Hannah Hetzer on New War on Drugs, John Conroy & Jamie Kalven on Chicago Police Violence

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This week on CounterSpin: Listeners may know that Donald Trump’s big speech at the United Nations General Assembly was met with laughter. But another funny-not-funny event that took place was largely overlooked. At a sort of glorified photo op, Trump announced a new plan for the “world drug problem” that reflects a return to inhumane and disproven approaches. We’ll hear from Drug Policy Alliance’s senior international policy manager, Hannah Hetzer,  about what’s going on.

Transcript:  ‘We’ve Seen the Total Failure of Repressive Policies’

[mp3-jplayer tracks=”CounterSpin Hannah Hetzer Interview @http://www.fair.org/audio/counterspin/CounterSpin180928Hetzer.mp3″]

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Laquan McDonald

Also on the show: Former Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke is standing trial for first-degree murder for the 2014 killing of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald. If convicted, he could face up to life in prison. Former Chicago police commander Jon Burge died September 19; he was only convicted in civil suits, despite being responsible for years of systemic torture, coerced confessions and violence visited on black communities. Van Dyke and Burge may be outliers, but coverage that treats them as rogues, without interrogating the system that allows and abets their behavior, is part of the problem. CounterSpin talked about Burge’s reign of terror with former Chicago Reader reporter John Conroy, and we talked with reporter and activist Jamie Kalven about Van Dyke’s murder of McDonald. We’ll hear part of both those conversations today.

Transcript: ‘How Many Other Laquan MacDonalds Are There?’

[mp3-jplayer tracks=”CounterSpin John Conroy Jamie Kalven Interviews @http://www.fair.org/audio/counterspin/CounterSpin180928Conroy_Kalven.mp3″]

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