War on drugs targets the lower class

The leaves of a marijuana plant shows the immorality of the drug war. The scales of moral justice weighs on the war on drugs. Photo Credits: Creative Commons.

The leaves of a marijuana plant shows the immorality of the drug war. The scales of moral justice weighs on the war on drugs. Photo Credits: Creative Commons.

Clayton Saunders, Ranger Review Reporter

The war on drugs in America is a highly debated topic in today’s day and age. Starting in the Nixon era, the drug war primarily attacked the lower and middle class. When President Nixon started the movement, he targeted minor uses of substances such as marijuana, cocaine, and opium as a way to jail minorities living in the streets.

He also attacked the hippie era with this movement, because hippies took action and protested various issues. According to History.com, John Erlichman admitted the war on drugs was actually a war on hippies and minorities.

Since the start of the war on drugs, the Conservative party has used the “war” as an excuse to attack minorities and the lower class. From corrupt cops planting fake evidence on minorities, to imprisoning addicts that just need to be helped through rehabilitation from their disease, the war on drugs has become a war on people less fortunate than the those in power.

The legalization of marijuana has been spreading in many states across America, such as: Alaska, California, Colorado, Oregon, Vermont, etc, yet still is not federally legal. This means that at any time, the government can send the Drug Enforcement Agency, DEA, to shut down state-regulated dispensaries at any time.

The Trump administration has been pushing to take action against the states with legal recreational marijuana. Not only is this a misuse of power, but it is also a violation of the rights of the states.

“The Trump administration has taken a tougher line, allowing federal prosecutors to crack down on marijuana even in states where it’s legal — which could let federal law enforcement shut down state-legal pot businesses,” said VOX.com.

Marijuana not being legal is one of the most outrageous injustices in America. The original banning of marijuana was just a corrupt corporate scandal. Those in power in the paper industry did not like how hemp was being used more than trees, for regular paper needs. Lobbyists bribed and contributed to make legislative action against hemp.

According to Mass-Roots.com, “secret meetings were held by these financial tycoons. Hemp was declared dangerous and a threat to their billion dollar enterprises. For their dynasties to remain intact, hemp had to go.”

Marijuana is not only less harmful than alcohol, but it also can be beneficial to one’s health. There are no recorded deaths from a THC overdose ever recorded; however, there were over 72,000 deaths from alcohol poisoning in 2017.

Overall, the government is using drugs as a way to keep the people of the lower class from rising power in the hierarchy. The system is corrupt, but nothing can change until people rise up and take down the political exploitation of power.