The War on Drugs: A Rhetorical Analysis of a Mechanism of Oppression

Marissa Hernandez

Appalachian State University

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Although a social construct, the concept of race divides social groups into categories with

differential access to resources and status. Due to lasting prejudice, discrimination, and the

concept of race, racism is still present in the United States. Those that do not fit into the

normative race, the white race in the US, are othered and are negatively compared. African

Americans historically have been the othered group and they continue to face individual and

systematic discrimination. The effects of this discrimination manifest in a variety of ways,

however, racial differentiation on drug policies, one for white users and another for black and

brown users, is one of many examples of systematic discrimination imposed on minority groups.

This current issue establishes exigence in discourse communities such as academia and

news outlets. However, different outlets inform their audience with varied rhetorical appeals. For

instance, in The Real Opioid Emergency, a non-academic article published in The New York

Times, Carl Hart appeals to his wide-ranged audience on the issue of the disproportionate mass

incarceration of black and brown drug users to white users with the aid of kairos, logos, visuals,

and pathos. In comparison Deborah Small, the author of The War on Drugs Is a War on Racial

Justice an academic article published in Social Research, similarly discusses the

disproportionate arrests of black users compared to white drug users (Small, 2001, p. 897).

Small, however utilizes kairos, logos, ethos, pathos, and metaphorical language to effectively

communicate with her audience.

When comparing where the two sources were published, the authors target audience

becomes apparent. Harts article was published in The New York Times, on an online outlet that

can reach a plethora of individuals in a short period of time, meaning that Harts audience is the

general mass public who have access to this source and who are interested in the topic. Another

factor that determines the work to be for the general public is the terminology used in Harts
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article. The terminology used is not difficult to understand and when Hart introduces a slightly

foreign term, he informs the reader of its meaning within the article. For example, Hart discusses

the pattern of racial differentiation then provides the definition of the term, one drug policy

for white users and another for black users, to provide clarity to individuals who are not experts

in the criminal justice field.

Hart responds to a kairotic moment effectively by publishing his work in a timely

manner, eight days after President Donald Trump proclaimed the opioid problem a national

emergency. (Hart, 2017, p.1) Publishing his work in such a well-timed manner effortlessly

captivates the audience due to its relevance. The cause of the discourse for Harts article is the

Presidents proclamation of the opioid problem as a national emergency. Hart subsequently

establishes discourse by addressing the War on Drugs as an oppressive mechanism on minority

groups in the United States.

Hart constructs a historical timeline underscoring a pattern that the United States

government has been ensuing for the last 47 years when attempting to resolve nationwide drug

epidemics. Hart commences, The Real Opioid Emergency, by detailing the arising opioid

problem, and a potential shift in the way we view certain drug users, now being patients rather

than criminals (Hart, 2017, p.1). However, as the article progresses, Hart refers to historical

events such as the crack epidemic and heroin crisis which appeals to the audiences reasoning,

that this enlightening drug policy is not an innovative approach (Hart, 2017, p.2). Rather an

approach that has been exercised numerous times in American history, that aids white drug users,

and penalizes black and brown users. In order to appeal to the audience's logic, Hart states

specific events in history with the addition of dates such as the so-called crack epidemic in the

late 1980s, the heroin crisis of the 1970s, and New York States infamous 1975 Rockefeller
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drug laws. The use of specific historic events with the aid of dates, provides evidence to the

audience that current drug policies have been employed in the past and have been proven to be

ineffective.

The digital image heading Harts article invokes a great deal of emotion within the

audience. At first glance, the use of this image persuades an individual to read the article.

However, as you analyze the image it also appeals to the audience's pathos due to the symbolism

within the image. The image has a vibrant red background which immediately attracts the

audience. In black there is a set of hands handcuffed, symbolizing to audience that the majority

of convicted drug offenders are people of color. On top of the black hands there is a needle

dripping, opioid, signifying the most recent drug epidemic plaguing American society.

Hart appears to be skeptical of the Presidents proclaiming the opioid problem as a

national emergency, and shifting the view of drug users from criminals deserving scorn and

incarceration to now patients in need of out help and understanding. (Hart, 2017, p.1) His

skepticism derives from former events such as the crack epidemic and heroin crisis displaying

continuous racial differentiation in the United States. The doubtfulness that Hart presents is a

tactic used to usher in action from the audience, specifically the reformation of contemporary

drug policies. The use of a doubtful tone creates a bleak scenario for the audience and once again

appeals to the emotions of the individuals and invokes the need for action to resolve the issue of

unjust drug policies.

The War on Drugs Is a War on Racial Justice was published in Social Research an

academic journal article by The New School. The article derives from The New School, a private

research university in New York City, meaning that the article is geared towards more

educated individuals, with greater knowledge regarding the sociology and criminal justice
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fields. In one instance, Small discusses the prison-industrial complex, a term that may be

foreign to those outside of the sociology field. Additionally, Small mentions racially skewed

charging, plea bargaining, and discriminatory sentencing practices (Small, 2001, p. 898). Such

concepts may be confusing to individuals outside of the political science or criminal justice

fields. Therefore, the terminology used determines the article to be for individuals within

academia, specifically in the sociological, political science, and criminal justice fields.

