ACLU: PAIN RELIEF IS A CIVIL RIGHT: “THOUSANDS HAVE NEEDLESSLY SUFFERED” [ A Visual Update]

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KATE NICHOLSON FOUNDER OF NATIONAL PAIN ADVOCACY

“WE ARE NOT POWERLESS AND THROUGH OUR VIDEOS, WRITINGS, AND PHOTOGRAPHS WE WILL EXPOSE THE ABUSES AND TYRANNY OF UNITED STATES DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY 

REPUBLISHED AND REPORTED 

BY

you are within the norms

NORMAN J CLEMENT RPH., DDS, NORMAN L.CLEMENT PHARM-TECH, MALACHI F. MACKANDAL PHARMD, BELINDA BROWN-PARKER, IN THE SPIRIT OF JOSEPH SOLVO ESQ., INC., SPIRIT OF REV. C.T. VIVIAN, JELANI ZIMBABWE CLEMENT, BS., MBA., IN THE SPIRIT OF THE HON. PATRICE LUMUMBA, IN THE SPIRIT OF ERLIN CLEMENT SR., WALTER F. WRENN III., MD., JULIE KILLINGWORTH, LESLY POMPY MD., CHRISTOPHER RUSSO, MD., NANCY SEEFELDT, WILLIE GUINYARD BS., JOSEPH WEBSTER MD., MBA, BEVERLY C. PRINCE MD., FACS., NEIL ARNAND, MD., RICHARD KAUL, MD., LEROY BAYLOR, JAY K. JOSHI MD., MBA, ADRIENNE EDMUNDSON, ESTER HYATT PH.D., WALTER L. SMITH BS., IN THE SPIRIT OF BRAHM FISHER ESQ., MICHELE ALEXANDER MD., CUDJOE WILDING BS, MARTIN NJOKU, BS., RPH., IN THE SPIRIT OF DEBRA LYNN SHEPHERD, BERES E. MUSCHETT, STRATEGIC ADVISORS

JUST AS THE VIDEO WAS RECORDED BY THE CELL PHONE CAMERA OF YOUNG DARNELLA FRAZIER, AN BORE WITNESS TO THE MURDER OF GEORGE FLOYD, THE BLOG youarewithinthenorms.com BARES WITNESS AND BOTH ALLOWS THE SYSTEM TO BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE”

A graphic with the text 'Pain Relief is a Civil Right.' attributed to Kate Nicholson, presented in a bold and elegant font on a neutral background.
THE FIGHT FOR PAIN RELIEF
Infographic discussing the DOJ's complaint against Walmart regarding opioid prescriptions and the DEA's analysis of 'red flags'.

This article argued that access to pain relief should be viewed as a fundamental civil right, highlighting how recent restrictive policies have caused widespread suffering for millions of Americans. By featuring the perspectives of advocate Kate Nicholson and the ACLU, the text asserts that the rollback of opioid prescriptions has disproportionately harmed marginalized groups and people with disabilities.

Infographic highlighting that pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide, affecting over 50 million Americans annually, with a quote emphasizing the nature of chronic pain and the importance of safe opioid use for treatment.

The author further contends that federal law enforcement agencies have overstepped their authority by criminalizing medical professionals, thereby interfering with the legitimate practice of medicine. This piece still serves as a call for accountability, suggesting that the current legal crackdown on prescribers forces patients toward dangerous alternatives while ignoring the validity of chronic pain treatment.

An infographic titled 'Charlatan in the Courtroom' discussing the negative impacts of expert witness Dr. Timothy King on medical professionals, highlighting the issues of a pseudo-scientific system, ruined careers, and tragic consequences.

!!THE MORE THAT IS SAID AND WRITTEN, THE MORE THAT IS LEARN !!

Agency of Corruption and racism
The DEA has acted as an Unregulated medical agency policing medical facilities and medical practices without legal standards and grounds and the DEA Administration Court System body, which operates within the Department of Justice (DOJ), as a run, unconstitutionally, entity, and immune to all laws of governance to all courts within the Justice System.

