Decriminalisation of Drug Use A Labelling Perspective

Introduction

The purpose of punishment and legal sanction is to deter people from committing similar offences. However, when criminals are punished, imprisoned and labelled as criminals, it is most likely to increase the possibility of re-offending and this is why decriminalisation is an effective way to reduce crime rates. Chand (2007) concluded that when a person is given the badge of criminal, that person is more prone to re-offend. On the other hand, when a person is not labelled as a criminal, that person is more prone to getting clean and becoming a respectable member of the society. Based on this above background, the purpose of this essay is to argue for decriminalisation of drug use and drug related offences. The essay takes into account various past studies and evidence to show that decriminalisation has proven to be successful in reducing crime rates. Most importantly, based on the labelling theory, this essay concludes that even though there are some potential problems to decriminalising drug use, however, the benefits outweigh and problems providing positive outcome in the long run.

Labelling Theory and Relevance to Decriminalisation

There are various studies supporting the position of decriminalisation since there is constructive evidence from multiple countries on the positive response of decriminalisation. For example, Hughes & Stevens (2010) concluded that decriminalisation of illicit drugs led to the reduction of drug-related harms, burden on the criminal justice system and crime rates. The research suggests that decriminalisation does not necessarily leads to major increase in drug use. Similarly, Joyce, Sklenar and Weatherby (2019) argued that when a drug addict is given the label of a criminal, they are prone to continue with their criminal intent. On the other hand, if that person is not labelled as a criminal, the person is prone to focus on getting out of the addiction and avoid on being labelled as a criminal. The innovative policy of decriminalisation has been accepted worldwide as an effective solution to mass incarceration which increases the burden on the government. The argument is based on the labelling theory which states that people often identify and behave in ways in which other people label them. So decriminalisation cures a criminal which help them to have access to employment and set themselves as an example for others. The authors did an empirical study and considered substance abuse data of the last 30 years. Both quantitative and qualitative data has been presented to provide rationale for the arguments. The study also puts emphasis on harm reduction approach which also has direct nexus with the process of decriminalisation. Lastly, the harm reduction approach is more peaceful and non-aggressive when it comes to law enforcement dealing with drug related problems. The fact that law enforcement do not use force to take drug users into custody is one of the best approaches.

Treatment, Rehabilitation and Harm Reduction: Contemporary Approach to Drug Problems

There are various other studies which suggest that decriminalisation should be about treating the drug users and providing them mental health support . Chandler, Fletcher and Volkow (2009) studied the effect of decriminalisation from the perspective of drug treatment programs and rehabilitation. This is because the author believes that decriminalisation is an effective way to reduce drug use and harm. The author primarily argued that prohibition and illegality drives the chances of drug related drimes. It was found that making something illegal has less chances of prohibiting people from using it. On the other hand, the author favoured the benefits of decriminalisation which had proven impact in countries like Netherlands. It was concluded that drugs can easily be regulated like alcohol and tobacco that can help in maintaining control by the government. Further, the process of decriminalisation should include educational and awareness programs so that people can make intelligent and healty choices and turn drug addicts into people with integrity (Stevens et al., 2019). Overall, decriminalisation has the potential to have positive impact on thr society even in the presence of any disadvantages that decriminalisation might have. Recent studies have also suggested that decriminalisation is the best approach to reduce crime rates and reduce drug related problems in the long run. It is true that drug use might increase as an immediate effect of decriminalisation, however, evidence from Portugal and Netherlands suggest that the trigger mechanism does not work in this way generally and rather is an alternate measure to reduce harm and protect public health.

Stigmatisation, Marginalisation and Decriminalisation

Drugs use, poverty and social stigma are often interconnected since one leads to the other. Poverty leads to drug use and even drug use leads to poverty which creates a social stigma against the drug users. The drugs users are looked down upon and are given a feeling that they are unwanted by the society. This is detrimental for the mental health as well as it increases the chance of drug users engage in drug related problems. Dertadian, Caruana and Maher (2023) studied the effect of labelling and stigmatisation for injection drug use and found that stigma and labelling plays a huge role in drug use mostly for the disadvantaged community. In addition to that, they concluded that criminalisation does not actually instil the fear of punishment and rather changes the mentality of the offenders since they are already labelled as criminals. In this process, they tend to not care about their legal identity and lose their capacity to correct their wrong doings. They start to perceive themselve as criminals with the intent to gain power and position in the middle of social stigmatisation. In this regard, another recent study done by Askew and Salinas (2019) concluded that the position of decriminalisation is beneficial for the government in the long run since they will have to spend less for law enforcement and prison for drug related drimes which will turn the drug users into respectable members of the society looking for employment opportunities rather than looking for some quick money to consume drugs. The authors also found that male drug users are more prone to re-offending and hence decriminalisation in the long run has huge potential to curb such a practice. The government on the other hand can spend surplus money on rehabilitation, social awarness programs, public health and clinical treatment of drug users.

Conclusion

The purpose of this essay was to argue that decriminalisation is beneficial in reducing drug related problems from labelling perspective. It was found that as long as the drugs users are not labelled as criminals, they have more chances of getting out their drug usage and getting back on track with their life. Most of the research concluded that decriminalisation is more about treating the drugs users rather than punishing or imprisoning them. Decriminalisation is not just about preventing labelling and social stigmatisation, rather it is more about treating drug use as a public health problem rather than an issue of the criminal justice system. Most of the research supported the stance that decriminalisation has the potential to reduce drug related offences and problems considering examples from countries like Spain, Netherland and Italy where decriminalisation was successful in improving public health and the overall community by reducing drug related crimes and harm. Based on all these evidence, this essay concludes that decriminalisation is one of the best contemporary approaches to deal with drug use problems. Most importantly, from the perspective of labelling, it is argued that not labelling the drug users as criminal has way more prospects than punishment and criminal justice process

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