Date: June 25, 2008
Subject: Taking A Trip Through Time
If DrugSense and the Media Awareness Project (MAP) are known for one thing, it must certainly be our DrugNews Archive. This incredibly important information resource now holds over 195,000 clippings on all aspects of drug policy, regardless of spin. We have been collecting articles on this topic since 1995 and have some stories dating back as far as 1991.
Here is a sample of some of landmark articles that have become the foundation of this unique and dynamic resource:
-- 1990 -- "Test Negative," Scientific American. Thursday, March 1, 1990. This was the very first full-text article in the archive, and it covers a topic that is still controversial: drug testing. www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v90/n000/a01.html
-- 1994 -- "Toxic Alternative to Natural Fiber," Sacramento Bee. Thursday, April 7, 1994, by Jay Bergstrom. This is the first Letter- to-the-Editor (PUB LTE) favorable to drug policy reform in the archive. www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v94/n000/a001.html
-- 1995 -- "Say 'No' to Legalization of Marijuana," Wall Street Journal. Friday, August 18, 1995, by Donna Shalala. By the Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Clinton, this prohibition-focused Op-ed is the first opinion piece in the archive. www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v95/n000/a04.html
-- 1996 -- "Misfire on Drug Policy," National Review. Monday, February 26, 1996, by William F. Buckley, Jr. This is ground-breaking editorial calling the drug war a failure kicked off the first of many intensive MAP letter-writing campaigns in support of ending prohibition. www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v96/n000/a08.html
-- 1996 -- "Stopping Drug Traffickers," Warsaw Voice (Poland). Sunday, March 10, 1996, by Konrad Niklewicz. This first clipping from outside of North America. Unfortunately, it took a decidedly pro-drug war stance. www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v96/n000/a09.html
-- 1999 -- "Officer Tells of Undercover Work," Amarillo Globe News. Sunday, August 8, 1998, by Greg Cunningham. A "puff piece" about undercover cop, Tom Coleman, and the drug arrests he made in the small Texas town of Tulia. www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99/n000/a18.html
-- 2000 -- "The Race to Racism," Amarillo Globe News. Friday, September 15, 2000, by Redford Givens. Online media activism matures as MAP letter writers condemn the racism that led to the Tulia arrests. www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1585/a01.html
-- 2002 -- "Drug Charges Dropped after Tulia Case Collapses," Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Sunday, April 14, 2002, by Linda Kane. The Tulia case collapses after undercover cop Tom Coleman was found to be lying and becomes discredited. www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n721/a06.html
As you can see, this robust archive tracks the twists and turns of our substance use policies, allowing us to identify challenges and to measure progress over time.
And, all of this incredible information is available for FREE!
However, it isn't free to produce; this valuable resource costs time and money to maintain. Please consider making a donation today. To donate quickly and easily online, please click here: drugsense.org/donate/.
All on-line donations are secure, private, and tax-deductible.
Checks can also be made payable to DrugSense and mailed to:
DrugSense
14252 Culver Dr #328
Irvine, CA 92604-0326
Or donate by phone: 800.266.5759
If you have more time than money, you can volunteer to help. Please contact Jo-D Harrison at jo-d@mapinc.org to find out how.
Thank you for ensuring that important DrugSense resources like our DrugNews archive stand the test of time and achieve our shared goal of sensible, compassionate, and humane policies.
Mark Greer
Executive Director
You have received this message because you are subscribed to one or more voluntary mailing lists (listserves) provided by DrugSense/MAP.
For more information please visit:
drugsense.org/mylists/20080625094449/borden@ee.net