The War on Marijuana in Black and White: Billions of Dollars Wasted on Racially Biased Arrests, a new report by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) claims not only is the War on Marijuana a failure, but that African-Americans are almost four times as likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than Whites.
As disturbing as that fact is, other statistics included in the report are just as shocking:
between 2001 and 2010, there were over 8 million marijuana arrests in the United States, 88% of which were for possession.
Marijuana arrests have increased between 2001 and 2010 and now account
for over half (52%) of all drug arrests in the United States, and marijuana possession
arrests account for nearly half (46%) of all drug arrests.
In 2010, there was one marijuana arrest every 37 seconds
States spent over $3.6 billion, combined, enforcing marijuana possession laws.
A Black person is 3.73 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than a white person, even though Blacks and whites use marijuana at similar rates
In over 96% of counties with more than 30,000 people in which at least 2% of the residents are Black, Blacks are arrested at higher rates than whites for marijuana possession
It took decades, billions of dollars and the devastations of whole communities and families before the U.S. Government realized the War on Drugs was a colossal failure. The War on Marijuana is an offshoot of that failed mission, and critics are calling on legislators to re-examine marijuana laws and create a more sensible, less damaging (particularly to the Black community), and more fiscally responsible method of dealing with marijuana usage and possession.
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