 in the context of public health and incarceration. But, as an organization, how has Drug Policy Alliance been affected? What about our work has changed, and what stays the same? I asked DPA’s Managing Director of Policy, Advocacy and Campaigns, Kassandra Frederique, to break it down for us. (Visit www.drugpolicy.org/covid19 for more information about DPA’s pandemic response.)

Of the first seven people who died of COVID-19 in federal prison, five of them were there for drug offenses. In this moment, the inhumanity and disastrous health consequences of our prisons and jails are clearer than ever. In this episode, DPA’s Managing Director of Policy Advocacy and Campaigns, Kassandra Frederique, sits down with CJ Ciaramella, criminal justice reporter at Reason, and Sakira Cook, Director of the Justice Reform Program at The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, to talk about how this pandemic has blown the broken system wide open -- and the opportunities we have to change it.

In her previous work as a civil rights attorney during the HIV/AIDS epidemic, DPA Senior Staff Attorney Mary Sylla saw firsthand the lack of adequate healthcare available to people who are incarcerated. To better understand how to solve the problem, she went back to school for a Masters in Public Health. On today’s episode, Mary talks about the current reality of health injustice in prisons and jails through the lens of COVID-19.