Please check out some of our campaign materials:
- One page handout
- Failure or Fraud: the US Drug War on Latin America, article
- Our zine comes out soon!
In addition, we’d like to share some of the books, articles and movies that have informed our thinking about the social and political realities of the US drug war. Here we present analysis and source documents on a wide range of issues related to the drug war, from trade to limited opportunities for young people to militarization:
- The Obama Administration’s drug control policy on auto-pilot: Colletta A. Youngers for the International Drug Policy Consortium discusses Pres. Obama’s rhetoric on drug policy versus actual change in policy.
- The Monster and Monterrey: The Politics and Cartels of Mexico’s Drug War: A Nation article on the violence that erupted in Mexico following Felipe Calderón’s declaration of war on drug traffickers and the roots of the violence.
- A Cautionary Tale: “A Cautionary Tale lays out a dozen lessons that U.S. policymakers must draw from the Colombia experience. They include a reminder that the United States must first “clean its own house,” showing the political courage necessary to take on the U.S.-based drug demand, arms trafficking, and money laundering that do Mexico and Colombia so much harm. The recommendations call for a strategy that, instead of relying overwhelmingly on militaries, helps partner countries strengthen their civilian capacities, particularly those of dysfunctional justice systems” (Center for International Policy).
- Neither Rights Nor Security: “Through in-depth research in five of Mexico’s most violent states, Human Rights Watch found evidence that strongly suggests the participation of security forces in more than 170 cases of torture, 39 “disappearances,” and 24 extrajudicial killings since Calderón took office in December 2006” (HRW).
- US Considering Anti-drug Aid Plan For CentAm: CBS News report
- Guatemala’s new leader, general during bloody civil war, hopes to end US military aid cutoff: From the Associated Press via the Star Tribune
- Mexico has 7 million lost youth: “Many young people arrested for being in the drug gangs or killed in the drug war were found to have dropped out of education early and had no history of formal employment.”
- Mexico’s Youth Slips into Drug Violence: From PBS NewsHour
- Authorities in Awe of Drug Runners’ Jungle-Built, Kevlar-Coated Supersubs: A great example of why supply-side drug control doesn’t work from Wired Magazine.
Source documents:
- The Mérida Initiative (PDF): The Merida Initiative, or Plan Mexico, is a $1.6 billion deal to provide arms and training to Mexico and Central America, to fight the Drug War
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Assistant Secretary of State William Brownfield on Drug-Related Violence in Central America: In this YouTube series, Brownfield makes a case for “putting out fires” in Central America
- The Partnership for Growth (PDF): An economic development plan with a sizeable focus on military solutions to crime problems.
- National Security Decisiohttps://www.pcasc.net/wordpress2/wp-admin/post.php?post=4029&action=edit&message=10n Directive 221: NSDD 221, paints drug transporting countries as enemies of the US and expands military funding for drug interdiction.