Moms Fighting To Stop War on Drugs
Many people today are fighting to end the war on drugs, but few groups are as vocal as moms. Mothers and their family members are joining together to bring focus to the country’s failed drug policy and destruction that these policies wreak on our families and homes. Moms United is a growing group that wants to stop violence and overdose deaths that are caused by the drug policies in place today.
Instead, we are advocating for drug policies that can actually reduce the dangerous effects of drugs. It’s not hard to believe that moms are banding together when you consider the drug facts and statistics today.
With greater understanding and ability to seek help, there is much less risk of dying from an overdose. Men from the ages of 35-45 are significantly more likely to die from drug overdoses than from an auto accident. In 2006, the CDC published statistics that over 26 thousand people died from an unintentional overdose in the United States.
However, while all of these stories are common, the drug laws in place prevent people from calling for help due to fear. Moms want to make sure that every person has the ability to seek out medical attention when the worse happens without having to be afraid.
Moms are also tired of the long-lasting effects that drug laws have on our children’s lives. Millions of people are arrested for drug possession today. These possession charges are not related to selling or marketing drugs, but simply having them on your person. The majority of arrests are made from young people, and especially minorities.
We’re tired of our children being arrested and put in jail for extended sentences. One in every hundred adults is incarcerated today and we think that our prisons are too crowded.
A huge number of these jail sentences are caused to drug arrests so we need to stop overcrowding prisons with drug charges. Additionally, the consequences of having a drug conviction are disproportionately high.
Being convicted or even arrested can cause you to lose valuable education and job opportunities in addition to prevent you from receiving government aid and even voting rights. We don’t believe that these sentences are fair. Drug laws also can lead to worsening violence. Many of the violence associated with drug cartels could be avoided, with fewer deaths, if there were less restrictive drug laws on the books today.
Finally, and most importantly, moms stand behind ending the war on drugs because of better alternatives. We need Good Samaritan policies as well as better access to treatment options to reduce addiction and overdose deaths.
The needle exchange programs already in place help to reduce diseases associated with drug use and we want to see those programs continue. Reduce penalties and stop excluding minor drug offenders from the basic rights as citizens. Treatment instead of jail time is an effective strategy which is why we stand behind this belief strongly.
We hope you understand and support our cause.
Moms United is a great way for mothers who have serious concerns about the current drug laws to band together and provide tangible reasons why drug laws should and must be changed.