Why Tony Bennett's Emotional Speech for Drug Legalization Was Not "Inappropriate," But Spot On

 "First it was Michael Jackson, then it was Amy Winehouse and now the magnificent Whitney Houston. I'd like to have every gentleman and lady in this room commit themselves to get our government to legalize drugs. So they have to get it through a doctor, not just some gangsters that sell it under the table."

That's what Tony Bennett said at a pre-Grammy Awards party on Saturday night, shortly after learning of the tragic death of Whitney Houston, and he's exactly right. One of us (Neill) is a former police officer who fought -- and lost friends -- on the front lines of the failed "war on drugs." One of us (Katharine) learned about the commonality of human pain in another difficult way, spending two years in a residential facility ("rehab"). She wasn't there for drugs, but many of those struggling alongside her were.

There has been some confusion and criticism over Bennett's remarks and, because of our experience dealing with the pain and heartbreak of drug abuse and harmful drug laws, we feel compelled to expand upon his heartfelt remarks in the hopes that we can help break through some of the misunderstanding underlying the reaction to what Bennett said.

Bennett is an addict in long-term recovery in his own right -- once nearly dying from an overdose. Regardless of whether Houston's death ends up being shown to be caused by drugs, it's understandable he would be moved by her long-term struggle with drugs and by the recent series of other drug-related celebrity deaths.

Some of those criticizing Bennett's remarks don't seem to understand the role that prohibition of some drugs plays in stigmatizing all people battling addiction -- whether to legal or illegal drugs -- and how punitive drug laws create roadblocks to recovery.

For example: "Bennett's remarks were misleading because in every case he mentioned we are talking about legal prescription drugs or alcohol," addiction specialist Marty Ferrero told Fox News.

"No, sorry. She got legal drugs from her doctor," said songwriter Diane Warren. "So that was inappropriate," she told the Los Angeles Times.

These well-meaning folks sadly miss the point. It doesn't matter if you're hooked on alcohol, Xanax or illegal drugs like heroin and cocaine -- prohibition for some drugs stigmatizes all people struggling with addiction. Period. Addicts are not defined simply by their drug of choice nor the drug that is or is not their ultimate cause of death. Their entire lives are tragically plagued by the stigma that criminalization heaps upon them, and the marginalized underworld prohibition thrusts them into.

That is a painful and deadly component of the experience of anyone unlucky enough to live with a disease that, unlike cancer, our government tries to battle with handcuffs.

Maer Roshan of TheFix.com -- a great news source on addiction and recovery issues -- rightly explains, "We can't tackle this epidemic in a piecemeal kind of way. At detoxes and rehabs across the country, prescription pill addicts and alcoholics and meth-heads are coke-heads all share the same plight, and suffer from the same scatter-shot treatment."

We wonder how easy it is for others to understand the isolating nature of living with any mental illness, much less addiction. Katharine watched a presidential election and inauguration from inside a rehab facility. Through the window of Facebook, she watched her high school class mature into adulthood, making friends at college, holding new nieces. She stopped receiving mail from all but a select few friends. She questioned her compatibility with a world that viewed her to be so foreign.

One day, a friend of Katharine's with a decent chunk of clean and sober time received a call about the relapse of a family member. Despite his recent success in working his program and making amends, he was labeled as blameworthy, his influence criminal. It seemed that his confidence faltered under the weight of such hurtful words. That is the moment when efforts to overcome and all the clean and sober time in the world still can never be enough to wash away the stigma of "criminal." This blame-directing and stigmatization is a significant obstacle in recovery. Many addicts come to view themselves as innately "criminal." That label limits their perception of not only their practical options, but their fundamental worth as human beings.