Was the War on Drugs Really Beneficial to All of America?
A look at the history and disproportionate effects of the War on Drugs
By Liz Karnowski, Culture Staff Writer
The 1970s was an era of chaos, musical icons and eclectic energy, fueled by alcohol and illicit drug use (Rolling Stone, 2016). The number of drug users increased as a result, calling for what soon became the War on Drugs. Although some argue that the War on Drugs was solely intended to combat the rise of drug use in the 70s, it is clear that it had disproportionately negative effects on communities of color.
In 1970, President Richard Nixon signed the Controlled Substances Act into law, which regulated certain drugs and substances. The Drug Enforcement Administration was born in 1973 and was a special force committed to targeting illegal drug use in the United States. (History, 2019).
Politicians and policymakers knew that drug use was becoming a public health concern in America, however, they also knew that criminalizing illicit drugs would disproportionately affect underserved populations (History, 2019).
“We knew we couldn’t make it illegal to be either against the war or Blacks, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and Blacks with heroin, and then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities. We could arrest their leaders, raid their homes, break up their meetings and vilify them night after night on the evening news. Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course, we did,” said John Ehrlichman, President Nixon’s Domestic Policy Chief (History, 2019).
Ehrlichman understood the power that politicians and policymakers had in this situation, and it’s apparent that their power was abused.
The War on Drugs was popular at the time, however today it is a lot less favored than it once was. Although the concept of the War on Drugs was for the greater good of public health in the United States, it was executed poorly and still negatively affects underserved population groups. In a 2021 survey, 82% of respondents said they wanted the federal government to reform America’s drug laws. (Norica, 2021).
The public’s opinion on the Nixon administration was generally positive before his post-Watergate scandal resignation in 1974. He won every state in his re-election besides Massachusetts and gained the popular vote at 60.67% (Roper, 2014). Post-Watergate, his approval rates declined heavily and he was considered one of America’s worst presidents (Roper, 2014).
Stemming from the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, the War on Drugs is inherently xenophobic because of the high racial and ethnic tensions that led to these policies being set in place (Lopez, 2016). Drug prohibition policies are typically in correlation with racist ideas and mindsets. The Marijuana Tax Act had been set in place with racist intentions because many associated recreational use of marijuana with Black and Mexican individuals.
Cocaine, in particular, became a racially divided drug given the War on Drugs, where users who were white were glamorized and users who were Black were criminalized. The New York Times even wrote in a headline, “Negro cocaine ‘fiends’ are a new southern menace,” in 1914 (Lopez, 2016). As time continued, police units were sent into specific neighborhoods to make targeted arrests for possession of drugs because many people associated drug use with the Black population.
In the years since Nixon’s resignation, states have gradually grown warmer to legalization. Oregon became the first state to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of drugs as well as to increase public access to treatment and recovery services (Sutton, 2021). This policy enforcement was placed in hopes of creating a domino effect for other states to do the same and set an example for providing drug users resources instead of a cycle of poverty and punishment.
In 1980, 50,000 people were in jail for nonviolent drug-related charges. The number rose to 400,000 by 1997 and in 2019, 87% of the 1.5 million drug arrests made were for simple possession of drugs (Norica, 2021). According to the Drug Policy Alliance, the U.S. is home to less than 5% of the world’s population, but houses nearly 25% of its prisoners. The War on Drugs still has a huge effect on non-violent incarcerations of low-income individuals to this day.
The people who are incarcerated have families that are broken up due to these arrests. Even when an individual leaves prison, they face barriers to housing, employment and education that sets them back from the rest of society (Lapidus, 2011). The War on Drugs became a war on families when parents were incarcerated, and there quickly became little to no benefits to these families in need.
Decriminalizing drug possession is the first step to creating a safer community (Drug Policy Alliance, 2021). It’s also imperative to recognize that communities of color are affected greatly by the War on Drugs, and will continue to be until more decriminalizing policies are put in place. By providing new and better resources to those who use drugs, there can be a stride toward ending racial discrimination in the criminal justice system.
Sources:
Drug Policy Alliance. (2021). Mass Incarceration and Criminalization. Drug Policy Alliance.
History.com Editors. (2019, December 17). War on Drugs. History.
Lapidus, L. M. (2011, June 8). The War on Drugs = A War on Women and Families. ACLU.
Lopez, G. (2016, May 8). The War on Drugs, Explained. Vox.
Norica, A. (2021, June 9). Poll Shows Huge Public Opposition to "War on Drugs," After 50 Years. Filter.
Rolling Stone. (2016, February 12). Watch How Drugs Fueled and Ravaged Seventies Music in New RS Mini-Doc. Rolling Stone.
Roper Center. (2014, August 9). The American Public's Attitudes about Richard Nixon Post-Watergate. Roper Center.
Sutton, M. (2021, February 1). Drug Decriminalization in Oregon Officially Begins Today. Drug Policy Alliance.