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RWS 1302
Senaida Navar
Running head: TERMINATING THE WAR ON DRUGS
Abstract
The United States has a long history of fighting drug addiction and distribution, from the
Creation of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics (FBN) to the Drug Enforcement Administration
(DEA), having many victories against the organized crime, but also many defeats. But with the
declaration of War on Drugs, things have yet to look more positive. In this paper you will find
evidence that things have progressively gotten more violent, and have worsened over time. As
the war keeps on going many innocent lives have been taken and families have been torn apart.
Although the original intentions were to eliminate drugs, solutions kept introducing new
problems that eventually were too much to handle. It is time to end the war on drugs and provide
Introduction
Drugs have been around for many years and have been, depending on how you look at it,
a problem causer for society. Drugs such as marijuana, opium, cocaine, and psychedelics have
been used for thousands of years for both medical and spiritual purposes. However, in June 1971,
President Nixon declared a “war on drugs” (Sacco, 2014). He dramatically increased the size and
presence of federal drug control agencies, and pushed through measures such as mandatory
sentencing and no-knock warrants. These measures taken by President Nixon and kept by his
successors, affected the society in several ways, rather than help it. During the prohibition era, a
similar thing happened; alcohol was being sold illegally at a very high price, governments
officials were bribed in order to keep the illegal business running, there were many people
arrested and many deaths because of the empowerment and enrichment of organized crime. With
the end of prohibition, alcohol has been controlled, taxed and provides a revenue stream to the
State. The drug war is creating a similar problem, and one should ask the question: is this policy
really working?
Stasis Questions
Running head: TERMINATING THE WAR ON DRUGS
● Facts: How did the war on drugs began and what did it cause among the youth and their
families?
● Definition: What has been gained and lost from the war on drugs since it was declared?
● Quality: With many people dying because of the war on drugs, what kind of people are
most likely to be influenced by the war, and how is their health affected?
● Policy: What changes can society make in order to handle the situation involving drug
How did the war on drugs begin and what did it cause among the youth and their families?
On June 18, 1971, President Richard Nixon declared “war on drugs” after two
congressmen released an explosive report on the growing heroin addiction among U.S. military
in Vietnam; ten to fifteen percent of the soldiers were addicted to heroin. That is when President
Nixon declared drug abuse to be "public enemy number one". President Nixon’s aggressive
response to the increasing drug problem was a continuation of U.S. drug policies that began in
1914 with the “Harrison Narcotics Tax Act”, which regulated use and distribution of some drugs
(Sacco, 2014).
The first organization created to enforce the drug regulation acts was the Federal Bureau of
Narcotics (FBN) in 1930. The FBN had a hard time doing its job due to the Great Depression
and low budget to keep the bureau running, however, the bureau did what it could during the
next decades while congress continued to pass drug control legislation. And yet, the drug abuse
and distribution keep rising while the FBN continued to enforce federal narcotic acts with low
funding from the federal government. During the presidential elections of 1969, candidate
Running head: TERMINATING THE WAR ON DRUGS
Richard Nixon responded to the increasing drug abuse by making the reduction of drug use and
distribution one of his top priorities upon taking office. After declaring the war on drugs
President Nixon transformed the Federal Bureau of Narcotics into the Drug Enforcement
The major goal of the DEA was to enforce all drug regulation acts, such as the Controlled
Substances Act. All these drug control legislations caused many crime organization to emerge; in
many cases these cartels and crime organizations often fought over territories in which to sell
drugs. This has caused many problems in society, among which is the seduction of teenagers and
young adults with money in a drug selling job. Furthermore when territories are being fought
over, these young civilians who take part in selling the drugs end up caught in the crossfire, this
leaves many kids deceased, tearing families apart. Kidnapping, extortions, robbery, murders,
shootings, and many other things are a consequence of these crime organizations, and above all
What has been gained and lost from the war on drugs since it was declared?
