Mar 24, 2021
“The times they are a’changing,” however slowly, when it comes
to drug policy in the United States. Across the nation, states and
municipalities are reassessing often punitive laws governing the
use of illicit substances. What has been the human cost of the “war
on drugs?” How has it impacted disadvantaged communities? What has
been the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on drug use? And what
steps should the new Biden Administration do to help foster a more
humane and just approach to drug use?
This episode has two guests. The first is Dr. Katharine Neill Harris, the Alfred
C. Glassell, III, Fellow in Drug Policy here at the Institute. On
March 11, Dr. Neill Harris testified about federal drug policy
before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee. The second guest is
Dr. William Martin, the Harry
and Hazel Chavanne Senior Fellow in Religion and Public Policy and
Director of the Institute’s Drug Policy Program. Dr. Harris and Dr.
Martin have recently co-authored a policy brief titled “Drug Policy
Priority Issues for the Biden Administration.” It is available on
the Baker Institute website.