The War On Drug Reasons Behind The Criminalisation of...

The War On Drug: Reasons Behind The Criminalisation of Drugs and Functions of Crime In Society The history of the War on Drugs in the United States can be traced back to 1914 with the Harrison Act, the first recorded law to ban the domestic distribution of drugs, as the cornerstone of the criminalisation of drugs in America (McNamara, 2011). However the popularisation of the criminality of drug use was when President Richard Nixon coined the term ‘War on Drugs’ in 1971 (Provine, 2011, p.45). This essay focuses on the disproportionality of incarceration rates between African and Anglo Americans, and illustrates the unequal operation of law enforcement on African-Americans (Provine, 2011). This essay applies Marxist criminology to argue†¦show more content†¦The beginning of the drug war was caused by the fear of the mass migration of ethnic minorities would disrupt the hierarchy system that maintains ‘social orders’ in America (Johnson Jones, 1998). In order for the rulers to remain in power over the powerless, they had to label behaviours as deviant through rule making and rule enforcement (Johnson Jones, 1998). Out of dissatisfaction or fear of the existing conditions, the rule makers â€Å"may assign ‘new’ meanings to certain behaviours and transform public perceptions by introducing new images, or targets for law enforcement† to benefit or protect themselves (Johnson Jones, 1998, p.986). This was evident through the media by largely portraying drug dealers as black, violent, powerful and rebellious against legal authorities (Provine, 2011). In 1993, over 64% of Americans believed that drug use was a critical cause of crime, and is mostly associated with African-American (Johnson Jones, 1998). The powerful were successful in using political power to create stereotypes and unequal law enforcement to free themselves from charges of crimes, such as white-collar crimes and human rights abuse, by diverting the public’s attention to drug-related crimes (Bradley Show MoreRelatedResource Wars: th e New Landscape of Global Conflict5105 Words   |  21 PagesPolitical Geography of War: Natural Resources and Armed Conflicts Philippe Le Billion Summary: Throughout the 1990s, many armed groups have relied on revenues from natural resources such as oil, timber, or gems to substitute for dwindling Cold War sponsorship. Resources not only ï ¬ nanced, but in some cases motivated conï ¬â€šicts, and shaped strategies of power based on the commercialization of armed conï ¬â€šict and the territoriality of sovereignty around valuable resource areas and trading networks