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Tampa, FL

Lead Qualitative Researcher and Presenter                                                                                                     

April 1st & April 7th, 2022

• Poster Presentation, “US Drug Policy on Minorities: The comparison of drug policy between the Black and White Population of America,” USF Undergraduate Research Conference, April 7th, 2022.
• Delivered impactful research findings to an audience of over 1,100 participants at the UGRC.

Background: Race has a significant impact on the way that justice systems treat offenders. From laws that target minorities to unequal enforcement, and unequal sentencing, law enforcement policy and practice regarding drug use are especially egregious. 

Methods: A literature review was conducted with the aim of investigating different effects of US drug policy on white offenders in comparison to other racial minorities, especially black populations. To investigate drug policy and its effect on the incarceration rate according to race in America, I searched the following academic databases: PubMed, PsycINFO, JSTOR, Sage Pub, and ResearchGate. I also searched the Internet for peer-reviewed scientific studies presenting original data to May 5th, 2021. The primary outcome of interest was the differing effects that the US drug policy has on different races. Secondary outcome of interest was avenues to reduce racism through drug policy.

Results:  The 19 studies determined to be relevant provided evidence of significant racial bias in drug policy and law enforcement practice.  From laws that target minorities, like the differential sentencing requirements for powder and crack cocaine, to law enforcement programs that deliberately target black populations through over-policing in minority neighborhoods and over-incarcerating minority offenders compared to whites, the system is biased.  

Conclusion: By understanding the various ways that US drug policy is organized to benefit white people and harms people of color, solutions can be introduced to the public and/or the government to change policy and practice that places more importance on equity.

References

1.     Beckett, K., & Brydolf-Horwitz, M. (2020). A kinder, gentler drug war? Race, drugs, and punishment in 21st century America. Punishment & Society, 22(4), 509-533. https://doi.org/10.1177/1462474520925145

2.     Bonczar, T. P. (2003). Prevalence of Imprisonment in the US Population, 1974–2001 (Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report). 

3.     Eversman, M. H. (2013). “Trying to Find the Middle Ground”: Drug Policy and Harm Reduction in Black Communities. Race and Justice, 4(1), 29-44. https://doi.org/10.1177/2153368713517395

4.     History.com Editors. (2017, May 31). War on Drugs. Retrieved from https://www.history.com/topics/crime/the-war-on-drugs#section_7

5.     Kautt, P., & Spohn, C. (2002). Crack-ing down on black drug offenders? Testing for interactions among offenders’ race, drug type, and sentencing strategy in federal drug sentences. Justice Quarterly, 19(1), 1-35. https://doi.org/10.1080/07418820200095151

6.     Mauer, M., & King, R. S. (2007). Uneven justice: State rates of incarceration by race and ethnicity. 

7.     Mitchell, O., & Caudy, M. S. (2017). Race differences in drug offending and drug distribution arrests. Crime & Delinquency, 63(2), 91-112. 

8.     Mullen, J. (Ed.). (2019). Rural poverty, empowerment, and sustainable livelihoods. Routledge.

9.     Netherland, J., & Hansen, H. B. (2016). The War on Drugs That Wasn’t: Wasted Whiteness, “Dirty Doctors,” and Race in Media Coverage of Prescription Opioid Misuse. Culture, medicine, and psychiatry, 40(4), 664–686. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11013-016-9496-5

10.  Sirin, C. (2011). From Nixon’s War on Drugs to Obama’s Drug Policies Today: Presidential Progress in Addressing Racial Injustices and Disparities. Race, Gender & Class, 18(3/4), 82-99. Retrieved April 21, 2021, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/43496834

11.  United States Sentencing Commission. (2010). Demographic differences in federal sentencing practices: An update of the Booker Report’s multivariate regression analysis. United States Sentencing Commission.