THORNTON'S STANCE ON DRUGS

Connecticut gubernatorial candidate Cliff Thornton is to be commended
for boldly raising the issue of drugs and race ["3rd-Party
Candidate's 1st-Class Issue," Feb. 12]. Few Americans realize that
the drug war is rooted in racism and has been waged in a racist
manner since its inception.

The Harrison Narcotics Act of 1914 was preceded by a wave of
anti-immigrant sentiment. Opium was identified with Chinese laborers,
marijuana with Mexicans and cocaine with African-Americans. Granted,
modern-day drug warriors are hopefully not out to incarcerate as many
minorities as possible, but government statistics suggest otherwise.

Blacks and whites use drugs at roughly the same rates. Although only
15 percent of the nation's drug users are black, blacks account for
37 percent of those arrested for drug violations, over 42 percent of
those in federal prisons for drug violations, and almost 60 percent
of those in state prisons for drug felonies. Support for the drug war
would end overnight if whites were incarcerated for drugs at the same
rate as minorities.

It's time to declare peace in the failed drug war and begin treating
all substance abuse, legal or otherwise, as the public health problem it is.

Robert Sharpe, Policy Analyst

Common Sense for Drug Policy

Washington, D.C.