Christina Dent writes about a change of heart she had that may help in rethinking Mississippi’s criminal-justice approach to drugs and addiction.
Christina Dent
Christina Dent is the founder and president of End It For Good, a nonprofit that invites people to consider alternatives to our criminal justice approach to drugs and drug use. She's also the author of "Curious: A Foster Mom's Discovery of an Unexpected Solution to Drugs and Addiction" (2023). Dent supported a criminal justice approach to drugs for most of her life, until she became a foster parent and saw it negatively affecting children and families. She began a journey to understand how we could reduce drug-related harm. Dent came to believe that much of the harm associated with drugs actually comes from failed drug policies, and she changed her mind in favor of a health-centered approach to drug production, distribution and use. She didn't change her values. Dent changed her mind about the policies and practices that best uphold her values.