The war on drugs
President Richard Nixon was the first US President to try to wipe out illegal drug use
Witness History · BBC World Service
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Show Notes
The first 'war on drugs' was launched by US President Richard Nixon in 1971. He described drug abuse as a 'national emergency' and asked Congress for nearly four hundred million dollars to tackle the problem. Claire Bowes spoke to one of Nixon's policy advisors, Jeffrey Donfeld, about an approach to drugs which he describes as more 'find them and help them' than 'find them and lock them up'. And how he convinced the President to roll out a nationwide programme of methadone treatment for heroin addicts.
This programme is a rebroadcast
Photo: US President Richard Nixon (BBC)