Don't buy COCAINE
For once the politicians and the police are actually right - cocaine is bad news! But not just for the reasons you might be thinking. You've probably heard all about how coke rots your nose, causes heart attacks, is highly addictive and fuels cartels and corruption.
But there's another reason not to buy cocaine that people don't talk about. It is that Cocaine isn't Fairtrade.
Far from it. Although many farmers initially turn to growing drugs because low commodity prices mean that they can't make a living from more traditional crops, less than 1% of profits from cocaine go back to the producer.
Every time you purchase a gramme of cocaine, the people who cultivate coca leaves are being completely ripped off. They are breaking their backs and employing child labour just so you can get high for a few hours. It must be a bit of a downer knowing that kids had had to work themselves to the bone just so that you could indulge yourself.
...it's not fairtrade!
Take Action
Stop using cocaine. If you haven't yet started, more power to you! Tell all your friends to stop. Spread the word.
The unfair trade practices in the cocaine industry gives an interesting angle for looking at the global drugs problem. So you can also...
Support fairtrade. Eat fairtrade chocolate, unzip a fairtrade banana, have a fairtrade cup of tea instead. It's better for you… and better for the world.
Find Out More
The Drug Policy Alliance website explores the drug war, and is a good source of information on every drug under the sun: www.lindesmith.org
Educate yourself on what people have been eating, inhaling and injecting for centuries. HuumeBoikotti is a Finnish website with lots of interesting information on the drugs trade: www.huumeboikotti.org/english.htm
Fairtrade products and where to get them: www.fairtrade.org.uk
Drug facts to share with your friends:
- Opium was being cultivated from 6,000 BC. In the 19th century, the opium business was one of the most profitable businesses of the British Empire.
- When Coca-Cola was first produced, the 'health tonic' contained small amounts of cocaine in the recipe.
- According to rough estimates, there is more money in circulation annually in the drugs trade than in the refinement, and almost as much as in arms trafficking.
- Did you know that in the UK: 3 million people use illicit drugs (5% of the population).
- Of 280,000 people using Class A drugs, only 20% are receiving treatment or are in jail.
- The annual cost of crime by cocaine and heroin users is £16 billion. Drug users commit 36 million crimes each year - 56% of total crime.
Sign up to our Newsletter:
Email Friends
For once the politicians and the police are actually right - cocaine is bad news! But not just for the reasons you might be thinking. You've probably heard all about how coke rots your nose, causes heart attacks, is highly addictive and fuels cartels and corruption.
But there's another reason not to buy cocaine that people don't talk about. It is that Cocaine isn't Fairtrade.
