October 09
Conference
The Release team was once again delighted with the success of our conference this year, which was attended by a wide range of people from across the drug treatment field. From service users to GP’s, treatment providers to policy advocates, the strength and variety of the presentations ensured that all delegates had an enjoyable and interesting day. With so much development and potential for change in the law surrounding drug treatment, each speaker gave a relevant and useful update for delegates, on subjects such as naloxone, paraphernalia, the ethics and effectiveness of coerced treatment and peer-led advocacy. If you were unable to attend and would like to know more about the topics covered, please read more here or contact us.
Campaigns
Our Nice People Take Drugs campaign continues to capture the essence of what drug policy reform is all about. In a latest move to de-stigmatise drug users and portray drug use in a more honest way, Release has produced a set of unique and imaginative playing cards. Each card within the deck features a different politician and his drug confession. You can buy these cards for just £4.95 - find out more about them here.
After months of intense lobbying against aspects of the Welfare Reform Bill, which had sought to force drug users into mandatory treatment by withdrawing their welfare benefits, the Bill now looks likely to be amended significantly so that no drug user can be forced to undergo treatment. Baroness Meacher, whose magnificent efforts negotiating with the government have made this change possible, credits Release with providing her with the necessary arguments and information. The Welfare Reform Bill will have its Third Reading in the House of Lords on 5 November and Release is watching closely as it makes its way to becoming law. We will keep you informed.
Hero of the Month – Prof A.C. Grayling
The well-known British philosopher, Professor Anthony Grayling, writing in The Times this month, made clear his support for Release’s call for the decriminalisation of drug use. He wrote, “We have too many categories of crime now, we have far too many people in prison, and society is far too unforgiving of things that should not be crimes at all: the example of using the criminal law to deal with drugs and prostitution is a glaring case in point.” Professor Grayling is a long-time opponent of the UK government's drug policy and shares Release's view that the criminalisation of drugs only serves to increase their cost to health care, prisons and policing as well as unnecessarily stigmatising many sections of society. We thank Professor Grayling for his support and look forward to his future contributions to the debate.
Make a Donation
Release is uniquely placed to provide assistance and support to dependent drug users as well as to campaign for changes on their behalf. But we urgently need your help to continue to carry out this important work. Please make a one-off donation now. Donating to Release is quick and easy through our JustGiving site, or alternatively please send a cheque payable to Release to Member Services, Release, 124-128 City Road, London EC1V 2NJ . (Please make sure you include your contact details.)
Release’s new project TalkingDrugs is going to be launched to the press shortly. Get on the website and tell your story! Get involved in running the website and help improve the discussion of drug issues as one of the volunteers who are creating a website in 23 languages and counting! You can get in touch with Rupert George who is running the project on info@talkingdrugs.org
Social Networking
Are you a fan of Release on Facebook? Do you follow us on MySpace? Are you on twitter?
Release will soon be launching its very own blog. It will provide a point of comment and reflection, where the UK experience of drugs will be discussed in all its diversity. We are a society on drugs, and this is where we talk about it. What are the problems? The pleasures? The Pains? Who is taking what, where, when, how? Why? Why not?? Watch this space!