"You want to know what this [war on drugs] was really all about? The Nixon campaign in 1968, and the Nixon White House after that, had two enemies: the antiwar left and black people. You understand what I’m saying?
We knew we couldn’t make it illegal to be either against the war or black, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and blacks with heroin, and then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities. We could arrest their leaders, raid their homes, break up their meetings, and vilify them night after night on the evening news.
Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course we did.”
John Ehrlichman, Assistant to the President for Domestic Affairs under President Richard Nixon
No, a correlation between being black and being arrested for weed. In my city, they made the legal status of the drug indeterminate and gave cops DISCRETION on whether to arrest or cite someone for having pot. Not a felony now in any event, misdemeanor or civil citation or nothing but how do you think this discretion will be used?
Nixon did specifically consider weed a hippies and black people thing, but even if that was statistically true selective enforcement was always the plan.
You want to know what this [war on drugs] was really all about? The Nixon campaign in 1968, and the Nixon White House after that, had two enemies: the antiwar left and black people. You understand what I’m saying?
We knew we couldn’t make it illegal to be either against the war or black, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and blacks with heroin, and then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities. We could arrest their leaders, raid their homes, break up their meetings, and vilify them night after night on the evening news.
Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course we did.
Oh sweet summer child, everyone smokes weed. Cannabis prohibition was about giving police the power to arrest anyone they want to - and they used that power to arrest Black people.
And if you don’t smoke weed? Well what about this little baggy we “found in your pocket”?
Not that I care about either of you guys or your argument, but I gotta point out that it’s a phrase intended to be insulting and condescending. You’re just letting the other guy know they got to you by writing this.
Based, but I never denied that. I gave them the benefit of the doubt because I’ve unironically seen people saying stuff like this without realizing that it has a negative connotation.
I guess the fact that you were more willing to believe that Black people have a natural inclination towards drug use than to understand that cops are bad leads me to the conclusion that you aren’t a great person with smart ideas, and didn’t see the necessity in being super nice about it when responding to you.
I could have laid into you for the racist-leaning narrative, but instead I insinuated that you were naïve, so truthfully I did give you the benefit of a doubt in regard to the racially insensitive question you asked.
I never understood the logic behind that. What’s the reason for it?
Are we afraid that all of the criminals will form a Crime Party and campaign to legalize burglary and murder? 😈
Or do we think the type of person who would commit a violent crime is going to be incentivized to not commit a crime because of losing their right to vote, in a country where half the people don’t vote anyway?
Before I mug this old lady, I really should consider that this upcoming election has huge ramifications and I really don’t want to risk losing my right to vote. I don’t mind jail, community service, or monetary fines; it’s voting that might prevent me from commiting this offense. 🤓
No, I think it’s more likely that some people don’t want other people who are disproportionately convicted of crimes (you know, those people) to have a voice.
In most us states they take your voting right when you are convicted. This is not compatible with running for president as a convict imo.
Have you considered that maybe that’s tyranny as well?
What if, for example, someone decided to make weed a felony because he couldn’t outright make being black illegal?
Wait is there a correlation between being black and smoking weed?
"You want to know what this [war on drugs] was really all about? The Nixon campaign in 1968, and the Nixon White House after that, had two enemies: the antiwar left and black people. You understand what I’m saying?
We knew we couldn’t make it illegal to be either against the war or black, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and blacks with heroin, and then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities. We could arrest their leaders, raid their homes, break up their meetings, and vilify them night after night on the evening news.
Did we know we were lying about the drugs? Of course we did.”
https://www.vera.org/reimagining-prison-webumentary/the-past-is-never-dead/drug-war-confessional
No, a correlation between being black and being arrested for weed. In my city, they made the legal status of the drug indeterminate and gave cops DISCRETION on whether to arrest or cite someone for having pot. Not a felony now in any event, misdemeanor or civil citation or nothing but how do you think this discretion will be used?
Nixon did specifically consider weed a hippies and black people thing, but even if that was statistically true selective enforcement was always the plan.
It’s baffling to me how info like this is public and people still believe the republicans were the good guys.
Because those people agree with the Republican view
What really baffles me is the existence of Republican BIPOC/LGBT folks
Ah, that makes more sense.
Oh sweet summer child, everyone smokes weed. Cannabis prohibition was about giving police the power to arrest anyone they want to - and they used that power to arrest Black people.
And if you don’t smoke weed? Well what about this little baggy we “found in your pocket”?
I really, really, really hate the phrase “Oh sweet summer child”. Is it possible to be any more patronizing? Couldn’t you just say it normally?
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Yup. Also:
New cool word discovered!
Not that I care about either of you guys or your argument, but I gotta point out that it’s a phrase intended to be insulting and condescending. You’re just letting the other guy know they got to you by writing this.
Based, but I never denied that. I gave them the benefit of the doubt because I’ve unironically seen people saying stuff like this without realizing that it has a negative connotation.
I guess the fact that you were more willing to believe that Black people have a natural inclination towards drug use than to understand that cops are bad leads me to the conclusion that you aren’t a great person with smart ideas, and didn’t see the necessity in being super nice about it when responding to you.
I could have laid into you for the racist-leaning narrative, but instead I insinuated that you were naïve, so truthfully I did give you the benefit of a doubt in regard to the racially insensitive question you asked.
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There has certainly been a correlation for being black and being charged with possession of weed if that’s what you mean.
I never understood the logic behind that. What’s the reason for it?
Are we afraid that all of the criminals will form a Crime Party and campaign to legalize burglary and murder? 😈
Or do we think the type of person who would commit a violent crime is going to be incentivized to not commit a crime because of losing their right to vote, in a country where half the people don’t vote anyway?
No, I think it’s more likely that some people don’t want other people who are disproportionately convicted of crimes (you know, those people) to have a voice.