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Tuesday 28 February 2012

Guess who's coming to the conference? Vol. 4

by David Hewson

Before I get to the profiles, a quick conference update:

1. We've set up the channel that we'll be using to livestream the conference. Not much going on there just yet ('cept occasionally some weird dude giving the double thumbs up), but please share the address with anyone who can't make the conference.


2. To: 

A) involve everyone who can't make the event, and 
B) create a conversation backchannel for everyone who can, 

we'll be using Twitter and tweeting with the #cssdp12 hash tag. There are things going on there already, so check it out, and see who's getting ready for the event.


Now that that's out of the way - attendee profiles! Today's bunch includes a veteran board member, and two more conference first-timers. If you missed the profiles we've posted so far, here are Volumes One, Two and Three.

As always - if you haven't already filled out our survey, please do! We'll post your profiles on the blog, like we did with these ones.

Here's the link:


Enjoy!


Lorraine Schembri


CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in) 
Simon Fraser University, CSSDP Board of Directors

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended? 
Vancouver 2009, Toronto 2010

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about? 
Just a hunch I've always had that something was wrong. This feeling was then completely validated during a 3 hour War On Drugs (whats wrong with it) lecture in a Psychopharmacology class in 2008.

What do you want to accomplish at this conference? 
I'd like to be inspired with new chapter and board endeavours to move away from tough-on-drug-use mentality.

Anything else to add? 
Can't wait to see old friends and meet new ones and move toward progress, not prisons!

Do you have some way for people to follow/get in touch with you before the conference? 
Yes. CSSDP SFU has a Facebook page.


Jess

CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in)
Y.E.A.H. Planned Parenthood

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended? 
First time!

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about? 
Doing harm reduction from previous years, this interests me in taking a stronger approach to drug users, and also to get involved politicly.

What do you want to accomplish at this conference? 
Learning more about the drug policies that are in current affect, knowing what we can do now and in the future to benefit us, as well as people coming to us for help.

Anything else to add? 
I might have to bring my 5 1/2 month baby, I have some family in Calgary, but I know some are sick, I am sorry for the inconvience. I am single mom and dont have much choice. 


Dan Werb
Twitter: @prfssrfeelings


CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in) 
International Centre for Science in Drug Policy (ICSDP.org)

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended? 
First time!

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about? 
I worked as a Research Fellow for the Paris-based Senlis Council in 2005 (now the International Council on Security and Development).

What do you want to accomplish at this conference? 
Present materials that will hopefully allow interested drug policy advocates to duplicate our efforts in BC cannabis policy reform in other jurisdictions.

Anything else to add? 
Present materials that will hopefully allow interested drug policy advocates to duplicate our efforts in BC cannabis policy reform in other jurisdictions.

Do you have some way for people to follow/get in touch with you before the conference? 
Yes - Twitter.


Saturday 25 February 2012

Video: what Portugal does about drugs

by David Hewson

Recently, the government of Portugal revealed that 10 years after it had decriminalized all drugs in 2001, drug abuse had reduced by half. It was a heartening validation for those of us against the drug war, and the news got plenty of press coverage, including an article in Forbes.

But how exactly does this system work? If drugs aren't fully legalized, but drug users aren't criminals, then what is the government's role, exactly?


This video clip should answer some of these questions. The speaker, Nuno Capaz, works for one of the governments drug commissions, and he talks (in very candid terms) about how things work.

Here's the link: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/20469537/highlight/244293

Some of my favourite quotes from his 20-min presentation:

On how the government decided on decriminalization:
"Quite frankly, for me, one of the reasons our drug policy actually works, is that the government decided to take all the expert's recommendations and pass them into law...they said, 'if these guys are the experts, we're not gonna say they're wrong and to do other things that they don't say to do.'"

On funding addiction treatment programs:
"The government pays at least 80-100% of the treatment programs...and it's still cheaper than jail. It might not work, but at least we know that in jail, it won't work at all. At least in treatment they have a chance."

On the inherent problems with the criminal system:
"Normally, a court tends to be a coercive structure. And normally, drug users don't tend to do well with coercive structures."

