fuckyeahdrugpolicy: I put together this image as...

I put together this image as part of a typography assignment about a year or two ago. It’s a reference to a mantra often repeated by most politicians—whether they are from the United States or Mexico—to justify the aggressive policies of the drug war: “We’re doing it for the children! We’ve got to protect the children!” For those who understand the consequences of drug prohibition, it’s clear that it’s done little to keep children safe.

This excerpt is from pages 29-30 of Children of the Drug War: Perspectives on the Impact of Drug Policies on Young People

Children: The Forgotten Victims in Mexico’s Drug War

The “war on drugs,” in most places, is metaphorical. The term is rarely used by governments and was recently abandoned as a rhetorical device by the United States. In Mexico, however, the war on drugs has a very real dimension. It is “declared” government policy, it is militarized, and it is extremely bloody. Shortly after taking power, President Felipe Calderón ordered a military offensive against the country’s drug cartels that eventually involved tens of thousands of troops. Keeping drugs away from Mexico’s children has been a central justification.

While the consequent violence in Mexico has been well documented, the specific consequences for children are not so often brought to the fore. Despite President Calderón’s justification based on the welfare of children, his decision, combined with a zero-tolerance approach to drug use, has contributed to conditions in which children have been killed, orphaned, and neglected. Since the war on drugs began, there have been increased killings of children and parents with thousands dead and tens of thousands orphaned; increased attacks on drug rehabilitation centers, including massacres of young drug users; and increased attacks on schools resulting in a significant drop in school attendance for fear of violence.

It becomes clear that the harms of the drug war not only exist in the present but also will reverberate through many generations due to the specific harms inflicted on children. Next to them, the small gains against the cartels are rendered meaningless. After four years of poor results in frontally combating drug cartels and adopting zero-tolerance approaches to drugs, rethinking government strategies is now unavoidable. +

fuckyeahdrugpolicy:

I put together this image as part of a typography assignment about a year or two ago. It’s a reference to a mantra often repeated by most politicians—whether they are from the United States or Mexico—to justify the aggressive policies of the drug war: “We’re doing it for the children! We’ve got to protect the children!” For those who understand the consequences of drug prohibition, it’s clear that it’s done little to keep children safe.

This excerpt is from pages 29-30 of Children of the Drug War: Perspectives on the Impact of Drug Policies on Young People

Children: The Forgotten Victims in Mexico’s Drug War

The “war on drugs,” in most places, is metaphorical. The term is rarely used by governments and was recently abandoned as a rhetorical device by the United States. In Mexico, however, the war on drugs has a very real dimension. It is “declared” government policy, it is militarized, and it is extremely bloody. Shortly after taking power, President Felipe Calderón ordered a military offensive against the country’s drug cartels that eventually involved tens of thousands of troops. Keeping drugs away from Mexico’s children has been a central justification.

While the consequent violence in Mexico has been well documented, the specific consequences for children are not so often brought to the fore. Despite President Calderón’s justification based on the welfare of children, his decision, combined with a zero-tolerance approach to drug use, has contributed to conditions in which children have been killed, orphaned, and neglected. Since the war on drugs began, there have been increased killings of children and parents with thousands dead and tens of thousands orphaned; increased attacks on drug rehabilitation centers, including massacres of young drug users; and increased attacks on schools resulting in a significant drop in school attendance for fear of violence.

It becomes clear that the harms of the drug war not only exist in the present but also will reverberate through many generations due to the specific harms inflicted on children. Next to them, the small gains against the cartels are rendered meaningless. After four years of poor results in frontally combating drug cartels and adopting zero-tolerance approaches to drugs, rethinking government strategies is now unavoidable. +

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