TULIA'S DRUG WAR

Re: "W. Texans, NAACP Rally Against Drug Bust," Oct. 4.

While what happened in Tulia ­ the arrest and sentencing to very long
prison terms of a large share of the town's young black men under the
guise of the War on Drugs ­ should shock every American, it is only
the tip of the iceberg.

According to the federal Household Survey, "most current illicit drug
users are white. There were an estimated 9.9 million whites (72
percent of all users), 2.0 million blacks (15 percent), and 1.4
million Hispanics (10 percent) who were current illicit drug users in
1998." And, yet, blacks constitute 36.8 percent of those arrested for
drug violations, over 42 percent of those in federal prisons for drug
violations. African-Americans comprise almost 60 percent of those in
state prisons for drug felonies; Hispanics account for 22.5 percent.

Thus it is clear that our drug laws, and their mandatory minimum
punishments, are now a tool for racists ­ America's tool for ethnic
cleansing.

It is time to consider common sense drug policies ­ policies based on
public health and honest education instead of law enforcement.

RICHARD LAKE, Sylvania, Ohio