On the importance of being fast:
"We do a lot of networking...if we have a drug addict that wants to go to treatment, we can refer them that day...if we say you can go there 15 days from now, he will not stop using drugs for those 15 days, and it won't work."

On use vs. abuse:
"A huge majority of users do not have a problem with using. It's pretty much like alcohol. A lot of people here  today drink alcohol regularly, and most of you don't have a problem with it."

On their approach to their work:
"We are not there to give more problems to drug users...we try to give them solutions to solve their problems."

I thought the guy made a lot of sense. What do you think?

Thursday 23 February 2012

Guess who's coming to the conference? Vol. 3

by David Hewson

Responses to our survey have been flowing in, and they've been fantastic! Each response provides a unique look at one of our attendees, their background and what they're hoping to do at the conference - so thanks to everyone who's participated so far. In case you're haven't seen the other attendee profiles yet, here's Vol. 1 and Vol. 2.

If you haven't already filled out our survey, please do! We'll post your profiles on the blog, like we did with these ones.

Here's the link:

Enjoy!


Michaela Montaner
Twitter: @mmontaner


Speaker - "Coalition Building" workshop (Sunday, March 4)

CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in) 
International Centre for Science in Drug Policy (ICSDP.org)

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended? 
First time! 

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about? 

I've supported reform for as long as I can remember! My dad is an HIV/AIDS researcher so as a kid I already had a good sense that Canadian drug policy wasn't protecting community health and safety. That said, it was probably when the Harper Conservatives started undermining Vancouver's supervised injection site that I became motivated to apply my experience as an organizer/communicator and actually do something about it. 

What do you want to accomplish at this conference? 
I want to talk with smart, passionate people about how we can work together with one another and our respective communities to help Canada adopt a public health approach to regulating illicit drugs. 

Anything else to add? 
I love CSSDP. 

Canada needs more community-driven organizations to recognize how their constituents are being adversely affected by Canadian drug policy and to do something about it. I can only imagine how much further along this movement would be if all communities had a CSSDP equivalent facilitating the action and education CSSDP does among students. Keep up the great work. 

Do you have some way for people to follow/get in touch with you before the conference? 
Yes - FacebookTwitter & LinkedIn.


Ben Mossbarger
Twitter: @MossberryJam


CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in) 
University of Toronto, CSSDP Board of Directors

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended? 
Toronto 2010 

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about? 

Moving from Victoria, BC to Houston, Texas was a huge culture shock. The entire political climate of Texas was troubling to me, in particular their attitudes towards substance use. When I started undergrad in the US, I immediately gravitated towards my university's chapter of SSDP

What do you want to accomplish at this conference? 
I want to meet all the awesome people who make CSSDP as great as it is! I've been on the board of directors for a little over a year now, and it'll be great to get back in touch with the organization I'm working to keep moving. 

Do you have some way for people to follow/get in touch with you before the conference?
Yes - Facebook & Twitter.


Heiko Decosas
Twitter: @stillhope_media




Speaker - "Create your own media" workshop (Sunday, March 4)

CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in) 
Canadian Drug Policy Coalition (drugpolicy.ca)

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended?
First time!

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about?

Spectrum of use diagram and Bruce Alexander's Globalization of Addiction analysis...

What do you want to accomplish at this conference?
Network for a unified national response to drug policy reform.

Anything else to add?
Thanks for the work you do:)

Do you have some way for people to follow/get in touch with you before the conference?
Yes - Twitter.

Wednesday 22 February 2012

Guess who's coming to the conference? Vol. 2

by David Hewson

It's time for Round 2 of conference attendee profiles! (Here's Round 1, in case you missed it.) In this edition, we've got the full spectrum - a speaker from our Harm Reduction panel, a CSSDP chapter member, and complete first-timer.

If you haven't already filled out our survey, please do! We'll post your profiles on the blog, like we did with these ones.

Here's the link:
http://dwhewson.wufoo.com/forms/tell-us-about-yourself/

Here we go...


