Community | September 07, 2009 | 12 comments

The racism of marijuana prohibition

source: http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-oew-gutwillig7-2009sep07,0,1308672.story

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JackHerer

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-oew-gutwillig7-2009s...

Enforcement of marijuana laws disproportionately affects young African Americans -- even though their usage rates are lower than whites'.
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    Community,   News and Politics,   Current Tonight,   Progressive America,   7 more
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    Marijuana,  Cannabis,  Hemp,  Racism
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12 comments // The racism of marijuana prohibition

  • KBinGA
    • 0
      KBinGA  

    • Social/economic issues aside, the main reason pot continues to be illegal is because of the money generated from a bust. If you are caught with a joint you're probably looking at between $800.00 to $2000.00 in fines and associated fee's. Does anyone really think that local and state governments WANT to lose that revenue. They want to continue saying "It's the scourge of society" because it puts more money in their coffers via sheer volume than anything else.

    • 3 years ago
  • ahappymintleaf
    • 0
      ahappymintleaf  
    • KBinGA:

      I never considered the potential revenue of fining pot possession, but it seems to be cancelled out by the enormous financial burden of keeping people in jail for committing a victimless crime like drug possession. Regulation and taxes are a lossless strategy.

      Since drug prohibition of all kinds disproportionally affects blacks, it seems like less and less of a stretch to suggest it's subliminal racism. But it's still quite a stretch.

    • 3 years ago
  • corndog67
    • 0
      corndog67  

    • So, another thread about how black people are unfairly targeted. "It's because I'm black". Yeah, that's why 46% of the people in prison are black, not because they commit the most crimes. Oh, it's because of the poverty they live in, Yeah, right, poverty makes people rob, burglarize, steal, beat people up, and everything else. Lots of excuses to justify criminal behavior. How about parental responsibility? Since when is being a pimp or dope dealer and accepted way to make a living? Oh yeah, since rap music said it was OK.

    • 3 years ago
  • ahappymintleaf
    • 0
      ahappymintleaf  
    • corndog67:

      Your comments are not only incredibly ignorant, but fails to address what the article states. Are you suggesting that marijuana possession is as criminal as pimping and gang violence?

      Poverty does make people desperate, in ways that I hope neither of us will never know.

    • 3 years ago
  • TrilLogic
    • 0
      TrilLogic  
    • corndog67:

      Anyone that has studied crime and poverty knows there is a link between the two. Furthermore, this story says nothing about burglary, stealing, and beating people up, so if you want to rant about that, pic a story that relates to such.

      This story is asking the question why black people are more often arrested for a crime more common among white people. How about racism, police profiling or prejudice?

      So how about addressing the issue instead of venting your racist beliefs?

    • 3 years ago
  • besic
    • 0
      besic  

    • It's things like this that are driving people to be more vocal about decriminalising if not legalising pot. Injustice in any form can be seen by the public sooner or later and I am glad that "unprecedented" support for the cause is being shown.

    • 3 years ago
  • remanns
    • 0
      remanns  

    • Its the "Po folk" getting busted; not many middle class "+" homes getting their doors kicked in for relatively small amounts. Now the kid caught on the street......

    • 3 years ago
  • quicksilver1814
  • remanns
  • NumLock
  • TrilLogic
    • 0
      TrilLogic  
    • NumLock:

      One does not have to be "stupid" to be caught. Especially when cops ignore the two white guys in a smoked out Honda so the can follow the Cadillac with four black guys. Or why set up a check point in the middle income or affluent part of town when you can set one up in the poverty ridden area and be sure to catch people with no insurance, exp inspection stickers and the like so you can beef up your arrest record.

      One of my best friends is a cop and he was the first person I ever heard use the term "DWB" (driving while black) . He also told me that cops in his department pull people for it all the time.

      Smoking pot is not stupid, getting arrested for does not make you stupid, but your comment....STUPID.

    • 3 years ago
  • bombastinator
    • 0
      bombastinator  

    • The police are arresting a disproportionate number of African Americans so the problem must be marijuana prohibition... Listen to yourself. *facepalm*

    • 3 years ago
  • hunzedog
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