Struggle & Resistance Achievement & Excellence

System of oppression · 1971–now

The War on Drugs

A federal campaign whose enforcement fell disproportionately on Black communities, fueling mass incarceration.

On the timeline

June 17, 1971
Nixon declares the War on Drugs
A campaign later admitted by aides to have targeted Black communities and the antiwar left.
October 27, 1986
The Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986
Mandatory minimums punish crack 100x more harshly than powder cocaine, devastating Black defendants.

The web

Connections to other moments, systems, and investigations — the links rarely drawn together.

enabled·Thread
Mass Incarceration
Drug-war enforcement is the primary engine of the prison boom.
part of (incoming)·Event
Nixon declares the War on Drugs
Nixon's 1971 declaration launched the decades-long campaign.