Jennifer Vanderschaeghe 
Twitter: @CAANSRedDeer



Speaker – Harm Reduction Panel (Saturday, March 3)

CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in):
Central Alberta AIDS Network Society (CAANS)

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended?
First time!

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
Not that I know of.

What do you want to accomplish at this conference?
Networking and learning


Ryland Steel


CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in):
Queen's University

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended?
First time!

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about? 
Over the course of a year I became incresingly aware of the urgency in drug policy reform. University level education was juxtaposed to my biased upbringing on the harms of drugs and led the way for alternative thinking. Understanding that in some cases the purported harms had been inflated for effect, and that in other cases those harms would be better addressed by health policy versus criminal justice policy, I made conclusions that envisaged a denouncement of drug prohibition.

What do you want to accomplish at this conference?
I would like to coordinate with others of like mind on this issue of drug prohibition and discuss both short and long term plans for rectifying decades worth of failed policy. Additionally, I would like to learn more through an interactive experience disparate from the manner in which I have thus far self-educated on the issue.

Anything else to add?
I have never been to a conference like this before and so having the opportunity would be a great joy to me considering all that it has to offer.


Dex Dunford
Twitter: @SofaProfessor
SofaProfessor.com



CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in):
Sofa Professing

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended?
First time!

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about?
It's just unjust and a waste of valuable time, money, resources and people to blindly fight a war against drugs like this.

What do you want to accomplish at this conference?
Learn some stuff.

Anything else to add?
No bacon on the salad.

Monday 20 February 2012

How we're promoting the #cssdp12 conference

by David Hewson


Promotions brainstorming. Like Leonardo da Vinci's scribblings, except for social media.


First off - anyone catch what I did there?


If you're on Twitter, you'll recognize the hash tag (#) I used in this post's title (actually, you'll probably recognize it even if you're not on Twitter, since the hash tag's gone pretty mainstream eg. Jack Layton using "#FAIL" in the leader's debate during the last federal election.)


Briefly, hash tags / #'s are a way to group together tweets on the same theme, so that everyone can see the latest and greatest of what's happening. In this case, we've created the #cssdp12 hash tag to give you a way to keep up on what's happening with the conference, and because I put it in this post's title, now you know about it...#sneaky, no?


Sneakiness aside, this post is about letting you guys know how we've been promoting the conference so far, and hearing any ideas you might have on the subject.


But first: promotion. When I say that, I mean two things:
1. Letting people know about CSSDP and the conference when they otherwise wouldn't know about them.
2. Finding ways to engage with the people who are already planning on going.


Thing 1 is what normally comes to mind when we think about promotions, but Thing 2 is important too. And since investing in Thing 2 makes the event that much more awesome, it actually makes Thing 1 a whole lot easier.


My point: when you leave us your suggestions (like in the comments below, *hint *hint) remember to think of Thing 2 promotion as well as Thing 1. 


Now that that's out of the way, here's what we've been doing so far:


Personal networks
Nothing beats word of mouth, so we've been making sure that any friends or acquaintances in Calgary or nearby know about the conference, and the latest news. (Nearness is always a relative term in Canada - in this case I think of "nearby" as pretty much all of Western Canada.) Facebook makes this easy, all you have to do is look up "Current City" and see who's where. 


Q - Any other ways to reach out?


Posters
We've got a gorgeous poster for the event (see below), and our CSSDP chapter members and volunteers at UCalgary have been making sure it gets seen, by posting it on-campus and off, at cafés and businesses that like us.


Q - Any other places we should put them up?




Facebook
Everyone and their mom seems to be on Facebook now, so we'd be foolish not to take advantage of 2012's big IPO.


Apart from encouraging people to share news about the conference on their walls, we've been staying active on our CSSDP page and the Facebook event page for the conference, and encouraging speakers and participants to post any questions and news they have. 


Q - Any other ways we should be using Facebook?


Survey / Attendee profiles
While Facebook has helped get some interaction going, we wanted to do more. The answer was a quick survey for those attending the conference, with a few key questions that only take 5-10 minutes to fill out. (If you haven't already taken the survey,  you can do so here.)


