"War on Drugs" described from the Radical Theory of Sociology.

"War on Drugs"

The war on drugs has cost the U.S. billions of dollars in the last decade, and millions are also spent on media campaigns to educate and try to scare young people from using drugs. None of these campaigns against drugs have proven successful. Also tougher laws and legislation have given longer and harsher prison sentences for those who use or deal drugs. These tough sentences have been given with the hope that it will detour others from getting involved with drugs in any way, but that has obviously not worked in any way. All this has done is filling up our already overcrowded prisons and placed nonviolent offenders in a very harsh environment. Most of the drug offenders in prison are minorities that come from poor backgrounds. What has lead a lot of these people to become involved with illicit drugs in any way is due to the environment which in they live.

US incarceration timeline

Operation Mallorca, US Drug Enforcement Administra...

English: Resources (six apples) have been distribu...

In essence Radical Theory most clearly defines the struggle that these people encounter because of the unequal distribution of wealth. Also living in the ghetto can contribute to feelings of low self worth which could lead to abusing drugs.

Most crime that has a direct tie to drugs , whether possession, stealing or robbing to get money to buy drugs, drug deals gone bad, or distribution (dealing) usually occurs in the poorest neighborhoods, called "ghettos". More attention is given to arresting these people, then to realizing what outside forces could lead a person to be caught up in the world of drugs. Most drug offenders are written off as "losers"," bad" people, or just a menace to society, without realizing the social implications of how our society leads these people to act this way. No one is saying that these people...