The Pacific Theater

The War on Drugs

The war on drug initially initiated in 1971[1]. It was meant to ensure the complete prohibition of drugs. Throughout the history, drugs have been a major issue affecting people of all ages and races. The use of recreational drugs started in the 1960s among people of all ages including school going children[2]. Currently, the number of people using drugs has escalated and also the number of drugs cartel both in America and in the world. And with the escalating number of drug abuse so has the number of crime rates increased[3]. Many people have resorted to crime so as to be able to purchase drugs. Other people associate the use of drugs with the crime. Drugs are deemed unhealthy, hazardous and even fatal by most governments around the world. The use of drugs has created racial segregation where people from some races labeled as drugs user[4]. It is also a discriminative war. Although the fight on drug was initiated to ensure the complete prohibition of drugs, it is a failed war, and countries should adopt new strategies to ensure that the drug menace is controlled.

The fight on drugs has remained a scandalous campaign over the years. The campaign was meant to eradicate the use of drugs entirely. For instance in 1964, the police arrested a musician named Ray Charles due to possession of drugs[5]. The use of drug escalated during the time that American troops were returning from Vietnam. They returned while addicted to the use of heroin. During that time, drug use of drugs was not traditional. However in the 1960s the use of recreational drugs became popular among people of different ages and races. The US government began the war against the utilization of drugs by forming agencies that would help in the campaign. Such body included BNDD initiated in 1968. There were also laws that were passed to fight the abuse of drugs. Later, in 1971 the combat on drug was initially started. The government termed the use of drugs as a threat to people’s health. In 1982, President Reagan also adopted a new policy in the war on drugs. His predecessors later adopted the policy. Although the government was keen to eradicate the use of drugs ultimately, it did not succeed in its endeavor.

The warfare on drugs has futile, as the use of drugs is still in existence especially among the youth. Many young people are reported to use drugs in America and around the world. For instance, a report by 2013 UNICEF shows that in Canada the use of marijuana among youth is 22% whereas that among young adults was at 26%[6]. The report shows that, it is common to find young teenagers experimenting drugs. Experimenting with drugs may later lead to dependence and thus causing adverse consequences[7]. Drug use among children has adverse effects such as poor performance in school. The above report shows that the combat on drugs has not succeeded in the escalating of the use of drugs. In some countries the use of drugs among the use has reduced; however, the report shows that many youths still use drugs. The campaign on drugs was to ensure the complete prohibition of drugs, but it has not succeeded.

The campaign on drug has also failed because there are still a number of drug cartels in America and also around the world. The number of drug traffickers has been growing not only in America but also around the world. For example in Mexico the drug dealers are divided into various groups and each group are governed by a single leader[8]. The particular groups also operate in some of the Americans cities. They sell drugs to the people in their different locations. Due to the growing number of cartels government have attempted to implement the war on drug policy. The warfare on drug was formulated to abolish entirely the use of drugs. However, the objective has not been achieved up to date. The state has not been successful reducing the drug menace that has been in existence for a long time. The objective of the combat on drugs to reduce the use of drugs and ensure that the Nation is a drug-free area has failed.

The use of drugs has also increased the rate of criminal activities. For instance in Mexico there have been cases of killings connected to the drug trafficking. Different drug trafficking gangs have been killing one another during their quest for power. They fight to mark their territories and in place killing other citizens. Many people have also been involved in crime so as to acquire cash to buy drugs. For instance according to research in 2004, 17 percent of state prisoner reported that they were involved in crime so as to get money to purchase drugs[9]. The statics shows that drugs have led to increasing in number of crimes. However, the administration has failed in its fight against drugs. The warfare on drugs was meant to eradicate the use of drugs completely; however, the statics shows that it has not achieved its objective.

The combat on drug has also created human rights violence. There have been many killings connected with the fight against drugs in various countries around the world. For instance in Mexico and Columbia many killings of civilians by the government has been reported[10]. The report shows the violation of human rights by the governments of the two countries. Due to this killings there has been an increase in criminal activities in the two nations. The fight on drugs was supposed to reduce completely the use of drugs. Instead, many killings have been reported thus painting a wrong picture of the campaign. The killings show that the campaign on drugs is a failed war.

The campaign on drugs has also brought about inequalities among the communities. There are various cases of discrimination that have occurred during the process of fighting drugs. For instance in America there have been cases of unequal arrest. In this case, there have been cases of black American being imprisoned due to drugs than their white counterparts. The number of black Americans imprisoned exceed a percentage that any legal law enforcement interest, thus negatively impacting the Black American community[11]. Although the black Americans only comprise 12% of the whole US population, 46% of the American prisons is made up of Black Americans. The above figures show that Black Americans are being discriminated in the process of fighting drugs and also people of other races. For instance, the US is accused of killing Mexico citizens in the process of fighting the use of drugs.