Since the declaration of the war on drugs, the United States and neighboring nations have
noticed major changes. Many problems were beings solved, but every solution would introduce
new conflicts. Even though drug abuse became a major concern, drug-related crime rates
dropped. Drug addicts had a much harder time accessing the drugs that they sought—The lack of
drug usage, prevented them from experiencing the highs or hallucinations that would drive them
to commit crimes. They also stopped having the need to obtain illegal money in order to buy the
drugs. Put simply, no access, no usage. Included in the policies of war on drugs is the penalty
that will be afforded to manufacturers, distributors and users of illegal drugs. The level of
Running head: TERMINATING THE WAR ON DRUGS
punishment that will be imposed depends on the gravity of the crime. Knowing that there are
Drug users were not happy about drugs being taken away from them and were willing to find an
alternative way to consume drugs. Due to this, drug trafficking expanded, and it grew to be a
global problem. It converted into an illicit trade that involved the manufacture, cultivation,
distribution and sale of prohibited substances. Countries around the world put all their efforts to
put an end to this trafficking, but drug trade quickly became a booming business. The dynamics
of drug trafficking was simply impressive, in the perspective that consumption and distribution
continued to rise even with continuous efforts to curb drug-related crimes and offenses.
A majority of the population that are easily lured into drug dealing are those within and below
the poverty line. People who have no hope of achieving very much because of their
circumstances would resort to drug dealing where knowledge and skills are not required in their
resume. They also see it as a way to make something of themselves, and to have the resources to
fund their own drug habits. Would it not be better when the billions allocated for anti-drug
campaigns are used to help improve the lives of these individuals? For the last 40 years, an
estimated $1 trillion was funneled to the war on drugs; taxpayers are paying big for a war that is
showing no signs of being victorious any time soon. In fact, the flow of drugs into the United
States is increasing year after year. For the drug abusers that were prosecuted, many complained
that sentencing in drug-related crimes had major flaws. There’s a huge problem in the sentencing
between possessions or trafficking of powder cocaine and crack. For example, those convicted
for possession of 5 grams of crack and those in possession of 500 grams of powder cocaine
basically have the same punishment – minimum mandatory sentence of being incarcerated in a
federal prison for 5 years. Judging from the differences of the drugs in question, sentencing can
Running head: TERMINATING THE WAR ON DRUGS
be seen as unfair. The punishments that were brought upon the drug users and traffickers also
brought a bad reputation to their families. One man incarcerated for drug abuse or drug-related
crimes is likely to have children who are growing up without a father, which could lead to long
lasting psychological effects on them. If they are in the same situation as their father before
them, they could end up drug users or sellers as well, whichever comes first.
The intentions of the war on drugs was to contain drug abuse and to bring an end to drug usage.
It did fix some issues, but a new war that was unimaginable was created. A drug-free area or
community may seem impossible given the present situation, but it is achievable as long as
everyone does their share in the fight against drugs. War on drugs should not only involve the
government and local authorities, but also friends and family of drug users or sellers.
With many people dying because of the war on drugs, what kind of people are most likely
According to the NIH (National Institute on Drug Abuse), in 2016, 64,000 people died in the
United States from drug overdose. This number is higher than the deaths caused by the drug war
in Mexico, which, according to CNN, were 23,000. Many of the deaths in Mexico were caused
as a conflict of many of the rising cartels. These conflicts within the Mexican cartels take away
the lives of many innocent civilians who do not have anything to do with drugs such as
bystanders, or by people who refuse to sell drugs. Even government officials who try to do
something against the drug cartel and journalist who start to go over the topic, are killed by the
cartels. Most of the deaths in the United States were caused by the intake of drugs that are
brought over to the United States by the Mexican cartel. With every passing year the percentage
of teenage deaths related to drug has risen higher than those of other ages. The people who died
Running head: TERMINATING THE WAR ON DRUGS
the most due to drug overdose in 2016 are adults around the ages 25 through 45. According to
the Department of Homeland Security, the Mexican drug cartels take in between $19 billion and
$29 billion annually from drug sales in the United States. Most of the consumers would already
have a steady income of money which allow them to afford the drugs consumed.
