In my recent book, Pills, Powder and Smoke: Inside the Bloody War on Drugs, I spend time across the UK, including the city of Newcastle, documenting the often brutal ways that the state mishandles drug users and addiction.
The UK Sun newspaper commissioned me recently to write about my experiences in Newcastle. It’s not a newspaper I’ve written for before, and I don’t like its choice of tabloid headline and unnecessarily provocative language within the piece, but here it is (to reach millions of readers). I argue to legalise and regulate all drugs, along with giving humanity to the people I met (too often missing in mainstream reporting around drugs), and I think these are worthwhile points to get across in this kind of mass market outlet.
You decide: