SSDP TAKES ACTION ON CAMPUS

Students lay on the Esplanade in front of the MAC Center and had their
bodies outlined with chalk Monday.

Emily Haft, Students for Sensible Drug Policy president, said the goal
of the demonstration was to bring awareness about the Mexican drug war
and border violence.

"A lot of people who are not from the Southern states are not aware
anything is happening in Mexico," said Haft, sophomore zoology major.

Every person outlined on the Esplanade represented 100 people killed
in Mexico. SSDP's goal was to outline 350 people to represent the
approximately 35,000 people who have died due to the drug war since
2006.

SSDP member David Goldshtein said they outlined 50-60 people during
the four-hour demonstration.

"It's taken on a sort of cartoony feel, but it's interactive; it is
engaging," said Tom Zocolo, SSDP member. "This is probably one of the
more effective informational events that we've put on."

Student reactions varied from being interested to not paying attention
to the demonstration.

"They range from complete apathy to 'where do you want my corpse,'"
said Zocolo, junior exploratory major. "People have been pretty
supportive overall, and if they aren't supportive they're generally
apathetic."

According to a BBC News article, in 2006, Felipe Calderon was elected
as Mexico's president. Soon after entering office, he declared war on
the drug cartels, which are criminal organizations with a purpose of
promoting and controlling drug trafficking operations.

Haft said fewer than 100 of the 35,000 deaths have happened on U.S.
turf, but violence is still spilling over the border into the U.S. She
said SSDP believes the drug war is the main factor causing the border
violence and deaths.

Haft said that by ending drug prohibition in the U.S., the drug war
will die off because the cartels get 60 percent revenue from marijuana
sales in the U.S.

"With these laws we are creating a black market," said Goldshtein,
junior political science major.

If the marijuana laws are changed in the U.S. it would stop the
violence in Mexico, Goldsthein said.