See?! Filling out a survey ain't so scary.
What do we do with the surveys? Apart from reading them ourselves, we post these attendee profiles on our blog for everyone to see! (You can see the first bunch of attendee profiles here.)


What this does:

- gets you thinking about what you want to accomplish at the conference.
- starts getting everyone familiar with each other, so that when conference time rolls around we can hit the ground running.
- gives us (the conference planners) ideas and feedback on what you're expecting, so we can make this the best conference we can.

A few other great things, from a promotions standpoint:
- we get fresh material for our blog (more on this later), but we don't have to create it.
- you are more likely to spread material that you created further and wider among your social networks than the most compelling material we could ever write. Awesome.

Q - Have you filled out the survey? How were the questions - too many, too few?
Any ideas for how we could use surveys in the future?

The CSSDP Blog
As I mentioned above, our attendee profiles give us fresh content for our blog. But why does fresh content matter - or why even blog in the first place?

Because blogging is fantastic. For many reasons:

1. Writing forces us to sort out our thoughts, so that you, the reader, can see them and respond. This doesn't mean we have to have everything figured out. In fact, displaying a work-in-progress encourages collaboration, because the reader knows it's not too late for feedback (like in the comments below - *hint *hint).
2. Blogging warms you up to some of the ideas and initiatives we're working on. For example, this conference, we want to:
a) promote Twitter and other Internet tools, and 
b) create some really good video content. 

See? Now you know this. More info coming soon - stay tuned to this blog.

3. Our blog gives us material to put in our email newsletters, post on Facebook, and tweet about - don't want that #cssdp12 hash tag going stale!

4. Blogging shows you what we're excited about, and why you should be excited about it too. And in your excitement, you can reply with your thoughts and opinions (like in the comments below - *hint *hint). In other words, our blog helps create and strengthen the ties that bind us as an organization.

And keep in mind - we're not just blogging about the conference. We still have quality posts on drug-related issues, like Alex's reflections from her trip to the Netherlands and Alyssa's critique of Bill C-10, with more posts like them in the works.

Q - Any other ways we should be using our blog? What do you like about what we're doing? How could we improve?


And if it wasn't obvious enough: in the comments section, please let us know any questions, ideas or suggestions you have, or get in touch via Facebook or Twitter (or my CSSDP Twitter account). 

Friday 17 February 2012

Guess who's coming to the conference? Vol. 1

by David Hewson

Our annual conference is the one weekend each year that Canadians interested in drug policy are all in the same place. It's a huge country and bringing everyone together is expensive, so we want to make the most of this opportunity. 

To do this, we created a short (5-10min) survey with a few key questions. We then asked some of the first people who registered for the conference to fill it out, and we'll show you their responses below.

Our goal:
- get you thinking about what you want to accomplish at this conference.
- start getting everyone familiar with each other, so that when conference time rolls around we can hit the ground running.
- give us (the conference planners) ideas and feedback on what you're expecting, so we can make this the best conference we can.

Our speakers are particularly interested to know where you're coming from, so if you have questions or ideas for them, put them in the comments. And feel free to get in touch with anyone who's given their contact information.

If you haven't already filled out the survey, please do! We'll post your entries on the blog, like we did with these ones.

Here's the link:

Now that's out of the way, I'd like to introduce our first three contestants. I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I did.


Tyler Chartrand


CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in):
Okanagan College, Kelowna, BC

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended?
First time!

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform? 
How did they come about? 
Bill S10 of 2010 is the reason I got involved. I use Cannabis recreationally and took S10 as a personal assault to me as a citizen/student.

What do you want to accomplish at this conference?
Network with like minded individuals/groups to further a growing respectful dialogue of drug policy and the need to move from prohibition to legal regulation. The goal being to have drug policy as a key platform in the next federal election.


Scott Bernstein
Twitter: @redcedarlaw


Speaker – Harm Reduction Panel (Saturday, March 3)

CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in):
Pivot Legal Society
Twitter: @pivotlegal

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended?
First time!

