(HuffingtonPost) Hillary Clinton has come out against making retroactive the small change in sentencing guidelines that allows some people convicted under the overly harsh crack laws to have their sentences reviewed by a judge, and if they are found eligible, given early release. Most blacks affected will still serve more than a decade in prison for a nonviolent crime for which whites often escape incarceration entirely– but nevermind.
Hillary has bought into fears that this means a sudden massive release of an army of Willie Hortons. But over 90% of crack prisoners sentenced under these laws have no record of violent crime– and 94% were not classified as “kingpins” or even mid-level drug dealers. Further, the judge reviewing the sentences provides a safety net to ensure that those who are a risk to the public are not released early.
Obama, meanwhile, supports making the sentencing change retroactive. Even though politically, given his admission about his own drug use, he has far more to lose than she does by doing the right thing.
I remember when Bill Clinton was running in 1992. Here was a likable guy who had at least been around marijuana, even if he “didn’t inhale”, and he played saxophone, leading me to believe he’d at least been around some people who smoke marijuana. I was excited by the idea that we’d finally have a president who realized how destructive our War on (Certain American Citizens Using Non-Pharmaceutical, Non-Alcoholic, Tobacco-Free) Drugs really is.
When Clinton came into office, there were about 300,000 arrests nationally of marijuana smokers. By the time he left, there were about 700,000. When California passed Prop 215 legalizing medical cannabis in the state, it was Bill Clinton’s administration that sent the jack-booted federal thugs to raid dispensaries and arrest patients.
Now we have Barack Obama, a candidate who, when asked about his admitting to marijuana use in his youth, said, “I inhaled, frequently. That was the point.” Would he finally be the president who does something positive to end the drug war? Or would he turn out like Bill Clinton and turn his back on us cannabis consumers?
I think this view on the crack sentencing provides us a glimpse into the possible administrations of the two Democratic candidates. Both have pledged they would end DEA raids on medical cannabis states; however, Hillary Clinton keeps touting her years of experience in the Clinton White House as First Lady, and that White House started the raids. If Hillary Clinton can’t support something as moral as fixing the racist laws on crack sentencing (5g of crack — inner city black’s cocaine — gets you the same sentence as 500g of powder — suburban white’s cocaine), I don’t much expect her to be any better on the marijuana issue.
Ok the thing about 5g of crack being equal to 500g of cocaine… Doesn’t matter what neighborhood u find it in, CRACK DESTROYS LIVES. So does cocaine but I speak from experience when I say u can relatively casually use cocaine… Crack is fucking addictive. It is made for one reason only: to get you hooked so you will put all your money in a crack dealers pocket until there is nothing left of u but mr. Jones. They have no mercy and no conscience. There is a reason crack is looked at as more serious–it is about ten thousand times more instense and therefore ten thousand times harder to forget about and not “get more” or make it a habit and trust me that transition happens a LOT faster with crack than with cocaine no matter who u r. But I do agree with dude above me saying u should have the freedom to do what u want with your own body, but things like cocaine are hard to enjoy in moderation and one should be VERY careful and AWARE of their lifestyle if coke starts becoming more habitual. U never see yourself getting addicted til u are and by then u don’t care. But rock on weed smokers, shit should be legal by now THAT is some rrrreal bullshit.
P.S. Nobody gets shot over weed unless its like thousands of dollars worth but we wouldn’t have that problem if it were legal and sold by experts in stores not just money-hungry blood-thirsty dealers, (the kind who get violent over this kind of shit who btw are definitely pushing more serious drugs too if they’re fuckin with pounds upon pounds of marijuana and another btw, have u ever met a violent stoner?? Didn’t think so. Paaayyce bra <3 one love!
Ok the thing about 5g of crack being equal to 500g of cocaine… Doesn’t matter what neighborhood u find it in, CRACK DESTROYS LIVES. So does cocaine but I speak from experience when I say u can relatively casually use cocaine… Crack is fucking addictive. There is a reason it is looked at as more serious–it is about ten thousand times more instense and therefore ten thousand times harder to forget about and not “get more” or make it a habit and trust me that transition happens a LOT faster with crack than with cocaine no matter who u r. But I do agree with dude above me saying u should have the freedom to do what u want with your own body, but things like cocaine are hard to enjoy in moderation and one should be VERY careful and AWARE of their lifestyle if coke starts becoming more habitual. U never see yourself getting addicted til u are and by then u don’t care. But rock on weed smokers, shit should be legal by now THAT is some rrreal bullshit.
P.S. Nobody gets shot over weed unless its like thousands of dillars worth but we wouldn’t have that problem if it were legal and sold by experts in stores not just money-hungry blood-thirsty dealers, (the kind who get violent over this kind of shit who btw are definitely pushing more serious drugs too if they’re fuckin with pounds upon pounds of marijuana and another btw, have u ever met a violent stoner?? Didn’t think so. Paaayyce bra <3 one love!
I’ll believe Obama will follow through when i see it. The disparity in sentencing is systematic racism, but it is more than that. It is a strategy to perpetuate a lower class with fewer freedoms and unequal punishment under the law because they cannot afford to essentially pay off the judiciary…. And consider this… If Richard Prior – who i’m sure has a few intelligent friends knowledgable in chemistry – had not learned the safer way to extract cocaine base is with a mild alkaline like baking soda, do you think a young black urban man on the corner could come to this chemical conclusion? Only if he was taught by a system with financial interests in the prison industrial complex- the only real winners in the drug war… Teach them how to cheaply cook it up, sell it to their own people, then give them guns and let them kill each other. anyone left can be warehoused in the concentration camps we call “correctional facilities.”
OBAMA hey dude, you smoked and did a good bit of blow… what makes you better than me that you would lock me up for doing the SAME THING??? Ron Paul is the only candidate that is not bought and paid for by pfizer or lockheed martin. i am a long-time liberal but changed my views after bill fucked us by locking up more non violent offenders than reagan. they are all traitors, selling out their civic responsibilities so the corporate machine can continue to convince us that we must surrender our freedom to be safe. fuck that. i’d give up my life before i give up my freedom to do what i want with my own body. and if you don’t like it then get out of my business.
The problem I have always had with HRC is her ability to throw every promise she makes under the bus whenever it’s convenient. I was both heartened and skeptical of her commitment to stop raids on dispensaries, and now I feel my skepticism is well founded. The crack sentencing disparity is an issue of racism, and Hillary doesn’t seem to think that there is anything wrong with governmental sponsored racism. Why would she see the sick and dying as any more deserving of clemency or lienancy? Regardless of his change on MJ decriminalization (that less than 50% of the American people support) , there is only one candidate left that we can trust to change the War on Drugs…