SSDP on Drug War and Wikileaks

By now you must have seen the coverage of Wikileaks, the US Embassy, and the Mexican Drug War. And of course there is a slew of coverage in Latin America relating to a number of countries named in documents.

As International Liaison I'll put together a summary of that coverage, where it goes, how the authors read the sources, and how much of a fissure there is emerging in drug policy. I'm looking forward to the reading, and I'll try to report back as best I can.

So, watch this space, SSDP will have something to say about Wikileaks, the Drug War, Latin America, and Asia, to name but a few troubling topics and issues.

Columbia University SSDP now closer to policy change

The SSDP chapter at Columbia University in New York came one step closer to passing a Good Samaritan Policy at the Ivy League school. The Columbia College Student Council and Engineering Student Council have both voted unanimously in support of the policy proposal.

Katharine Celentano, who is this week's featured SSDP chapter leader, says the next step is to bring the policy change to the school's Dean and the senior assistant dean of judicial affairs and community standards who will make the final decision.

Columbia is the only Ivy League school that has not adopted a “Good Samaritan” policy, which advocates like Katharine Celentano, GS and a member of SSDP, say will curb the consequences of alcohol poisoning and drug overdose.

“It’s very important that it’s clearly stated that people aren’t going to get in trouble,” Celentano, an author of the proposal, said. “Making that life-saving call is all about the psychology of the moment.” 

If the proposal passes, it would create official policy allowing students to call the  Columbia University Emergency Medical Services (CAVA) for help during drug related emergencies without the threat of punishment from the school.

Find out more about SSDP's Good Samaritan Policy work here: http://www.ssdp.org/campaigns/good-samaritan-policies

Flex Your Rights on Freedom Watch

Our friends Scott Morgan and Steve Silverman of Flex Your Rights discuss their new film 10 Rules for Dealing with Police on Fox's Freedom Watch.

Hosting a screening of 10 Rules for Dealing with Police is an excellent way to recruit new members to your SSDP chapter and to educate your peers about their constitutional rights during police encounters. It also provides a great opportunity to co-sponsor your event with other groups on campus like the ACLU and Students for Liberty.

Flex Your Rights has even put together a helpful guide to hosting a screening that involves, you guessed it, 10 rules.