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Critics of the Drug War from Texas were joined by
people from
around the country for a weeklong march to call for a cease-fire in the Drug War.
According to an August, 2000 Dept. of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics report,
Texas now leads the nation in imprisoning its citizens. The Journey made
presidential
style whistlestops, beginning in Houston en-route to the Capitol in
Austin.
The roving caravan is a moving theatre. Costumed "prisoners" and
"police" dramatize the abuses by guards and law enforcement as a patient
in a wheelchair rides in a moving prison cell. The caravan becomes a visually stirring
portrayal of the issues affecting American families. The Journey
highlighted the following
three critical aspects of the Drug War:
The overwhelming incarceration rate of nonviolent people.
Over 60% of all prisoners in the Federal System are nonviolent. We are
now spending an average of $22,000 annually to house each prisoner. Almost
half a million people are incarcerated in the US for drug related crimes -- more than
Western Europe incarcerates for everything. Police and prison guard abuses in the name of the drug war.
Amnesty International stated in their 1998 Annual Report on the United States of
America that "There were continuing reports of torture and ill-treatment by
police and prison officers, and of shootings by police in disputed circumstances."
In 1998, $460 million in assets were seized from persons never convicted of a
crime. The need for medical marijuana for the ill.
Marijuana is unavailable even by prescription, even though hundreds of studies
worldwide have proven it safe and effective in the treatment of a variety of illnesses.
Since 1996, seven states and the District of Colombia have voted to make medical
marijuana legally available.
"The Journey occurred in Texas because Texas highlights what is
wrong with
US drug policy," noted Kevin Zeese,
President of Common Sense for Drug Policy.
"The state recently became the nation's incarceration leader and 21%
of the Texas prison inmates are nonviolent drug offenders."
The Journey encourages everyone to ask tough questions of all the candidates
on Drug Policy issues. "While public officials admit to and the media jokes about
'youthful indiscretions', thousands of Americans who are now imprisoned
have lost property, the right to vote and have been fired from their jobs." said
Journey Director Kay Lee. "The Drug War has damaged and destroyed millions
of Americans, the credibility of our representatives, and the future of our
children."
On this page are links to daily reports on the Journey for Justice-TX
from
Common Sense for Drug Policy President Kevin Zeese. Click on the date below to bring up that
day's report.
The Journey for Justice homepage
as well as the website for the Drug Policy
Forum of Texas also contain updates, as well as
information about upcoming as well as
previous Journeys and other events.
September 21, 2000 -- Getting Ready for the
March
Day 1 - September 22 - Houston, TX
Day 2 - September 23 - Houston, TX
Day 3 - September 24 - Bryan, TX
Day 4 - September 25 - College Station, TX
Day 5 - September 26 - Grimes County, TX
Day 6 - September 27 - On the Road to Giddings,
TX
Day 7 - September 28 - The Final Leg to
Austin
Day 8 - September 29 - Smoking Out Gore, the
Journey Concludes
Some Scenes from Austin, Texas
Read this letter from an inmate who saw the Journeyers on one
of their stops.
Houston
Chronicle, September 22, 2000
Bryan-College
Station Eagle, September 25, 2000
Texas
A&M University Battalion, September 26, 2000
Ft.
Worth Star-Telegram, September 30, 2000
UT
Daily Texas, October 2, 2000
"Crucible
For the Drug War", Oct. 10, 2000 syndicated
column by Arianna Huffington as it appeared in the Sacramento Bee.
"Was
Texas town's drug sting racist?", CNN.com, Oct. 10,
2000
"The
Heat Is On a Texas Town After The Arrests Of 40",
New York Times, Oct. 7, 2000
"A
Question of Motive Dogs Texas Panhandle Bust",
LA Times, Oct. 7, 2000
Search the MAP media
archives for stories about
the Journey
for Justice.
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