Background
The War on Drugs program was initiated in 1971 in the United States following the passage of drug abuse prevention legislation. The campaign included a set of political and social practices that sought to limit the illicit drug trade through military intervention (Capuzzi & Stauffer, 2020). The program significantly restricted the supply of drugs, promoted arrests and incarceration for drug possession and use, and was accompanied by racial bias.
Reasons Behind the War on Drugs’ Failure
The War on Drugs has not demonstrated success in its 50 years of existence because it has not aimed to help people recover from drug addiction. In addition, criminal prosecutions for drug use did not include rehabilitation programs and reinforced inequality (Mann, 2021). The incompetent language was used against individuals with addiction, which did not promote a desire among youth not to use drugs (Ofer, 2021). Instead, aggressive U.S. government propaganda only exacerbated people’s attitudes toward drugs.
Potential Ways to Improve the Program
The War on Drugs could have been more effective if it had set different goals. First, the campaign should have avoided using military support in the fight against drugs. The involvement of the CIA and military forces disrupts social processes, creating problems such as a lack of jobs, delayed production, and higher taxes. Second, the campaign could focus its efforts on rehabilitating those with addiction and promote preventive support by introducing methods to reduce drug-related deaths (Pitt et al., 2018). For example, add addiction recovery methods and adequate treatment to preserve human rights.
Challenges in the Implementation
The problems that have accompanied the U.S. since the campaign began are related to implementing these recommendations. First, military power since the 70s has gradually increased, and the state apparatus has sought to involve it in many structures of society to prove its effectiveness. Presidents chose military support because they did not know how to strengthen the healthcare industry. Second, the U.S. did not have enough budget to sponsor research and chose to prosecute because it kept the budget (Lee, 2021). The inability to develop rehabilitation programs and the lack of sufficient knowledge about the path to recovery from addiction served as a severe problem.
References
Capuzzi, D., & Stauffer, M. D. (2020). Substance addiction prevention programs across the lifespan. In Foundations of Addiction Counseling. 4th ed. Pearson, pp. 339-360.
Lee, N. (2021). America has spent over a trillion dollars fighting the war on drugs. 50 years later, drug use in the U.S. is climbing again. CNBC. Web.
Mann, B. (2021). After 50 years of the War on Drugs, ‘What good is it doing for us?’. NPR. Web.
Ofer, U. (2021). 50 years into the War on Drugs, Biden-Harris can fix the harm it created. ACLU. Web.
Pitt, A. L., Humphreys, K., & Brandeau, M. L. (2018). Modeling health benefits and harms of public policy responses to the US opioid epidemic. American Journal of Public Health, 108(10), 1394–1400. Web.