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About Charles Shaw

Charles Shaw is a writer and activist living in the Bay Area of San Francisco. He is the author of Exile Nation: Drugs, Prisons, Politics and Spirituality, and the Director of The Exile Nation Project. Charles serves as editor for the Dictionary of Ethical Politics and the oD Drug Policy Forum.

Articles by Charles Shaw

Peace in Medicine: Inside California's Medical Cannabis Industry

Charles Shaw 20 March 2012

Go inside the professional operations of Peace in Medicine, a licensed cannabis dispensary in Northern California that finds itself under seige from the Federal government. 

oD Drug & Criminal Justice Policy Forum: Front Line Report - March 15, 2012

Charles Shaw 15 March 2012

It's hard to know these days which way the proverbial worm is turning when it comes to shifts in drug policy. Election years tend to do that. Despite an historical turn of events in Central America which saw Presidents of drug trafficking nations come together to call for world wide decriminalization of drugs, in an effort to end the violence and corruption of the drug trade, the US continues to demur, absurdly claiming that the "War on Drugs" has been a success. Even stranger is Canada's recent announcement that they plan to follow the US model of a "tough on crime" approach to drug policy, which threatens to swell their correctional system in the same ways as in the US. Still, good news abounds with recent studies showing that LSD can cure alcoholism, psychedelics can cure PTSD, and cannabis smoking is not nearly as harmful as the prohibition governments claim. ~ CS 

The Exile Nation Project - Julie Falco & Dan Linn

Charles Shaw 15 March 2012
Julie Falco and Dan Linn are two of the leading drug policy reform activists in the State of Illinois. They have spent the better part of the last 10 years attempting to pass a medical cannabis bill, and have found themselves consistently thwarted.

oD Drug Policy Forum: Front Line Report - Week of February 23rd 2012

Charles Shaw and Juliana Willars 23 February 2012

The prison industrial complex has been one of the main beneficiaries of drug prohibition in the US. Since the Reagan administration, many prisons have become privatized, making a highly-profitable business of incarcerating people. The exponential increase in the prison population is a byproduct of similar drug policies in the Latin American region. Earlier this month, a catastrophic prison fire claimed the lives of over 300 inmates in Honduras, many being held on minor drug charges. As Canadian politicians consider mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses, they are being asked by American law enforcement officials to learn from mistakes made on this side of the border in the ongoing War on Drugs... ~ jw

oD Drug Policy Forum: Front Line Report - Week of February 16th 2012

Juliana Willars and Charles Shaw 16 February 2012

Last Saturday, singer Whitney Houston died at the age of 48. The toxicology reports are yet to be completed, but it's reported her death was caused by a combination of prescription drugs and alcohol. Houston struggled for years with her addiction to both legal and illicit substances. Her tragic death brings the spotlight on addiction, and subsequently the war on drugs, into the public conversation in a visceral way. At the same time, the very definition of addiction and how it's perceived by the medical community receives a long overdue revision; addiction is a disease of the brain, not a moral failing or lack of willpower. Hopefully, global drug reform will also be formulated with that understanding in mind, rather than the punishment approach, which simply does not work -- not for those addicted, not for their loved ones, and certainly not for society. ~ jw

The Exile Nation Project - Lynette Shaw

Charles Shaw 15 February 2012
Lynette Shaw was the owner of the very first legal cannabis dispensary in the State of California, which she opened in Fairfax in the early 1990s. A key figure in the fight to legalize medical cannabis, Shaw's life as an activist began when her home was raided by police, after a dealer turned her in. But that's only one small aspect of her extraordinary life story, recounted here, which at one point saw her living underground while authorities scoured the world for her, after she became a suspect in the 1980 overdose death of actor John Belushi.

oD Drug Policy Forum: Front Line Report - Week of February 9th 2012

Charles Shaw and Juliana Willars 9 February 2012

This week we open with an editorial written by Amanda Fielding, who explains why so many countries who wish to engage in drug policy reform have such a difficult time implementing it: the UN Conventions. It's led to policies in the US that are often criticized for targeting minorities and the poor, and worldwide, governments pursue punitive action against drug users rather than healthcare initiatives and education. Politicians wishing to appear "tough on crime", especially in election years, continue to embrace prohibition and incarceration as solutions to the complex problems of drug use and abuse. ~ jw