With so many victims of many ages, most of them had families that cared for them even
when they are alive. Most of this families sought help for the drug victim even when the victim
did not accept the help. Due to the family constantly treating the victim once the person dies it is
hard to believe that the person is gone. This people would then feel guilt and remorse because
they feel that they could have done more for the victim. For other families, such as those from
Mexico, it is hard for them to accept that that person is gone. Especially to those who were
innocent and died due to the conflicts within the drug cartels. In most of the cases it is hard to
accept the death of a loved one. In some of the cases, the rest of the family members feel a relief
because the victim would hurt them in many ways. According to an online rehabilitation
webpage, people who have any kind of addiction cause anxiety, pain, stress, and loss of trust
amongst the family. Due to the negative effect of the addiction, many families tend to develop
hatred towards the victim. When the person dies this hatred would turn into relief or guilt. If it
turns onto relief it is hard for the people to seek help due to feeling relief.
What changes can society make in order to handle the situation involving drug abuse, and
As many other situations and actions that can be deemed “inappropriate behavior” in
society, doing drugs can be placed at the top of the list. However, seeing drug addicts as
criminals instead of people that need help, can be considered part of the problem. Addiction is, in
simple terms, a short circuit in the wiring of the brain’s reward neurochemistry and
Running head: TERMINATING THE WAR ON DRUGS
the way your brain functions: learning, judgment, perception, impulse control, etc. This puts
substance abuse and addiction as a behavioral disorder but as a chronic disease as well, with risk
of relapse. There also seems to be an increase of overlap between a substance disorder and a
mental disorder such as depression, anxiety, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and many
other (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2018). This makes it harder for something to function,
but more importantly to head onto the road to recovery. As any other chronic diseases, they must
be treated with medical help in order for these people to live a fully functional life. But as a
society we ostracize these people instead of providing them with the medical attention that they
need. This can cause the “patient” themselves to not want to seek said medical attention,
furthering the idea conditioned into their minds that they do not deserve the help.
As is commonly known “quitting cold turkey” is not very effective and can even be
harmful to the addict. Many roads to recovery are led on by several steps, in which many cases
the first step is to admit and understand there is a problem and that you are helpless when it
comes to the addiction (American Addiction Centers, 2017). This kind of help and support can
be sought and given; yet, even with such programs available, there is the problem of the addict /
“patient” wanting said help. This goes back to the stigma that one does not deserve help, thus
affecting their desire to get better, and sometimes pushing them further into their addiction. This
is where it would make sense to “cut off” their source of addiction per say, hence the war on
drugs. But as explained previously, this made the situation more dangerous than previously
believed. Another way that has been sought by other nations is, to put so shortly, to make taking
drugs safer and cleaner. One prime example would be Switzerland and their “Four Pillar Drug
Policy”. This drug policy concentrated on providing addicts with a safe way to administer their
Running head: TERMINATING THE WAR ON DRUGS
drugs [heroin clinics in which they were provided with clean needles and pure heroing], as well
as minimize consequences for those that are caught; in the first year there were already positive
effects and changes—unemployment dropping from 73% to 45% (The Global Initiative for Drug
Policy Reform, 2018). A similar program in the United Kingdom recorded 16.1 million pounds
drop in crime costs after only one year (The Global Initiative for Drug Policy Reform, 2018).
Therefore a reform in the United States’ drug policy should be sought, as well as a way for drug
addicts to safely administer their addiction while also providing them with medical attention.
This can greatly reduce dangers not only in taking drugs but also the dangers that are involved in
Conclusion
The war on drugs has proven not only that it was not successful but rather that it created
new problems as well. Though it may not seem appealing, terminating the war on drugs and
making accessibility to drugs can better our society’s situation. It can make the streets safer for
children, and create a more fair opportunity for those suffering from substance abuse disorder.
Running head: TERMINATING THE WAR ON DRUGS
References
Sacco, Lisa N., Drug Enforcement in the United States:History, Policy, and Trends (2014,
National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2017, September 15). Overdose Death Rates. Retrieved April
Roberts, E. (2017, May 11). Report: Mexico was second deadliest country in 2016. Retrieved
2016/index.html
The Effect Of Addiction On The Family. (2017, November 28). Retrieved April 16, 2018, from
http://www.drugrehab.org/effect-of-addiction-family/