Week 10: Drug Decriminalization Debate

Drug Legalization: Why It Wouldn't Work in the United States

http://www.policechiefmagazine.org/magazine/index.cfm?fuseaction=display_arch&article_id=533&issue_id=32005

Rick Perry and Colombian President Discuss Drug Decriminalization At Davos

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/23/rick-perry-decriminalization_n_4653567.html

The two links above are articles that tie to the criminalization of drugs, specifically in terms of justification for and arguments against it.  To be clear, decriminalizing drugs does not necessarily mean legalizing them, though legalization represents the ultimate form.

     The first article is intended to be a reference/resource for police chiefs across the country when addressing questions around legalization.  Since it is apparently assumed that most law enforcement officials, especially at the level of chief of police, are against legalization, this article has a hard slant toward this view.  However, it does mention several of the pro-legalization/anti-criminalization arguments, but only for the intent of refuting them, most of the time with unsubstantiated ‘facts’ that resonate more as constructed societal norms.

     The second article, interestingly enough, discusses Rick Perry’s (and other Republican’s) opinions around the decriminalization of drugs.  Though they are quick to state that they are not soft on crime (to maintain that particular Republican persona) and do not support legalization, they do validate the need to take a more rehabilitative approach to drug issues and less of a punitive one.

     This is interesting as the general Republican perspective toward laws that tend to make significantly more criminals, like the War-On-Drugs type that target the underclass and people of color, is to take a ‘tough’ stance, i.e. ‘zero tolerance’ or ‘three strikes, you’re out’.  Whether this is because of their ‘good Christian morals’ and/or their need to fulfill commitments made to the prison industry is up for debate, but what can’t be argued is the so-called liberal notion of decriminalization and its seeming appropriation by certain influential Republican party members.

     On the surface, arguments against legalization make sense, except when the facts are considered.  Just as Courtwrite discussed in his article section titled, “The Extent of Opiate Addiction,” there is a tendency to over exaggerate the degree of the drug problem due to different motivating factors, usually political in nature (though typically presented as a moral issue).  For example, despite the fear mongering many in politics and law enforcement proselytized prior to Colorado’s marijuana legalization, the data today shows no statistically significant increase in crime since legalization occurred.

     This debate must continue as the War on Drugs currently unfairly incarcerates many people of color and poor folk for overly long periods of time, having a significant impact on folks’ in these communities ability to be functioning members of society.  Though certainly not the only reason people of color have disproportionately more representation in prisons than their white and/or wealthy counterparts, the fact that many are imprisoned for extended periods of time for crimes such as marijuana possession is a direct result of the unfair nature of this ‘war’ and its casualties.