The Exile Nation Project - Scott Tracy Imler

Charles Shaw 8 February 2012
Scott Tracy Imler is one of the central figures in the history of medical cannabis legislation. He was a co-author of the California Compassionate Use Act of 1996, more commonly known as "Prop 215," which made cannabis legal for medicinal use in the State of California. In 1996 Scott opened the first medical cannabis co-op in the Los Angeles area, which remained open until a DEA raid in October 2001, shortly after 9/11, an incident that began the Federal backlash against medical cannabis.

oD Drug Policy Forum: Front Line Report - Week of February 2nd 2012

Charles Shaw and Juliana Willars 2 February 2012

While activists push for reform of drug laws, various legislative entities continue to tighten restrictions on the use of psychoactive substances, from marijuana to "bath salts". One state in the US moves closer to drug-testing not only its welfare recipients, but its lawmakers as well. Mexico's cartels set new records in 2011 for the number of people murdered, close to 50,000 - which does not factor in those who have "disappeared", and the emotional and often physical suffering their absence exacts on the loved ones left behind, who by and large are women and children. ~ jw

The Exile Nation Project - Jean Marlowe

Charles Shaw 1 February 2012
Jean Marlowe is known as the Godmother of Medical Cannabis in the State of North Carolina.In this wildly entertaining interview, the feisty Marlowe gives her irreverent take on the hypocrisy of cannabis prohibition, and gives moving testimony about the damage done to medical patients caught up in the criminal justice system.

oD Drug Policy Forum: Front Line Report - Week of January 26th 2012

Juliana Willars and Charles Shaw 26 January 2012
Despite its lack of success on a global level, prohibition is alive and well as the primary solution most nations adopt to deal with drug problems. While legislators everywhere continue to ban substances and criminalize their users, the US Supreme Court surprised some by overturning a life sentence for a drug dealer because law enforcement did not seek the proper warrants for surveillance. It should be interesting to see how laws evolve to accommodate the unique issues created by the digital age. ~jw

oD Drug Policy Forum: Front Line Report - Week of January 20th 2012

Juliana Willars and Charles Shaw 20 January 2012
The US celebrated the birthdate of civil rights icon Martin Luther King, Jr. this week, as several states consider legislation to require drug tests for those applying for government assistance. While drug use is certainly not restricted to minorities or the poor, they are disproportionately targeted by law enforcement and subsequently imprisoned. The Dutch government, continuing its swing to the far right, has outlawed a psychoactive plant used almost exclusively by Muslim immigrants -- as one critic of the ban noted, "in other words, black men".

oD Drug Policy Forum: Front Line Report - Week of January 12th 2012

Juliana Willars and Charles Shaw 12 January 2012
This week's stories reveal how the US continues to pursue militarized action in the War on Drugs, while municipal governments in Canada attempt to address the problem with harm reduction outreach. Mexico's once-glamorous resort of Acapulco is now ravaged by drug violence, and Costa Rica sees an emerging crack epidemic tarnish its image as a peaceful oasis in Central America.

The Exile Nation Project - Stephani Conyers and Rebecca Forbes

Charles Shaw 10 January 2012
A pair of videos from a mother and daughter testify to the brutality of the War on Drugs, and the consequences children face when their parents are locked up.

oD Drug Policy Forum: Front Line Report - Week of January 5th 2012

Juliana Willars and Charles Shaw 5 January 2012
2011 was a watershed year in drug policy all over the globe. The American and Canadian governments seemed to embrace status quo prohibition, while the citizens of both nations showed increasing support for reform laws, particularly with medical cannabis. Some countries in Europe moved towards legalization, while the Netherlands surprised everyone by taking steps to forbid access of coffee shops to foreigners. Meanwhile, things continue to spiral out of control in Latin America, leaving no country untouched by drug violence

This week's editor

Heather McRobie


Niki Seth-Smith is a freelance journalist and co-editor of OurKingdom.

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