Johann Hari and Christina Dent will take you along for their journeys
Over the past year, I’ve been reading a lot about addiction and substance use disorders. Scientific papers are great – they provide us with the evidence we need to make better decisions and more effective treatments. But it’s the personal narratives that really change hearts and minds. If you are open to changing your beliefs about addiction and using our criminal justice system to control substance use, here are two books I highly recommend: Chasing the Scream by Johann Hari and Curious by Christina Dent.
Their stories are compelling. The authors take us on a journey with them. They critically reflect on their personal assumptions and our collective beliefs.
Politically speaking, these two authors are very different in their worldviews. Johann Hari is a Scottish journalist and a gay man who generally supports ideologically liberal policies. Christina Dent is a mother of three and a devout Christian from Mississippi who is ideologically conservative. But both have arrived at the same conclusions. Shaming and demonizing people with a substance use disorder does not lead to positive outcomes. People with a substance use disorder are suffering from psychological traumas. Criminalizing drugs creates dangerous, unregulated markets incentivized to distribute increasingly potent drugs. Prohibitions, restrictions, and punishments only worsen suffering. The road to recovery requires addressing each person’s underlying psychological needs and responding with empathy and concern.
The Drug War
Hari traces the roots of the so-called “war on drugs” back to Harry Anslinger, the first commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics (the predecessor to the Drug Enforcement Agency [DEA] today). Anslinger played a pivotal role in criminalizing drugs in the 1930s and fueling fears by linking marijuana use to psychosis, insanity, and violent crime, even though scientific evidence didn’t support these claims. He exploited racist ideology, associating drug use, particularly opioids and cannabis, with minority groups. Anslinger’s fear-driven campaign was intended to scare politicians and the public into supporting drug prohibition.
In writing his book, Hari spent three years interviewing a wide range of people directly involved in illicit drug sales and use. Among those he encounters during his journey are a cartel hitman, an addiction specialist, a researcher, and people with substance use disorders who become activists. Through their stories, Hari challenges prevailing beliefs about addiction and drug policies. He concludes that the criminalization of drugs is more dangerous than the drugs themselves. By exploring the alternative strategies that places like Portugal, Switzerland, and Uruguay have adopted, Hari develops an evolving understanding that leads him to advocate for a more compassionate and evidence-based approach—one that moves beyond prohibition and focuses on healing rather than punishment.
From Curiosity to Advocacy
Someone who participated in one of our recent workshops told me about Christina Dent — “You really need to meet her.” He immediately connected us. I watched her TEDx talk and downloaded her book on my Kindle.
The book chronicles Dent’s transformation after a life-changing encounter with the mother of her foster son. She weaves personal anecdotes, research, and interviews with individuals impacted by addiction into her narrative. These stories provide a vivid and detailed look at the negative impacts of using the legal system to address a health problem. As she delves deeper, Dent discovers unexpected solutions that can save lives, heal families, and promote public safety. Her vision challenges prevailing norms and invites readers to join her in exploring a more compassionate and evidence-based approach to addiction.
Curious isn’t just a story—it’s an invitation. Dent encourages readers to get curious alongside her, considering how cultures worldwide might shift their approach to drug use and response to people suffering from a substance use disorder. Her journey eventually led Dent to create a non-profit, End It For Good, through which she hopes to create an opportunity for all of us to thrive, emphasizing compassion, and implementing effective solutions to address drug use and addiction in our society.
I’ve Changed
Like Hari and Dent, I’ve been changed by the stories of people adversely impacted by stigma. The stories of health professional colleagues who have lost their livelihoods due to substance use. The stories of young men and women with unaddressed childhood trauma. The stories of social pressure to consume drugs. The stories of anger and frustration by law enforcement. While stories are anecdotal and intended to pull on our emotions, the evidence is irrefutable. Forcing drug use “underground” has created dangerous illegal marketplaces, and stigmatizing beliefs have led to enormous hardships, destroyed families, and prevented people from seeking treatment.
Even if drugs were legalized tomorrow, the deep cultural beliefs about the unworthiness of people with an addictive disorder will remain unless we are willing to re-examine those beliefs. We can’t legislate compassion. Indeed, the “drug war” is a reflection of our widely held societal views—and our failure to see addiction as a health problem.
If you want to learn more (and I assume you do since you are reading this essay), Chasing The Scream and Curious should be on your shortlist to read.
Post Script
After writing this essay, I had the honor of meeting Christina Dent. She brought me a signed copy of her book (which I will cherish). My impressions, initially formulated based on her writing, were affirmed. She’s warm, sincere, passionate, and committed. She explained how her newfound viewpoints are grounded in her values—that life is sacred, and public policy should serve society by fortifying families, keeping people safe, and promoting personal responsibility. And, while change comes slowly, she’s hopeful about the future. With Christina shepherding this seismic social movement, perhaps the people of Mississippi can model the way.