The War on Drugs: Racial Discrimmination

How would you react if you were thrown into prison for committing the same crime as another man and realizing that they aren’t getting the same consequence as you are based solely upon your skin color? President Richard Nixon's declaration of a "war on drugs" according to the American Civil Liberties Union has cost about $1 trillion. The war on drugs is a war on communities of color. The racial disparities are staggering. People of color are far more likely to be stopped, searched, arrested, prosecuted, convicted and incarcerated for drug law violations than whites. No one seems to realize that whites engage in drug offenses at a higher rate than African-Americans.  African-Americans are incarcerated for drug offenses at a rate that is 10 times greater than that of whites. With drug usage rates mostly equal among all races, why are there 3 blacks for every 2 Hispanics for every 1 white incarcerated for non-violent drug related offenses? The drug war has produced profoundly unequal outcomes across racial groups, manifested through racial discrimination by law enforcement and disproportionate drug war misery suffered by communities of color. Some argue that the reason blacks and Hispanics are being incarcerated for drug offenses are simply because of their drug use and their incapability to abide by the law. Higher arrest and incarceration rates for blacks and Hispanics are not reflective of increased drug use , but rather of a law enforcement focus on only urban areas, on lower income communities and on communities of color. The fact that these innocent people have to endure so much more punishment is unbelievable. They have to endure lifelong consequences. The lifelong penalties that follow a drug conviction have created a permanent second class status for millions of Americans, who may be prohibited from voting, being licensed, accessing public assistance and any number of other activities and opportunities. The drug war’s racist enforcement means that all of these exclusions fall more heavily on people and communities of color. The fact that the war on drugs disproportionately harms members of a racial minority that was long subject to official discrimination in this country is additional cause for concern.  The war on drugs isn’t even targeting the drugs anymore.  We need to stop the racial discrimination and really focus on ending this war. It’s time to end the unjust and unsuccessful war on drugs.