The War on Drugs: America's Unjust War on the DisadvantagedAlan RodriguezSociology 346Since the 1970s, the United States has fought an ever-escalating and seemingly endless. The United States has spent billions of dollars to rid the streets of illegal drugs, but without much success. On the contrary, drug use is higher today than in the 1970s, when the war on drugs was officially declared by the Nixon administration. Not only has the War on Drugs failed to curb drug trafficking, it has also harmed the Black and Latino community. Women and lower-class citizens have also been affected by our drug policies. The war on drugs is rooted in racist ideology and, as a result, has disproportionately affected lower-class communities of color. This war on drugs will continue until people decide to take action for better, more reasonable policies. The war on drugs has become the top priority of many police departments due to policies introduced by the Reagan administration. As a result of this renewed fervor against drug use, lower-class citizens faced the brunt of Reagan's war. When the War on Drugs began, drug use was on the decline and most communities didn't really care about it, even police departments were against it. Parenti says police argued the War on Drugs (WOD) would drain resources dedicated to serious crimes. So the Reagan administration helped pass the Byrne Program, which gave police departments millions of dollars, military hardware, and training if they made WOD their priority. Departments soon began fighting over money, leading to rapid militarization of the police. The war on drugs also expanded due to the Reagan administration's policy of allowing police departments...... middle of paper ...... they decriminalized drug use and rather focused on rehabilitation, as a result their rate of drug use increased. has decreased, crime has decreased, and HV transmission has decreased. The evidence shows that rehabilitation is a better option than our current approach to fighting drugs, but too many people benefit from the war on drugs for there to be meaningful change. The biggest supporters of the war on drugs are private prisons, guards and police unions. Private prisons need bodies to fill their prisons and the war on drugs is the main source. Prison guards benefit because it gives them job stability by keeping a constant flow of prisoners. The police benefit from the previously mentioned Byrne program, which helps with funding. It is for this reason that guard and police unions have been one of the largest contributors to California's recent attempt to decriminalize marijuana..