Today's constitution contains many laws and freedoms that people do not believe should be a part of the American Lifestyle. Some examples of these would be; drug prohibition, capital punishment, women's rights, reproductive rights, and lesbian & gay rights. For years these laws and freedoms have been persecuted and praised at the same time.
Drug Prohibition has been fought over for many years, many want it to end for medicinal use or for pleasure, and many want it to be stronger and continue because of the dangers of drugs. There have been decades of prohibition and intense law enforcement, yet these efforts to halt one crime has brought upon violent traffickers, a steady stream of offenders that fill our prisons, and has started an urban war. Our drug taskforces are stretching our criminal justice system to its breaking point, drug enforcement alone consumes more than half of all police resources.
Woman in a rowing boat
Women from all fields have joined the production a...
Woman aircraft worker, Vega Aircraft Corporation, ...These resources could and should be put to better use, such as being spent trying to lower or stop rapes, battery, murder, and other violent crimes. Because of the steady stream of offenders, the US has become the worlds leading jailer, with a prison population now exceeding 1 million. Today drug offenders make up about 58% of the prison population. In 1990 US citizens paid $12 billion to maintain the prisons, and to help take care of the inmates. But yet, drugs haven't always been illegal, during the civil war; morphine was used in several potent medicines because of its pain killing properties. In the 19th century, marijuana and cocaine were used medicinally. Marijuana was used to treat migraines, rheumatism, and insomnia. Cocaine was used to treat sinusitis, hay fever, and chronic fatigue. Cocaine was also used in Coca-Cola. In 1914 congress passed the Harrison Act banning opiates and cocaine.