Nixon's Argumentative Essay: The War On Drugs

“Over 40 year ago president nixon, Declared Drug abuse public enemy number one, starting an unprecedented global Campaign, the war on drug.

In the beginning of the documentary, The House I Live In, President Nixon gives a speech declaring, “America’s public enemy number one in the United States is drug abuse. In order to fight and defeat this enemy, it is necessary to wage a new, all-out offensive” In 1971, this speech made Preside Nixon the first president to ever declare a “war on drugs” in America. He fought by battling, both the supply and demand for drugs. Karst J. Besteman (1989) describes this “war” as a “strong initiative against drug dealers and expansion of drug treatment facilities” (p. 290). The beginning of Nixon’s “war” was focused on providing treatment and rehabilitation, after the creation of the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) in 1973, the focal point of the

“Over 40 year ago president nixon, Declared Drug abuse public enemy number one, starting an unprecedented global Campaign, the war on drug.

Nixon’s drug war, however, was a mere skirmish in comparison to the colossal efforts launched by the Ronald Reagan administration in the 1980s. Formally announced by President Ronald Reagan in 1982, the War on Drugs was marked by deep public concern, bordering on hysteria,, towards the nation’s drug problem. Under the leadership of President Reagan, the nation focused unprecedented energy and resources towards eliminating illicit drug use and trafficking.” (pp.

On June 17th 1971, President Richard Nixon stood in front of congress and announced his widely criticized War on Drugs. The President claimed that drugs were the “Public Enemy Number One” among Americans. Fast-forward to 1986, Congress passed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986. This act placed mandatory minimum sentences on minor drug infractions. The war on drugs not only incarcerated a very high number of Blacks, but also tore families apart in an effort to clean up neighborhoods which still affect many African American families almost a half-century later.

The war on Drugs played a heavy role in minority American society. It affected policing and most importantly the American minority people. The war on drugs started by President Nixon and up until President Bush was a disaster that affected America with high incarceration and high recidivism rates for low level and non-violent drug offenses that mainly targeted minorities in America. The war on drugs was a massive American failure that mainly affected minorities. President Obama and his drug reform alongside the American public’s strong opinion to switch towards marijuana reform which we see in places like Colorado and Washington has caused the war on drugs to lose steam. The American public’s decision for drug reform is no surprise after nearly 40 years of the unsuccessful war on drugs.

Richard Nixon made it his goal to focus on treatment, rather than criminal punishment. It was not until the Reagan Era that the dynamics of the war on drugs would change, for

Richard Nixon was the 37th president of the United States serving from 1969 to 1974. His presidency was ended by the Watergate scandal from which he forced to resigned while facing impeachment, further highlighting the level of corruption in the presidency. John Daniel Ehrlichman served as counsel and Assistant to the President for Domestic Affairs under President Richard Nixon which led detailed information on the inner workings of the presidency. This War on Drugs was declared to fulfill Nixon’s racism and political agenda, and continues to this day. With this war heavily criticised and deemed lost (Willis), along with piling evidence of the medical benefits of marijuana, why does this war continue? According to Dunn, the financial incentives are to blame, especially forfeitures. According to an article written by Nicholson, police have seized almost five hundred million dollars through civil forfeiture in the past decade in the Texas state alone. With this large amount of money on the line, it is understandable why many wish this war to continue. Without it, civil forfeiture would be less

In 1971 Richard Nixon is credited with starting "the war on drugs" in the united states when he said, “America's public enemy number one in the United States is drug abuse. In order to fight and defeat this enemy, it is necessary to wage a new, all-out offensive." During Nixon's presidency some of the harshest drug laws of all time were passed, this is when mandatory minimum sentencing laws for drug crimes were first introduced. It is well understood that Nixon was an extremely paranoid individual, and in a private recording he said, "You see, homosexuality, dope, uh, immorality in general: These are the enemies of strong societies," and he said to his aid H.R. Haldeman, "You know, it's a funny thing, every one of the bastards that are out for legalizing marijuana is Jewish. What the Christ is the matter with the Jews, Bob?" It is clear that Nixon's hate for marijuana was rooted in a prejudice place, yet we continue to abide by the laws created under his presidency and to this day almost half of the American inmate population are serving time for drug related

The War on Drugs began in increments, first with President Nixon and secondly with President Reagan (Hill, Oliver, Marion, 2012). While under the Nixon administration, the Drug Enforcement Administration was developed due to the thought of how drugs can affect an individual as well as a community. Drugs did not only affect the user and the community, but also the families as well as children. Out of all the presidents, it is documented that President Nixon was one who had discussions about drugs more than any other president (Hill, et al., 2012).

When President Nixon conceptualized the war and President Reagan waged it, the American public was unconcerned about drugs. The extent of the drug problem in American was not what it is today.

In the year 1971, President Richard Nixon was convinced that America’s number one enemy was drug abuse. As a result, in that year he declared war on drugs, there was a punishment for not only supplying drugs but purchasing them as well. Nixon believed America would be a more effective and prosperous country if it were completely drug free. The war on drugs was really a convenient cover for the undeclared war on race. There were several consequences and negative effects for African Americans due to the “war”, more extensive drug regulations, over-policing, driving while black, drug sweeps, and finally no warrants when searching and seizing. More than half of the people in

While laws prohibiting the use of drugs, in one form or another, can be traced back to the 1870s, it was not until 1968, when Richard M. Nixon was elected President, that our current drug war was conceived. In 1970 Congress passed the Comprehensive Drug Abuse and Control Act.(2) With an

The so-called “War on Drugs,” as declared by the Nixon administration in the signing of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970, marked the beginning of the current era of mandatory minimum sentencing, racism, privatized prisons, and a powerful constituency that profits as a result of the prohibition of drugs. Psychoactive substances have been apart of the human experience as long as humans have walked the earth. There is little hope that drug production will ever be curtailed, so long as there is a demand; a demand that has remained steady even though it has been forty years since the beginning of said war. As Judge James P. Gray from the Superior Court of Orange County has so plainly put it: “Where did this policy

The War on Drugs is a current conflict that has been going on for many decades. It is a movement organized by the United States Government in attempts to reduce the amount of illegal drug trafficking in the country. The War on Drugs enforced strict drug policies that are intended to reduce both the production, distribution, and consumption of illegal drugs. The term was first used by President Richard Nixon, during a press conference concerning the nationwide drug abuse issue, in which Nixon announces to the Congress that drug abuse was, “public enemy number one”. Illegal drugs are certainly dangerous; addiction and death are two but many factors as a result of drugs. However, even though the War on Drugs might sounds justifiable, in truth, it is actually making the drug issue worst in the country.