Since its 1988 conference, the Drug Policy Foundation has recognized those whose exemplary deeds have furthered drug policy reform. This year marked the eighth time that DPF presented it achievement awards.

Foundation President Arnold Trebach and Executive Director David Condliffe hosted the 1995 awards ceremony on October 21 at the close of DPF's ninth annual conference in Santa Monica, California. One award — the RichardJ. Dennis Drugpeace Award for Outstanding Achievement — was presented on October 20 to Dr. Joy celyn Elders before her keynote speech.

The following paragraphs are drawn from the award citations, which are printed in the new DPF awards booklet (see back cover). The Board of Directors, officers and staff of the Drug Policy Foundation wish to congratulate the 1995 award winners.

JOYCELYN ELDERS
 

The Richard J Dennis Drugpeace Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Drug Policy Reform

For daring to break the code of silence clamped upon America's drug policy, Dr. Joycelyn Elders richly deserves the Drug Policy Foundation's highest award. As U.S. surgeon general, her suggestion that drug legalization "would markedly reduce our crime rate" prompted a firestorm of criticism.

To her everlasting credit, she never backed down from her comments. She refused to cooperate with the continual politicization of public health issues, and, in doing so, Dr. Elders stood up for the nation's health.

CATHERINE CRIER

The Edward M. Brecher Award for Achievement in the Field of Journalism

Catherine Crier, along with producer Jeff Diamond at ABC News, catapulted harm reduction into the national spotlight last April. Her prime-time, hour-long special on alternative approaches to America's drug problems, America's War on Drugs: Searching for Solutions, introduced harm reduction policies to one of the biggest audiences ever on this side of the Atlantic Ocean.

PATRICK S. HALLINAN

The Justice Gerald Le Dain Award for Achievement in the Field of Law

Patrick Hallinan, a prominent San Francisco defense attorney, was charged with obstructing justice and laundering drug profits to aid a client. That client, a convicted marijuana smuggler who wanted to reduce his sentence, testified against Hallinan as part of a deal with a zealous prosecutor.

Last March, however, Hallinan won an acquittal after spending years fighting the U.S. attorney's trumped-up charges.

DAN WALDORF

The Alfred R. Lindesmith Award for Achievement in the Field of Scholarship

In his many books and articles, Dan Waldorf has shown that popular stereotypes of drug use and drug users consistently miss the mark. He has created a more human picture of addicts.

As senior scientist at the Institute for Scientific Analysis in San Francisco, Waldorf has broken ground with research on needle sharing and shooting galleries, and is now studying the relationship between gangs and drugs.

DENNIS PERON & EDITH SPRINGER, co-recipients

The Robert C. Randall Award for Achievement in the Field of Citizen Action

Dennis Peron founded the San Francisco Cannabis Buyers Club in 1991,  which marked the first time an organization made the drug openly available for patients. Since then, his efforts have helped over 6,000 San Franciscans.

In 1991,   Peron worked to get 79 percent of San Francisco voters to approve a non-binding medical marijuana proposition. Now, Peron helps lead Californians for Compassionate Use, a group that is gathering signatures to put a medical marijuana referendum on the state's 1996 ballot.

Edith Springer is teacher, clinician, advocate and scholar. She deserves the lion's share of credit for the expansion of harm reduction services in the United States.

Springer has devoted the greatest amount of her time to New Jersey and New York City, where her clinical work with street youth at the N.Y. Peer AIDS Education Coalition has proved to be a model for programs from Santa Cruz to Scotland to Hungary.

R.H. HESSING

The H.B. Spear Award for Achievement in the Field of Control and Enforcement

As the chief of police in the Dutch city of Rotterdam, Rob Hessing has proved that developing a humane drug policy and protecting public safety go hand in hand.

He has noted that his drug policy contrasts with the one in New York City, where the portion of police fighting drug offenses is ten times greater than the portion dealing with organized crime. In Rotterdam, the world's largest port city, the ratio is reversed.

ERNEST DRUCKER

The Norman E. Zinberg Award for Achievement in the Field of Medicine and Treatment

Ernest Drucker has been at the forefront of efforts to expand medical services for drug users during the past quarter century. He has worked with New York City to establish several methadone clinics and to support needle exchange programs.

Through his work at the Montefiore Medical Center's Division of Community Health and his teachings at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Drucker has championed the key idea behind harm reduction: helping drug users help themselves.