The war on drugs was started under the presidency of Richard Nixon.

The war on drugs was launched during Richard Nixon’s presidency. The legislation that was introduced during that time period underwent many reforms in order to curb substance trafficking, but it did not extend to all people, especially minorities. The war was initiated with the goal of decreasing drug-related crimes, reducing drug-related diseases, and reducing overdosing. Drugs were widely believed to be used by blacks who were uneducated, seen as weaker, and had a low socioeconomic status (Coyne, 2017). These people have suffered at the hands of the authority though they have not been the only ones involved in drug abuse. The war on drugs has been a war on minorities since it was introduced.

One of the decisions made on fighting drugs was prosecuting the petty drug offenders, and these are the minority groups. The prosecutors were told to give the harshest sentence by ensuring that these offenders are guilty and drugs are provided as evidence thus giving a minimum mandatory sentence. The decision is meant to make the minority suffer as most of them are involved in drugs peddling as a way of earning income to support their life. Sentencing them will not only affect their business but also the families who made these people get into illegal drugs business so that they could be provided for (Lopez, 2014).

There is a belief that the people who sell the drugs and those who use them interferes with the morals of the nation as they introduce vices. Dealing with the immoral people would thus be the route of doing away with the drugs in the society which explains the reason the war is directed towards the minority. The national moral values are the foundation of the leadership, and when anyone interferes with them, they are considered a threat to the nation (Stapleton, 2017). The minorities are known to be involved in crimes due to drug use, overdosing which have even resulted in death and stopping them is done through prosecution.

The African-Americans have suffered most from the war on drugs. The survey indicates that both white and black have the same rate of drug use, but the black suffer most since they are given mandatory sentences. When the white people are caught using drugs, they are not given mandatory sentences but instead treated as special cases and offered drug diversion program, expensive psychiatry, treated with compassion, taken through rehab programs or offered prayer sessions. There is a widespread idea of drug use being a black people problem, an aspect used by the press and politicians to sentence the black offenders yet creating the illusion of fighting drugs and winning the war.

In conclusion, the white people consider that the black people and other minorities have all the reasons to get involved in drug abuse. They are economically advantaged, and drugs are a source of fast cash, idle and thus take drugs as a way of passing the time and have no moral values. The government thus concentrates at fighting the minorities instead of the problem of drugs in the society. They give orders of prosecuting the minorities who are caught peddling or using drugs and sympathize with the white counterparts who are caught on drugs. The government has changed the war on a drug to war on minorities.

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References

Coyne, C. J. (2017, April 12). CATO institute. Retrieved September 17, 2017, from Four Decades and Counting: The Continued Failure of the War on Drugs: https://www.cato.org/publications/policy-analysis/four-decades-counting-continued-failure-war-drugs

Lopez, G. (2014, July 1). VOX. Retrieved September 17, 2017, from Everyone, does drugs, but only minorities are punished for it: https://www.vox.com/2014/7/1/5850830/war-on-drugs-racist-minorities

Stapleton, S. (2017, May 12). HuffPost. Retrieved September 17, 2017, from Guess Who Sessions’ War On Drugs Will Target: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/guess-who-sessions-war-on-drugs-will-target_us_5915e1e6e4b00ccaae9ea22e