Kate Nicholson, a founder of the National Pain Advocacy Center, believes now is the time to course-correct.

“The DEA has acted as an Unregulated medical agency policing medical facilities and medical practices without legal standards and grounds, and the DEA Administration Court System body, which operates within the Department of Justice (DOJ), as a run, unconstitutionally, entity, and immune to all laws of governance to all courts within the Justice System.”

Infographic highlighting the human cost of prescription rollbacks, stating 'THOUSANDS OF PAIN PATIENTS HAVE NEEDLESSLY DIED.' It lists impacted groups: People with disabilities, People of color, Women, and Incarcerated individuals.

Pain relief, in her view, is a civil right. While opioids are not a one-size-fits-all pain reliever, the rollback on prescriptions has disproportionately impacted people with disabilities, people of color, women, and incarcerated folks.

Infographic illustrating the timeline of the 2016 CDC guidelines on pain management and its negative impact on opioid prescriptions and enforcement actions.
Dr. Mark S Ibsen, MD: Lawful Malpractice Failing Our Oath to Relief Suffering a Vast waste land for Pain Management

She is also a civil rights attorney and a nationally recognized expert on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). She formerly served in the U.S. Department of Justice for 18 years, where she litigated and managed cases, coordinated federal disability policy, and drafted the current ADA regulations.

Text header showing 'The Unseen Crisis: How the War on Opioids Became a War on Patients and Doctors' with a medical office illustration in the background.

https://www.aclu.org/podcast/pain-relief-is-a-civil-right

An infographic highlighting the importance of treating pain relief as a civil right, detailing how misclassifying it as a privilege has led to policies that harm vulnerable populations. The image includes key points on centering patient needs, realigning enforcement with legal standards, protecting good-faith medical practice, and focusing on health and well-being.

Listener Note: There is still time to submit a question for our “Ask an Expert” podcast series on all things free speech. To submit a question for our final episode on education and book bans, call us and leave us a message at 212-549-2558 or email us at podcast@aclu.org.

https://www.aclu.org/podcast/pain-relief-is-a-civil-right

BIO FOR KATE NICHOLSON

A smiling woman with long, dark hair and glasses, dressed in a black top, against a blurred natural background.
KATE NICHOLSON JD
Pain Relief Is a Civil Right: KATE NICHOLSON JD
Access-to-pain-control-1Download

She was an appointed member of the Opioid Workgroup of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a 2019-20 Mayday Pain & Society Fellow, and she currently serves on the Global Advocacy Task Force for the International Association for the Study of Pain.

Kate also serves on task forces and in working groups of many aligned civil rights, disability rights, women’s health, pain, and drug policy organizations. Kate was a Senior Fellow at Dartmouth College and is a graduate of Harvard Law School.

A book cover titled 'PAIN on TRIAL' by J. Z. Gassko, featuring bold white lettering on a red background with a distressed texture.
PAIN ON TRIAL

THOUSANDS OF PHYSICIANS, PHARMACISTS, NURSES DENTISTS HAVE BEEN WRONGLY TARGETED AND IMPRISONED

A group of medical professionals in white lab coats gathered together in a dimly lit room, focusing on one central figure who appears to be speaking or leading a discussion.
It can’t happen here,

ACCORDING TO THE ACLU:

“For years now, the pain has been the leading cause of disability worldwide, affecting more than 50 million Americans annually. This isn’t the kind of pain you endure when you trip onto the pavement, scab, bruise, and heal. It’s the persistent gnawing, aching, throbbing that happens over a long period of time. This is chronic pain.

