Today was the 50th anniversary of the #WarOnDrugs.
@TENDEMANDS, the abolitionist org I co-founded last year, is committed to its end.
Here’s a thread on why the @ACLU calls it “bullshit”, and so should you.
@TENDEMANDS, the abolitionist org I co-founded last year, is committed to its end.
Here’s a thread on why the @ACLU calls it “bullshit”, and so should you.
Drug offenses are the leading cause of arrest in the United States.
More than 1.5 million people were arrested on drug charges in 2019 alone.
The vast majority of drug arrests are for simple possession (pictured).
Every 25 seconds, someone is arrested for drug possession.
More than 1.5 million people were arrested on drug charges in 2019 alone.
The vast majority of drug arrests are for simple possession (pictured).
Every 25 seconds, someone is arrested for drug possession.
1 in 5 people in prisons and jails are locked up on drug charges.
There are another 750,000 people under state surveillance (on parole or probation) for drug offenses.
150,000 people have been killed in the War on Drugs; another 73,000 have disappeared.
There are another 750,000 people under state surveillance (on parole or probation) for drug offenses.
150,000 people have been killed in the War on Drugs; another 73,000 have disappeared.
The US spends $47 billion per year enforcing drug laws. The US has spent more than $1 trillion since the War started.
The DEA alone costs $6,500 per minute.
US taxpayers will pay $3.5 billion in 2021 to fund the agency.
The DEA alone costs $6,500 per minute.
US taxpayers will pay $3.5 billion in 2021 to fund the agency.
Incarcerating people for drug offenses has little impact on substance misuse rates, and does not improve public safety.
In fact, the leading cause of death among recently released individuals is overdose — at a 129% higher rate than the general public.
In fact, the leading cause of death among recently released individuals is overdose — at a 129% higher rate than the general public.
Black Americans are nearly 600% times more likely to be incarcerated for a drug offense, despite being no more likely to use and less likely to sell illegal substances.
Almost 80% of people in federal prison and 60% of people in state prison on drug offenses are Black or Latino.
Almost 80% of people in federal prison and 60% of people in state prison on drug offenses are Black or Latino.
BIPOC account for 70% of all defendants convicted with a mandatory minimum sentence.
Prosecutors are 200% as likely to pursue a mandatory minimum sentence for a Black defendant than a white defendant charged with the same offense.
Prosecutors are 200% as likely to pursue a mandatory minimum sentence for a Black defendant than a white defendant charged with the same offense.
The New York chapter of the ACLU, the @NYCLU co-sponsored the release of my music video on the racist, classist War on Drugs in 2014
The @TENDEMANDS call to
End the criminalization of drug use and drug addiction
Pass the CARE Act of 2019
Expunge all drug-related convictions
Provide mental health, behavioral health and addiction recovery services nationwide
End the criminalization of drug use and drug addiction
Pass the CARE Act of 2019
Expunge all drug-related convictions
Provide mental health, behavioral health and addiction recovery services nationwide
Released in 2020, the @TENDEMANDS music video shows in stark detail what the War on Drugs has done to poor and BIPOC communities across the country — and what we as abolitionists envision instead for the future
https://twitter.com/awkwordrap/status/1303405849721929729
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