The video of George Floyd's murder at the hands of police shines a light on the life-threatening issues with the U.S. criminal justice system. Colleen Cowles is author of the book, "War On Us: How the War on Drugs and Myths About Addiction Have Created a War on All of Us." She is an attorney, an advocate, and a Mom with personal experience with this failed system. In 'War on Us', Colleen goes further than concerns about police misconduct, addressing the law and the history that led to these devastating results. The book describes the true impact of a 'War' brought about by racism, politics, economics and myths about addiction. Most importantly, the book outlines specific ways to end this failed 'War' and details steps to replace it with compassionate, effective policy that protects the public as well as individual rights.
Colleen speaks at corporate, public, and university events, and is a frequent radio and TV guest expert on topics related to criminal justice reform and substance use disorder.