A woman holding a sign that reads 'DEPENDENCE is NOT ADDICTION' at a protest, with other participants visible in the background.
PAIN RALLY WASHINGTON DC OCTOBER 26, 2021

One of the most powerful and effective forms of treatment for pain is the safe use of opioids. Opioids in combination with other therapies have allowed those hindered by pain to live full and vibrant lives, but the stigma around opioid use was exacerbated in 2016 due to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the CDC, that both seriously discouraged doctors from prescribing these drugs and also over attributed the prescription of them as the cause of addiction and overdose.”

WHAT WE LOSE WHEN WE UNDERTREAT PAIN

https://www.aclu.org/podcast/pain-relief-is-a-civil-right

Infographic discussing the crisis of untreated pain, highlighting the need for pain relief as a civil right. It includes statistics on disabilities, the impact of CDC guidance, and the role of law enforcement in regulating medicine.

FEDERAL DRUG LAW ENFORCEMENT

The Supreme Court has long recognized that the state’s protection of “the health of its citizens . . . is at the core of its police power,” Sporhase v. Neb. ex rel. Douglas, 458 U.S. 941, 956 (1982), and has expressly rejected the notion that the CSA grants either DOJ or DEA the broad authority to regulate the practice of medicine:

Federal law enforcement agencies are unqualified to determine whether drugs “have a useful and legitimate medical purpose and are necessary to maintain the health and general welfare of the American people.”

Cover of the book 'American Agony: The Opioid War Against Patients in Pain' by Helen Borel, featuring a distressed face illustration with vibrant colors.
HELEN BOREL PH.D

21 U.S.C. § 801(1). Congress, therefore, did not even leave it to DEA to perform one of its core CSA functions—the scheduling of controlled substances— without health care agency oversight and evaluation. See id. § 811(b) (“The Attorney General shall, before initiating proceedings . . . [to schedule or reschedule a drug] . . . request from the [HHS] Secretary a scientific and medical evaluation, . . . The recommendations of the Secretary to the Attorney General shall be binding . . . as to such scientific and medical matters.”)

Infographic featuring a quote from Felix DO discussing the chilling effect on medical practice due to fear of prosecution. It depicts a stethoscope entwined with barbed wire, symbolizing the challenges physicians face in prescribing pain relief.

https://www.aclu.org/podcast/pain-relief-is-a-civil-right

Image featuring a quote that states: 'The Goal is Not Complicated. The public has been lied to. The system is corrupt. The human cost is unbearable. To end the public health catastrophe and the inhumane treatment of patients, there is only one first step. The CSA must be eliminated... to stop this atrocity.'

Furthermore, this Court has expressly held that DOJ cannot criminally prosecute OUD prescribers under CSA Section 841(a)(1) unless they sell “drugs, not for legitimate purposes but ‘primarily for the profits to be derived therefrom’ ” and are acting outside the usual course of professional practice such that their behavior is akin to that of a “large-scale [drug] pusher, not as a physician.” Moore at 345.

A formal portrait of the U.S. Supreme Court Justices, arranged in two rows. The front row consists of five justices seated, while the back row features four justices standing. They are dressed in black judicial robes against a red curtain backdrop.
The Roberts Court, April 23, 2021
Seated from left to right: Justices Samuel A. Alito, Jr. and Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., and Justices Stephen G. Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor.
Standing from left to right: Justices Brett M. Kavanaugh, Elena Kagan, Neil M. Gorsuch, and Amy Coney Barrett.
Photograph by Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States

In sum, the CSA permits the federal prosecution of prescribers who operate as drug traffickers as traditionally understood and, thereby, knowingly or intentionally engage in prescribing conduct that exceeds the bounds of professional practice. Congress never intended to delegate to law enforcement the authority to regulate the practice of medicine by criminalizing good-faith medical mistakes. See 21 U.S.C. § 903.

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KATHERINE ROSENBERG DOUGLAS REPORTER CHICAGO TRIBUNE AND CPP https://youarewithinthenorms.com/2021/07/13/since-when-has-it-become-the-job-or-the-role-of-law-enforcement-dea-to-dictate-treat-and-re-define-medical-procedures-and-protocols/

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OUR KNOWLEDGE WILL NEVER BE SUPPRESSED
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“..one day you will make a difference..”

