David Pozen, "The Constitution of the War on Drugs" (Oxford UP, 2024)
David Pozen is the Charles Keller Beekman Professor of Law at Columbia Law School and the author of the new book,\xa0The Constitution of the War on Drugs\xa0(Oxford UP, 2024). An expert in constitutional law, Pozen argues that the drug war has been an unmitigated disaster, in terms of money, efficacy, and human rights. But even as activists peel off the drug war\u2019s more unsavory aspects through cannabis and psychedelic legalization, Pozen also argues that they\u2019ve neglected to consider the impact America\u2019s courts could have on rectifying oppressive drug laws.\nIt wasn\u2019t always this way.\xa0The Constitution of the War on Drugs\xa0also details the \u201chidden history\u201d of a brief legal moment in the late 1960s and early 1970s when lawyers effectively argued for liberalized drug policies \u2013 on the sound basis of the Constitution. The moment was eventually overturned, but Pozen argues it could be a useful historical lesson for people interested in the effects of constitutional law on the drug war today.\nA link to the digital edition of\xa0The Constitution of the War on Drugs\xa0will soon be available here.\nEmily Dufton\xa0is the author of\xa0Grass Roots: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Marijuana in America\xa0(Basic Books, 2017). A drug historian and writer, her second book, on the development of the opioid addiction medication industry, is coming out soon from the University of Chicago Press.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices\nSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/law