The Fight Over Decriminalization In Oregon And The Future Of US Drug Policy

Diane Rehm: On My Mind

WAMU 88.5

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🗓️ 8 February 2024

⏱️ 31 minutes

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Summary

In 2020 Oregon voters overwhelmingly passed a measure that decriminalized drug use. Since the law went into effect three years ago, homelessness in the state has increased, the rate of overdose deaths has risen sharply and the support for decriminalization has plummeted.

Now, Oregon legislators on both sides of the aisle are considering overturning the measure, reinstating a more “law and order” approach to addiction.

“Drugs are a symptom of what’s going on,” says Maia Szalavitz, contributing opinion writer at the New York Times who covers addiction and public policy. “Drugs are not the primary cause of what happened.”

Szalavitz joins Diane on the latest episode of On My Mind to talk about the fight over decriminalizing drugs in Oregon – and what it means for the rest of the country.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, it's Diane, on my mind, drug policy. In 2020, Oregon voters passed a measure that decriminalized our use with overwhelming support.
0:19.2	Since that law went into effect three years ago.
0:23.4	Homelessness has increased the rate of overdose deaths,
0:28.9	hazards and sharply, and the support for decriminalization has plummeted.
0:36.0	Now, Oregon legislators on both sides of the aisle
0:40.8	are considering overturning the measure in stating a more law and order approach to addiction.
0:50.0	Drugs are a symptom of what's going on.
0:52.8	Drugs are not the primary cause of what happened.
0:56.1	Maya Salovitz is a contributing opinion writer
1:00.9	at the New York Times.
1:02.8	She covers addiction and public policy.
1:06.3	She joined me to talk about the fight
1:08.8	over decriminalizing drugs in Oregon and what it could mean for the rest of the country.
1:18.0	My talents about measure 110, the Addiction Treatment and Recovery Act.
1:27.0	When did it pass? What did it do?
1:30.0	So it went into effect in 2021 in February and it passed the election before that.
1:38.8	And it passed at the height of the attention to Black Lives Matter and George Floyd and all the recognition of the harms associated with the criminal prosecution system.
1:55.0	And it also passed because we in the United States have been arresting and criminalizing drugs, or certain drugs, I should say, for a hundred years now.
2:10.0	And we have the worst overdose problem in the world.
2:15.3	We have one of the highest rates of addiction in the world.
2:18.6	And we have the most prisoners in the world.
2:22.4	So clearly criminalization is not working and if you think
	...

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