Taft College Decriminalization of Drug Offenses Essay

In 1971, President Richard Nixon formally declared a “War on Drugs” that was backed by

increased law enforcement interdiction (young and people of color are disproportionately
targeted), tougher penalty for those convicted of drug–related offenses (i.e. 75% of all federal
& 25% of all state prisoners are incarcerated for drug–related offenses), and forced drug
treatment for those convicted. Since that time, over $1.5 trillion has been spent on these
efforts. Yet, by any objective measure, this war has been a catastrophic failure (an assertion
with which law enforcement officials would disagree) as evidenced by the more than 70,000
drug–overdosed deaths each year, not to mention the tens of billions of dollar loss from
reduced productivity and unrealized potential of individuals affected by this plague.
Increasingly, the calls for decriminalizing drug laws have grown with support from such
organizations as the United Nations, World Health Organization, American Red Cross,
American Public Health Association, Human Rights Watch, American Civil Liberties Union,
Movement for Black Lives, NAACP, Latino Justice, National Latino Congresso, and
Organization of American States, just to name a few. Here in California, the voters approved
Proposition 47 in 2004 to reduce certain theft and drug–related offenses from felonies to
misdemeanors, a change that has been described by police chiefs across California as a
get–out–of–jail card.

In no less than 1500 words, please explain your position on the decriminalization of drug
offenses. If yes, what specific types of drugs or all drugs, why, and what would you do to
deal with the increasing trend in drug addiction and deaths? How would you resettle the
thousands of law enforcement officers who are on the front line of this war? If not, why, and
how is it justifiable to continue wasting taxpayers’ money on a war whose enemies are our
own citizens, whose battlefield is our own backyard, and whose mission is unclear and
victory undefined? Remember the law of economic – supply & demand! We could arrest
every single drug dealer and cartel member in this country, a new crop of people who are
more than willing to fill the vacuum will emerge within hours, if not sooner!