FOR NOW, YOU ARE WITHIN

YOUAREWITHINTHENORMS.COM, BENJAMIN CLEMENTINE “THE NEMESIS” LONDON, ENGLAND 2015

THE NORMS

A professional black and white portrait of Kate Nicholson, JD, founder of the National Pain Advocacy Center, with a description of her credentials and expertise in civil rights and the Americans with Disabilities Act.

references:

LOW HANGING FRUIT

SCOTT THOMAS TAMPA, FLORIDA

WALTER F. WRENN MD

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GREGORY BELCHER MD
A parody artwork depicting a character resembling the Mona Lisa sitting on a toilet, holding a toilet paper roll.
NANCY SEEFLT
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KATHERINE ROSENBERG DOUGLAS REPORTER FOR CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Text on a page discussing the epidemic of death among pain patients due to physician intimidation by the government.
HELEN BOREL
JK JOSHI MD
A man with a beard and sunglasses sits in a wheelchair in a corridor, wearing a light-colored shirt and a hat.
BRENT SLONE SUICIDE
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FELIX BRIZUELA DO
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BOB SHEARIN
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XUILU RUAN MD
A book page showing Chapter Twenty-Two titled 'THE WRONG ARMS OF THE LAW: State Attorneys-General, the DEA and the DOJ', discussing the overreach of law enforcement into the medical field, specifically regarding opioid prescriptions.
HELEN BOREL
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WALTER WRENN MD
A woman with blonde hair wearing a gray sleeveless top speaks in front of a green background with the text 'Green Airport'.
CLAUDIA MERANDI
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LAUREN DELUCA
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RICHARD KAUL MD
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MICHELLE CLARK RPH
Chapter title discussing the impact of DEA actions on physicians and pain patients, emphasizing aggressive law enforcement and the challenges faced by patients.
HELEN BOREL
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LOIUS LADSON RPH
A man wearing a Michigan Wolverines baseball cap, with a slight smile on his face, stands next to a vehicle.
CHRISTOPHER RUSSO MD
A diverse group of people enjoying an outdoor event, including children with face paint, parents, and caregivers seated together. One adult is holding a young child while another child holds a snack.
NEIL ANAND MD
Cover of the book 'Pain on Trial,' featuring a red background with a blurred design and text describing the story of Dr. Holden's struggle with the legal system surrounding pain management.
J.Z.GAASKO
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JOSEPH ZOLOT MD
A man with a beard smiles while holding a young girl in a garden filled with flowers.
FREDDY WILLIAMS MD
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STEPHEN HENSON MD
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LESLY POMPY MD
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LINDA CHEEKS MD
Book cover featuring the title 'American AGONY: The Opioid War Against Patients in Pain' by Dr. Helen Borel, alongside a photo of the author.
HELEN BOREL
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WALTER R. CLEMENT
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PAUL VOLKMAN MD
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MICHAEL JONES MD
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VILISINI GANESH MD
A letter from U.S. Congresswoman Grace Meng addressing a constituent's inquiry about the DEA's authority in dictating medical practices, dated December 18, 2019.
GRACE MENG MEMBER OF CONGRESS
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CHRISTINA PAYLAN MD
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RONALD MYERS MD
A confident female doctor wearing a white coat and stethoscope, smiling softly as she leans against a doorway in a medical setting.
CATHLEEN LOND MD LAW STUDENT U MAINE
Cover of the book 'The Painful Truth' by Lynn R. Webster, M.D., featuring an orange background with abstract lines and the title prominently displayed.
A close-up portrait of a man with a slight smile, short hair, and facial hair, looking directly at the camera.
HAROLD EUGENE FLETCHER PHARMACIST COLUMBUS OH

Published by You're Within The Norms

Writer, Activist, Analyst, Photographer, Pharmacist and Dentist

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