Letter to the Editor

(4c) This week, you must write a Letter to the Editor and submit it to the Dropbox by Sunday, 11:59 PM (MT).

The Scenario You are an American living in India. Many people in the city in which you live have been demonstrating in the streets by marching and carrying signs. These people are protesting the high prices of U.S. patented medicines for HIV-positive/AIDS patients. They say that these (and other) patented medicines are unaffordable and therefore the patents should not be protected by international law. (Prices would be much lower without the patents.) The demonstrators also say that international law is based on Western concepts and it is not always just by Indian standards (or the standards of many non-Western countries).

You are known locally for your understanding of global politics. Because of your knowledge, the local newspaper has asked you to write a letter to the editor that will be online and distributed in print. The newspaper wants you to either defend the protestors or defend international law that protects the patents.

The Expectations The letter to the editor should be a maximum of 1,000 words and you should use this Letter to the Editor Template. You should research both sides of the issue and decide which side you are taking prior to writing the letter to the editor. It is expected that you will clearly define the relevant concepts of international law in your article. You should include in-text citations and an APA-formatted bibliography with at least 2 sources.

The Directions

1. Use the textbook, the library, and the Internet to research U.S. and international medical patents and international law.

2. Download and review the rubric to better understand what is expected of you. 3. Using this Letter to the Editor Template, write a 1,000 word letter to the editor. Be sure to include in-text citations and an APA-formatted Bibliography with at least 2 sources.