Maritza Perez

Maritza Perez is the Director of the Office of National Affairs at the Drug Policy Alliance in Washington, DC where she leads the organization’s federal legislative agenda and strategy.

Articles by this author

Demonstrators protest the failed War on Drugs. (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images) Views
Tuesday, December 22, 2020
Biden’s Drug Czar Must Be Someone Willing to Diverge From Our Country’s Failed Drug War
We are at a moment in time when public perception towards drugs and the people who are involved with them is rightfully changing. There may have been no clearer evidence of this than in the most recent election—where every single drug policy reform initiative on the ballot won, and most, pretty...
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Drug Enforcement Administration police are seen as demonstrators marched to Freedom Plaza from Capitol Hill to honor George Floyd and victims of racial injustice on Saturday, June 6, 2020. (Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images) Views
Friday, June 26, 2020
The DEA’s Most Recent Abuse of Power Should Renew Calls for Divestment
As calls to divest, defund and abolish local police agencies echo across the U.S., it is also time to elevate those calls to apply to federal paramilitary agencies including the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). Over the last few weeks, we have watched President Trump respond to the nation's...
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A Miami Police officer watches protestors from an armored vehicle during a rally in Miami, Florida on May 31, 2020 in response to the killing of George Floyd. (Photo: Ricardo Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images) Views
Friday, June 12, 2020
The Congressional Police Reform Bill Fails to Meet the Moment
On Monday, House and Senate Democrats introduced the Justice in Policing Act of 2020. This bill includes much-needed provisions to help end racial profiling, ban chokeholds, create a national database for police misconduct and use-of-force, as well as establish a national use-of-force standard. But...
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