The War on Drugs: A View from Colombia

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Issue Sep 03-09 2025: In 1971, when Richard Nixon announced the beginning of the so-called “war on drugs,” a commission was formed to advise his administration on the most efficient and humane ways by which it might reach its goals. The original idea proposed by the commission was that the path forward should include reducing drug use by means of social policy, but without criminalizing the activity. When Nixon rejected this approach in favor of stricter penalties and the mobilization of state security forces to capture those involved in the trade, the move seemed more bluster than representing a genuine change of direction.

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