The introduction of the journal article implies that Smalls article is a commentary on a

previous panel discussion. Therefore, the cause of discourse, or exigence for Small arises from

the panel regarding drug policies. The panel establishes a kairotic situation, or the need for a

given rhetorical interaction to occur . The article establishes the interaction and commences

discourse concerning the drug policies in United States (Down, 2017, 467).

Small incorporates several statistics, appealing to the audience's logic. For instance,

Blacks constitute between 75 and 90 percent of all drug offenders sent to prison and black

men are sent to prison for drug offenses at rates that are from 20 to 57 times greater than for

white men. (Small, 2001, p. 897) Displaying numerical statistics emphasizes the extraordinarily

different rates at which black and brown individuals are being incarnated. Disclosing the

statistics to the audience establishes concrete evidence of discrimination within the American

criminal justice system, legitimizes the reasoning behind the audience.

Additionally, Small incorporates several in text citations from Human Rights Watch

and the United States Sentencing Commission. The Human Rights Watch is an organization

where researchers work to an established, proven, and consistent methodology based on

information gathering from a broad range of sources, and with field-based research at its core.

(Human Rights Watch 2015) The inclusion of this source establishes ethos, or credibility due to
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the abundance of research and reliable methodology the organization exercises. The United

States Sentencing Commission, is another source Small cited within her paper. The United

States Sentencing Commission is an independent agency in the judicial branch established by

Congress. The commission has an Office of Research and Data that provides the Commission

with statistical and other social science research and analyses on specific sentencing issues and

federal crime generally. (United States Sentencing Commission 2017) The use of a government

source appeals to ethos because the commission uses research and analyses to provide credible

information to the public. Small also includes a detailed and extensive Reference page at the end

of the article establishing overall credibility to the piece.

Small also addresses the devastating effects that the War on Drugs has on incarcerated

individuals and their families with the use of pathos. For example, tens of thousands of children

are permanently separated from the love and guidance of parents who have been incarcerated for

drug offenses. (Small, 2001, p. 899) Discussing a broken home, is an emotional appeal to the

audiences value of family. Small also notes that the laws that have stolen the lives of their

loved ones are tremendous social and economic costs (Small, 2001, p. 900). Small creates a

melancholy situation and invokes sorrow and sympathy within the reader. Therefore,

emphasizing the destructive effects encourages the audience to take action against the unfair

drug policies imposed on incarcerated individuals and their loved ones.

On several occasions, Small compares the United States criminal justice system to a

form of modern slavery that African Americans are legally imprisoned in. With the use of

metaphorical language, Small compares the War on Drugs to chattel slavery, Antebellum

plantation and apartheid justice. Doing so, Small appeals to audience's pathos and invokes

negative emotion within the reader. Comparing the War on Drugs to slavery spurs a sort of
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urgency within the reader to act against the methods of oppression that the United States is

imposing on African Americans drug users.

Small did not include any visuals in her article. However, if Small did implement graphs

and charts, it would have been a helpful asset for the audience to grasp a visual understanding of

the several statistics that Small presented in her article. Additionally, visual models would help

emphasize the difference between statistics among various racial groups.

Small displays a strong stance on mass incarceration and drug policies being tools of

oppression upon minority groups in the United States. Throughout the article Small antagonizes

the United States criminal justice system for establishing drug laws that affect people of color

more harshly than White Americans. However, as the article concludes there is some optimism

in her tone due to some representatives in the United States attempting to develop better drug

laws. Smalls optimism is a mechanism to catalyze action among her audience to resolve issues

regarding drug policies.

The two articles, derive from two differing sources, one from a popular online outlet, The

New York Times and the other from an academic journal called Social Research. Hart employs

the use of kairos, logos, visuals, and pathos to influence the need for action from his audience in

his article The Real Opioid Emergency. The individuals reading a popular online source are

typically not experts in the field. Therefore, the use of logos is used to appeal to the reasoning of

the audience but pathos is the most effective because it targets the audience's emotions and

creates the need for action. Author Deborah Small similarly uses logos to appeal to logic of her

audience. However, she additionally uses ethos, pathos, and metaphorical language to connect

with her audience. The appeal to credibility and reasoning is necessary for discourses in

academia due to the audience being highly informed in the topic. Although the two authors use
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different methods to communicate with their audience, they both are able to effectively establish

discourse with a large range of individuals on topic of unjust drug policies and the oppression it

constitutes on minorities in the United States.

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References

Downs, D. (2017). Rhetoric: Making Sense of Human Interaction and Meaning- Making.

Writing about Writing: A College Reader. Boston: Bedford/St Martin S.

Small, D. (2001). The War on Drugs Is a War on Racial Justice. Social Research, (3),

896.

Hart, C. L. (2017, August 18). The Real Opioid Emergency., from

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/18/opinion/sunday/opioids-drugs-race-

treatment.html?mcubz=0

Human Rights Watch. (2015, September 21). About Our Research., from

https://www.hrw.org/about-our-research

United States Sentencing Commission. (2017, March 21). Organization, from

https://www.ussc.gov/about/who-we-are/organization