Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1997. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
PR Newswire, 810 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10019 - Wednesday, 20 August 1997.
The polling company, (sic) a national polling firm conducted the survey of 1,000 registered voters and found that 60 percent of Americans want their members of Congress to stop free needle exchange programs and focus on drug rehabilitation.
FRC President Gary L. Bauer said Wednesday that NEPs "are nothing but a band-aid on a bullet wound. The only way to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS among intravenous drug users is to step up the war on drugs." Bauer was joined by FRC Senior Policy Advisor Robert L. Maginnis who provided detailed analysis of the poll results.
"Congress and the Clinton Administration would make a radical mistake to flirt with the idea of needle exchange programs as sound and effective policy," Bauer continued. "Some ill-advised, reputable organizations have lined up in support of NEPs, but Americans aren't so quick to jump on the bandwagon, especially when a program might be proposed for their own neighborhood.
"Needle exchange programs won't stop a desperate drug addict to do anything to fulfill his craving. NEPs will scar urban areas, snuffing out hopes for crime reduction and development. Government-sponsored NEPs will move America down a disastrous path towards drug legalization. With recent surveys showing a surge in teen illicit drug use, our country can not afford to spare more lives by sending a message endorsing drug use."
A formidable group of anti-drug leaders and activists joined FRC in speaking out against NEPs: James Curtis, Director of the Department of Psychiatry and Addiction Services at New York City's Harlem Hospital Center; Dr. Janet Lapey, pathologist and Executive Director of Concerned Citizens for Drug Prevention, Inc. in Hanover, Massachusetts; Nancy Sosman, member of New York City's Coalition for A Better Community; and Shepherd Smith, President and Founder of Americans for a Sound AIDS/HIV Policy (ASAP).
SOURCE Family Research Council
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