Century of Lies

This week on Century of Lies: Prisons, jails, and pandemic. In this time of pandemic, correctional institutions are like Petri dishes in which the novel coronavirus COVID-19 grows and spreads. Public health experts and criminal justice advocates around the nation are demanding that jails and prisons release some of the people being held behind bars in order to stop or at least slow the spread of this deadly disease. The organization Just Leadership USA recently held a web seminar on COVID-19 and the New York City jail on Riker’s Island. We hear portions of that seminar on today’s show, including: Jumaane Williams, Public Advocate for the City of New York; Doctor Bobby Cohen, member of the New York City Board of Correction; Marlene Aloe, whose son is being held on Rikers Island awaiting a retrial; Janet, whose son is being held on Rikers awaiting sentencing; and Tahanee Dunn from Bronx Public Defenders. We also hear from Nick Turner, president and director of the Vera Institute of Justice.

This week on Century of Lies: Harm reduction for stimulant users, featuring Mike Discepola with the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, Mindy Vincent with the Utah Harm Reduction Coalition, Isaac Jackson with the Urban Survivor’s Union, Shilo Hassan Jama with the People’s Harm Reduction Alliance, Daniel Raymond with the Harm Reduction Coalition, and Lindsay LaSalle with the Drug Policy Alliance.

This week on Century of Lies: An effort is underway in Oregon to decriminalize simple possession of drugs, we hear audio from the launch event and interviews with harm reduction activists Haven Wheelock, Bobby Byrd, and Dr. Andy Seaman. Plus, the International Narcotics Control Board recently released its annual report so we'll hear INCB President Cornelis de Joncheere speaking about Afghanistan, human rights, the death penalty, and whether nations should consider whether the Conventions are fit for purpose.

The city of Baltimore is one of the US cities discussing how to set up supervised consumption facilities and overdose prevention sites. On today's Century we hear from Christa Daring, Executive Director of the Sex Workers Outreach Project USA; Rajani Gudlavalletti, Community Organizing Manager with the Baltimore Harm Reduction Coalition; and Liz Bement, a resident of Baltimore whose son died of an overdose in 2019.