Open Society Foundation Approves $25,000 Seed Grant for Help Not Handcuffs, Inc. to Challenge lack of Human Rights in Recovery and Drug Policy

 Asbury Park (December 20, 2017) – Help Not Handcuffs, Inc. announced today the organization has received a seed-grant in the amount of $25,000 from the Open Society Foundations (OSF). Help Not Handcuffs, Inc.’s mandate is to fill a noticeable deficit in public policy discourse by empowering recovering persons and their supporters to advocate against prohibition policies, which violate human rights and are ineffective.

“Currently the addiction/recovery narrative is largely exploited to support prohibition policies by celebrating abstinence and recovery while punishing continual drug use.” Said Randy Thompson, CEO and Founder of Help Not Handcuffs, Inc. “People are not recognizing the harms that our prohibition laws and our recovery culture are causing, because the voices of people with these experiences have been largely absent from public policy discourse.” Thompson said.

The grant is co-funded by the OSF Public Health Program and the Global Drug Policy Program on an equal basis and is designed to help grow and develop the organization. Help Not Handcuffs, Inc. is an NGO, which was granted Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations in 2017. The organization is based in New Jersey.

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