Opinions - Using drugs is a human right. Why isn't this emphasized more by drug activists?

[Expat98]

It's true that the concept of human rights has changed drastically over time, and different cultures have very different ideas about this. However, as the world's most powerful societies have become more integrated, a broad consensus on how human rights ought to be viewed has emerged and continues to develop. So when I say that an individual's use of drugs is a human right, I am referring to human rights as they are conceived in modern times, e.g., as outlined by Alfa above.

From a practical standpoint, the only real rights you have are those rights that government chooses to recognize. The point is that government policies of drug prohibition are inconsistent with the modern conception of human rights. It seems to me that this is a fundamental issue that, as stated by the book author above, can serve as a rallying point to cut through complex arguments surrounding the War on Drugs.

History teaches that turning a human right conceived at the moral level into a legal right recognized by governments and societies at the practical level always requires a difficult struggle. From what I know about human rights movements that have taken place in the past and are ongoing today, success requires that people are willing to constantly speak up and demand for their rights to be recognized.

As far as drug use is concerned, this is problematic because of the criminal laws against drug users.

But an even bigger problem I think is that so many drug users seem to have bought into the idea that there is something inherently wrong with drug use, and so they do not really see it as a human right.

On complex issues such as drug use, the moral level is really the most powerful and fundamental level. There are many people here on Drugs Forum who agree that the War on Drugs has no valid moral founding. But I also see many people who (when I read into their posts) seem to more or less accept the idea that has been drilled into their heads that drug use represents a deviation from proper morals. If there is one thing that could come out of this thread, I would hope that these people would turn this idea on its head and think deeply about whether they believe they have an inherent right to alter their own consciousness with drugs, and whether the War on Drugs has any valid moral basis.

Reputation Comments on this post:

	Great post!
	completely agree, excellent post