In June 1971, the current US President Richard Nixon declared drug abuse to be America’s “public enemy number one”, effectively starting the decades-long war on drugs, leading to mass incarceration and profound racial disparities which still has a significant impact on everyday life today. In this article, we will be exploring how the war on drugs was not only ineffective, but also left a mark in society for how it enforced racial profiling and increased the racial disparity which was already deeply rooted within the American community.
Figure 1. “President Richard Nixon explains aspects of the special message sent to Congress asking for an extra $155 millions for a new program to combat the use of drugs, on June 17, 1971. Harvey Georges—AP”
How did the War on Drugs disproportionately impact people of colour
Albeit the good intentions derived from the war on drugs, the approach that was taken was extremely misguided. As Michelle Alexander once said, "Nothing has contributed more to the systematic mass incarceration of people of colour in the United States than the War on Drugs." Although documented research by the US government has found that black people and Latinos use drugs at a similar rate to people of other races, they make up over 77% of the incarcerated population in US federal prisons for drug offences.
How does the War on Drugs still affect society's view on race to this day?
With the stringent rules that were placed, many incarcerated people of colour were barred from further education, employment opportunities, basic social security benefits and more. This led to a sharp decrease in upward socioeconomic mobility which has left a mark on America's quality of life to this day. Furthermore, the war on drugs enforced harmful racial stereotypes, which greatly impacts the life of many people of colour. For example, US medical professionals have been found to prescribe 29% less opioids to black people due to them being profiled as stronger than their white counterparts. This has led to a significantly lower quality of life for black patients. All in all, the war on drugs only reinforced structural racism that was already present within the US and to this day plays an undeniable role in the way society views people of colour.
Works Cited
Britannica (2018). War on Drugs. In: Encyclopædia Britannica. [online] Available at: https://www.britannica.com/topic/war-on-drugs.
Drug Policy Alliance (2015). The Drug War, Mass Incarceration and Race. [online] Drug Policy Alliance. Available at: https://www.unodc.org/documents/ungass2016/Contributions/Civil/DrugPolicyAlliance/DPA_Fact_Sheet_Drug_War_Mass_Incarceration_and_Race_June2015.pdf.
NACDL (2021). Race and the War on Drugs. [online] NACDL - National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. Available at: https://www.nacdl.org/Content/Race-and-the-War-on-Drugs.
Rothwell, J. (2014). How the War on Drugs Damages Black Social Mobility. [online] Brookings. Available at: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-the-war-on-drugs-damages-black-social-mobility.
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