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Quote by Maia Szalavitz

“I don't think there's a single child who's ever benefitted from being arrested for marijuana or for underage drinking; this does not solve the problem. It makes worse problems because a) it puts them into the system, and b) it gives them a potential criminal record to have to deal with and it can have consequences for school.”

Quote by Maia Szalavitz

Author

Maia Szalavitz is a journalist and author recognized for her contributions to the fields of neuroscience and addiction. Born on March 29, 1965, she has played a significant role in enhancing public understanding of these intricate subjects. Szalavitz's writing is characterized by its ability to make scientific concepts relatable to a wide audience. more

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“The thing we want for all our kids is that they be connected with a learning community and that they have strong social and familial relationships. If we can do whatever we can do to create that and to reduce bullying and to reduce the kind of pain and shame so many kids feel for so many reasons, that stuff is going to reduce drug addiction.”

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“The thing about our drug laws is that they're not based on science.”

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“Science could never get you to make alcohol and tobacco legal and marijuana illegal. Only racism can do that.”

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“We have a system that was devised by racists to create racist ends.”

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“I know that sounds really extreme, but if you just look at the history, you will find Harry Anslinger [first U.S. commissioner of the Bureau of Narcotics] going on about satanic swing and how reefer will make black people think they're as good as white people - which to him, obviously, was a very horrible outcome. This is the basis of our drug laws.”

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“Do we really want to base our 21st-century policy on what the colonialist preferred at a certain time in history, not at all based on health or what the preferences of different cultures might be? That's just ridiculous.”

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“I think our drug laws need to be made scientifically, as best as possible, recognizing that values will always be part of that.”

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Author:Maia Szalavitz

“I don't have kids, but I've often noticed when people first become parents they seem to completely forget their own adolescence and they start to, as their kids become teenagers, try to do the things that didn't stop them themselves. And I jokingly frame this as: Your brain gets wiped of those memories when you become a parent.”

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“I also had my own addiction to cocaine and heroin in my 20s. I knew that it was driven not by the things that the drug workers were telling me; in fact, I couldn't believe any drug information that was given to me by authorities because I knew from my own experience that it was wrong.”

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Author:Maia Szalavitz

“A lot of the stuff that we say about drugs is just wrong.”

Author:Maia Szalavitz