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about? 
Yes - I worked on the Insite case as a law student and then as a lawyer at all levels of court. I saw the harms associated with the government's anti-evidence approach to drug policy. I decided to dedicate my career to drug policy reform. Being at the Supreme Court of Canada as a new lawyer was a life-changing experience for me.

What do you want to accomplish at this conference?
Meet some interesting people, learn some things, have a good time.

Anything else to add?
Very happy to be at the conference and honoured to be asked to speak on the harm-reduction panel.

Tera

CSSDP chapter (or other organization you're involved in):
None

Which CSSDP conferences have you attended?
First time!

Were there any tipping points, or "A-ha!!" moments that got you into drug policy reform?
How did they come about? 
I've always been into drug policy reform, but I got a lot more interested when I began working with youth in the criminal justice system and realized how many youth are sent to prison on drug-related crimes.

What do you want to accomplish at this conference?
I know drug policies need to change, but I don't fully understand what changes are realistic. I want to learn more about how drug policies could be be reformed and what I can do to advocate for change.

Anything else to add?
I'm super excited.


Wednesday 15 February 2012

What's Wrong With Bill C-10?

by: Allysa Olding

Parliament is back in session and the MPs and senators have busied themselves in intense debate, reading bills and deciding their validity, proposing amendments or outright dismissing them. As Canadians who are concerned about drug policy, we have a lot to pay attention to this February. One major policy platform being pushed by Conservatives in government which has got everybody talking is the Omnibus Crime Bill C-10 or, as the conservatives are calling it, the “Tough on Crime” Bill.

“Tough on Crime?”

The Bill itself is several major criminal code changes lumped into one, and - according to the Government of Canada website summary - creates dramatic changes to the criminal code which are intended to target organized crimes, gangs, and drug-related offences involving youth and children. “The Safe Streets and Communities Act” proposes several amendments to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act which would impose mandatory minimum sentences for drug-related criminal offences. According to the Act people who produce, sell, or use illicit substances - from recreational use of cannabis, to those with serious and potentially life-threatening narcotic addictions are met with the same response: incarceration. This bill imposes more incarceration for more people, nearly eliminating judicial discretion and undermining a health-focused restorative approach to addiction and substance abuse.

But does this Bill, problematic as it is, achieve its stated goals? Will it reduce crime rates and create “safer streets and communities”? Has it been carefully formulated to combat organized crime and abuse of substances by youth? The bill has been widely criticized by both governmental and non-governmental groups, activists and academics for being unnecessary, inefficient, and economically impractical. Ultimately, the concern for activists interested in Drug Policy is related to the fact that C-10 effectively eliminates a healthcare-focused approach to addiction in lieu of merciless and unnecessary incarceration.


“What's Wrong With Bill C-10”

Well, Lots. But don't take my word for it. There is an expansive and growing body of literature being produced from groups such as Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, The Canadian Bar Association, and CSSDP have launched campaigns against elements of Bill C-10. Cogent arguments against C-10 have been given in the House by many including Glenn Thibeault, Ryan Cleary and Andrew Cash. Academics and Criminologists like Susan C. Boyd, and Paula Mallea have written critical responses to mandatory minimum sentencing in drug policy. I can only hope to graze the surface of the problems with the proposed bill C-10, and I encourage you as an activist to listen to the speeches and read the articles I have hyper-linked here. That being said, here's an introduction to some of the problems with Bill C-10.

Crime rates are actually falling not spiralling out of control as the conservatives pushing Omnibus would have you believe. In her report “Fear Factor: Stephen Harper's Tough on Crime Agenda” published with Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Paula Mallea reminds Canadians that since 1992, crime rates have been steadily declining. In 2008, the crime rate was the lowest it has been in the last 25 years. This statistic is consistent regardless of how it is measured: this includes the traditional Crime statistics gathered from police reports, statistics measuring crime severity and violent crime. Particularly, drug offences are down 6% since 2008, and youth offence rates have remained relatively stable since 1991 despite the fact that fewer youths are being incarcerated under the new Youth Criminal Justice Act. Even though the statistics affirm that the very crimes targeted by the Omnibus Crime Bill are in decline, Conservatives still assert there is a need for policy adjustments to respond to an explosion of crime which cannot be statistically substantiated. It is clear that these declarations are made to induce fear and manipulate public perception – not, as the Conservatives claim, to help improve the safety and security of communities.