However, the discrimination of people of different races has not started now. According to research people of color, has always been a target in the fight of drugs. Although the report shows the whites involvement in the trafficking of drugs there are no many cases of their arrests. In 1930, the US banned the use of marijuana as a way of targeting Mexicans[12]. They aimed at reducing the high number of Mexicans that had occupied US. The US also put strict narcotics law in 1951 as a way to target the Asians community that had occupied the country. In 1973, the American government also put in place strict laws against drugs that saw a huge number of Black Americans and Latino being imprisoned[13]. The above report shows that the warfare on drug has always been a discriminative war over the years.

The campaign on drugs has also failed in Thailand as there have been reports of discrimination. The war has also failed because some of the top cartels are untouchable[14]. The Thailand government has been sympathizing with the cartels who are well known. In Thailand, there was also a case of discrimination whereby the government stopped a case against a popular factory that manufactured heroine. Thailand government felt that the company was generating money to the state, and, therefore, there was no need to shut it down. The report shows that there was also the discrimination of people according to class, and this made the war on drugs to fail. People who termed powerfully could not be arrested, and this made further distribution of drugs in other countries. The situation also made the war on drugs difficult.

Conclusion

The campaign against drugs is not a new war, it has been there for a very long time. First the use of drugs started in the 1960s whereby there was a report of drug abuse among influential people such as musician Ray Charles. The involvement of the governments in the combat on drugs has been substantial. For instance, the government initiated drug war in 1971 and also 1982. However, although the government has been active in the combat against drugs, it has not achieved its objective. For instance, the use of drugs is still in existence among the youth. There is also many drug traffickers not only in America but also in other countries. There has been also a report of a number of crimes related to the use of drugs. Another failure of the fight of drugs is the there has been a number of human rights violation during the fight on drugs. For instance in Mexico the government has killed many citizens in the war on drugs. The war on drugs has also failed as there have been cases of discrimination during the war. For instance in America people of color are discriminated and arrested in large numbers.

Work Cited

“Marijuana and Youth.” Marijuana and Youth. Accessed April 25, 2015.

“Teens: Alcohol And Other Drugs.” Teens: Alcohol And Other Drugs. July 1, 2013. Accessed

April 25, 2015.

Bartilow, Horace A. “DRUG WARS COLLATERAL DAMAGE.” Latin American Research Review 49, no. 2 (April 2014): 24-46. Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed April

25, 2015).

Beith, Malcolm. “The Current State of Mexico’s Many Drug Cartels.” The Current State of

Mexico’s Many Drug Cartels. September 25, 213. Accessed April 25, 2015.

Gunja, Fatema. “Race and the War on Drugs.” ACLU. May 1, 2003. Accessed April 25, 2015.

Hughes, Rhidian, Rachel Lart, and Paul Higate. Drugs Policy and Politics. Maidenhead: Open

University Press, 2006. <http://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=290362>.

L. Dorsey, Tina. “Drugs and Crime Facts.” Bjs. 2006. Accessed April 25, 2015.

Lewis H. Gann, Peter Duignan. The new left and the cultural revolution of the 1960’s. Hoover Press, n.d.

Scott, Peter Dale. American War Machine: Deep Politics, the CIA Global Drug Connection, and

the Road to Afghanistan. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2010.

Stanton, Scott. The Tombstone Tourist : Musicians/ Scott Stanton. 2d ed. Simon and Schuster,

2013.

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[1] Hughes, Rhidian, Rachel Lart, and Paul Higate. Drugs Policy and Politics. Maidenhead: Open University Press, 2006. <http://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=290362>.

[2] Lewis H. Gann, Peter Duignan. The new left and the cultural revolution of the 1960’s. Hoover Press, n.d.

[3] Hughes, Rhidian, Rachel Lart, and Paul Higate. Drugs Policy and Politics. Maidenhead: Open University Press, 2006. <http://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=290362>.

[4] Lewis H. Gann, Peter Duignan. The new left and the cultural revolution of the 1960’s. Hoover Press, n.d.

[5] Stanton, Scott. The Tombstone Tourist : Musicians/ Scott Stanton. 2d ed. Simon and Schuster, 2013.

[6] “Teens: Alcohol And Other Drugs.” Teens: Alcohol And Other Drugs. July 1, 2013. Accessed April 25, 2015.

[7] “Marijuana and Youth.” Marijuana and Youth. Accessed April 25, 2015.

[8] Beith, Malcolm. “The Current State of Mexico’s Many Drug Cartels.” The Current State of Mexico’s Many Drug Cartels. September 25, 213. Accessed April 25, 2015.

[9] L. Dorsey, Tina. “Drugs and Crime Facts.” Bjs. 2006. Accessed April 25, 2015.

[10] Bartilow, Horace A. “DRUG WARS COLLATERAL DAMAGE.” Latin American Research Review 49, no. 2 (April 2014): 24-46. Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed April 25, 2015).

[11] Gunja, Fatema. “Race and the War on Drugs.” ACLU. May 1, 2003. Accessed April 25, 2015.

[12]ibid

[13] ibid

[14] Scott, Peter Dale. American War Machine: Deep Politics, the CIA Global Drug Connection, and the Road to Afghanistan. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2010.

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