Decriminalization Is Critical to Protecting  Marginalized People and Creating a Healthier World: Lessons from HIV and COVID-19

Tuesday, December 1, 2020
12:00-1:30pm ET

A Virtual Event
Presented by the O’Neill Institute’s Infectious Diseases Initiative
Georgetown University Law Center

In recognition of World AIDS Day, please join O'Neill Institute Senior Associate Sean Bland, JD, for a discussion about the need to adopt decriminalization approaches to protect marginalized people and improve health.  This will include on a presentation on criminalization of health statuses like HIV status and COVID-19 status, as well as criminalization of sex work and drug use. Topics will be discussed with a focus on the following decriminalization efforts in the United States:
• Enacted and proposed reforms to modernize HIV criminal laws;
• Advocacy to promote alternatives to criminal law enforcement in response to COVID-19;
• Efforts to end criminalization of sex work; and
• Efforts to implement overdose prevention strategies and end criminalization of drug use.
 
The presentation will be recorded. For more information, please email Sean Bland at seb86@law.georgetown.edu.

Accommodation requests related to disability should be made by November 24th to Cynthia Sun at cls297@georgetown.edu.

The O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University Law Center is the premier center for health law, scholarship, and policy. Its mission is to contribute to a more powerful and deeper understanding of the multiple ways in which law can be used to improve the public’s health, using objective evidence as a measure.