Public Service Advertisements

Is Truth a Casualty of the Drug War?

The Public Service Advertisements below ran from 1999 to 2007, focusing on misinformation in the drug war.

The Common Sense public information campaign carefully quoted credible research and leading authorities so as to provide the public with reliable information and to better inform the debate on drug policy. CSDP's PSAs ran in Reason, The American Prospect, The National Review, The Nation, The New Republic, and The Progressive.

Please note: These PSAs may be reproduced in whole or in part without permission and with or without attribution provided the meaning is faithfully maintained.

042	Is the funding of terrorism another unintended consequence of drug prohibition?	"Is the funding of terrorism another unintended consequence of drug prohibition?" The United Nations reports an illegal drug trade worth $400 Billion a year -- $100 Billion more than our Department of Defense budget. Could a regulated and controlled model for soft drugs similar to our approach with alcohol and for hard drugs similar to prescription drugs stop the flow of illegal drug profits? This advertisement is also available in printer-ready Portable Document Format (PDF).
041	Should Coerced Treatment Replace Prison For First-Time, Nonviolent Drug Offenders?	"Should Coerced Treatment Replace Prison For First-Time, Nonviolent Drug Offenders?" Providing treatment where needed is vital. But so is reform of harsh laws. Forcing a moderate drug user into treatment is like putting someone who drinks a bottle of beer or a glass of wine a day into Alcoholics Anonymous! This advertisement is also available in printer-ready Portable Document Format.
040	Change of tune on drug policy?	"Change of tune on drug policy? This op-ed by Ethan Nadelmann, Director of the Lindesmith Center-Drug Policy Foundation, was published by the Los Angeles Times on May 18, 2001. This advertisement is also available in printer-ready Portable Document Format (PDF).
039	UK police end cannabis seizures	"UK police end cannabis seizures." Law enforcement and customs authorities in the UK are shifting focus away from cannabis in order to concentrate efforts against hard drugs. Can the US learn from the British example? This advertisement is also available in printer-ready Portable Document Format.
038	White kids are more likely to be using drugs	White kids are more likely to be using (and selling) drugs, yet blacks are more likely to go to prison. This advertisement is also available in printer-ready Portable Document Format (PDF).
037	It Is Time For The Federal Government To Provide Safe Access To Medical Marijuana	"It Is Time For The Federal Government To Provide Safe Access To Medical Marijuana" The Federal government should stop treating seriously ill Americans as criminals. This advertisement is also available in printer-ready Portable Document Format (PDF).
036	Annual Causes of Deaths In the United States	"Annual Causes of Deaths In the United States" US drug policies are not based on the relative dangers of substances, as this ad graphically illustrates. This advertisement is also available in printer-ready Portable Document Format (PDF).
035	Pregnant Women & Their Babies: Drug War Casualties?	"Pregnant Women & Their Babies: Drug War Casualties?" Punitive approaches that stigmatize pregnant drug users undermine women and children's health, threaten a range of civil rights and liberties, and dangerously expand the war on drugs. This ad exposes the dangerous myths on which such policies are based, and is available in printer-ready Portable Document Format (PDF).
034	President Bush Offers Hope	"President Bush Offers Hope" Will President Bush lead us from drug policies often of ignorance and opportunism to just approaches based upon peer reviewed research and decency? This ad is also available in printer-ready Portable Document Format (PDF)
033	Thanks President Clinton	"Thanks President Clinton" In an interview published in December 2000 in Rolling Stone magazine, President Clinton expressed the need for dramatic reform in drug policy. Also available in printer-ready Portable Document Format (PDF)