The first state to decriminalize hard drugs realizes they may have made a tremendous mistake. Oregon voters adopted Ballot Measure 110 in November 2020 with 58% of the vote. A recent poll shows that 56% of Oregonians would support a repeal of the measure.
The drop in support for the controversial measure is easily explained. Liberal Oregonians who initially supported the decriminalization of drugs did not understand what the reality of such a world would be. After about 2.5 to 3 years of experiencing legalized hard drugs, regular citizens have witnessed the quality of life in Oregon cities decrease.
In the first year of the measure, overdose deaths increased by 52%. Overall crime and violence along with open drug use are all happening at much higher rates.
Oregon leaders visited Portugal to gain insight on how to implement the measure with better success, but they essentially came back empty-handed. Most likely because the legalization of drugs in Portugal isn’t going that well either. The situation in the United States is much worse, however, due in large part to the ease of travel from state to state and the differences in culture between the US and Europe.
SOURCES:
Oregon’s drug decriminalization effort sends fewer than 1% of people to treatment – oregonlive.com
‘It Has Been Pretty Awful’: First State To Decriminalize Hard Drugs Looking To Reverse Liberal Experiment | The Daily Caller
Oregon leaders say Portugal trip was ‘eye opening’ – YouTube