Incarcerating offenders doesn't help reduce crime rates, nor do they rehabilitate offenders to reduce recidivism. Mallea points out that “evidence shows that long periods served in prison increase the chance that the offender will offend again ... In the end, public security is diminished, rather than increased if we 'throw away the key'” (CCAP, 2011: 12). The old-fashioned assumptions that retribution is the primary or exclusive function of the Criminal Justice System, and that retributive justice is the correct response to behaviour considered socially deviant is simply ideological and does not reflect the reality of the causes for deviant behaviour, nor does it offer an effective solution.

C-10 will continue to overly incarcerate marginalized groups. The changes embodied in C-10 will target groups already over represented in the prison and justice system . As Ryan Cleary described to the house of commons:

“mandatory minimum sentences aren't so much tough on crime, as tough on Canadians suffering from mental illness, addiction and poverty... The bill targets youth for harsher punishment and will put more Aboriginal People[s] in prison.”

People who suffer from addictions, mental illness, and racial discrimination will be further marginalized by the criminal justice system if mandatory minimums are imposed. Additionally the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network has spoken against mandatory minimum sentencing for drug use as a dangerous practice which leads to health issues. Criticizing what was formerly Bill S-10, now included in Bill C-10, the HIV/AIDS legal network warns against treating the health problem of drug addiction primarily in terms of its criminal dimensions as deeply problematic. Patricia Allard, Deputy Director of the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network, reminded Canadians that:

“evidence shows that imprisoning people who inject drugs fans the flames of Canada's HIV epidemic. The HIV prevalence rate in Canadian prisons is at least 10 times that found in the population as a whole”

Incarcerating more people for longer periods of time will serve to exacerbate already existing health problems. As the Canadian Bar Association points out, the changes in Bill C-10 will continue to further victimize and alienate the most vulnerable populations by replacing conditional sentences for people in remote areas of Canada and relocating them far away from their families:

“People in remote rural and northern communities will be shipped far from their families to serve time. Canada's Aboriginal people already represent up to 80% of inmates in institutions in the prairies, a national embarrassment that Bill C-10 will make worse.”

If these conditional sentences are eliminated, mandatory minimum sentences will tear mothers from their families, nearly 80 percent of incarcerated women are parents to minors. This means women will be deprived of their children, it also means that an unbearable strain will be placed on Children's Aid Services who are already lacking essential funding. Susan C. Boyd, a professor currently working in British Columbia, criticized former Bill C-15 which is now included in C-10 for its harmful effect on women. You can listen to her talk about these effects on women and children by clicking here .

The proposed changes in C-10 take away funding from programs that would produce real change. Most inmates currently institutionalized within the Criminal Justice System suffer from an addiction. Many live with a mental illness. A large portion are First Nations, many are homeless, illiterate, and victims of previous abuse. These social-structural elements influence the rates of offending and correlate with who will or will not be incarcerated. The key to addressing crime rates lies in effectively remedying the structural inequalities. As the Canadian Bar Association states, it has been proven by various studies that the tactics which actually reduce crime are:

“(a)addressing child poverty, (b) providing services for the mentally ill and those afflicted with FASD [fetal alcohol spectrum disorder], (c) diverting young offenders from the adult justice system, and (d) rehabilitating prisoners and helping them to reintegrate into society”

Bill C-10 not only ignores these tactics, but it's fiscal cost, estimated to be nearly five billion dollars, diverts much needed funding away from useful social spending. Perhaps the government should “stop wasting money on cages and start spending it on hospital beds and text books”.

What Can I Do?

Bill C-10 is already in its second reading at the Senate. Immediate action is required to stop this harmful bill from coming into force. For more information on how you can participate in action to stop mandatory minimums for drug-related offences, check out the CSSDP campaign by clicking here: http://cssdp.org/index.php/our-campaigns/no-mandatory-minimums/342-c10-senate