University of Chicago Legal Forum Volume 1994 | Issue 1 Article 5 In Perpetual Motion: The onC tinuing Significance of Race and America's Drug Crisis Clarence Lusane [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/uclf Recommended Citation Lusane, Clarence () "In Perpetual Motion: The onC tinuing Significance of Race and America's Drug Crisis," University of Chicago Legal Forum: Vol. 1994: Iss. 1, Article 5. Available at: http://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/uclf/vol1994/iss1/5 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Chicago Unbound. It has been accepted for inclusion in University of Chicago Legal Forum by an authorized administrator of Chicago Unbound. For more information, please contact [email protected]. In Perpetual Motion: The Continuing Signifi- cance of Race and America's Drug Crisis Clarence Lusanet Race continues to be a significant factor, at every level of society, in shaping the destiny and development of millions of people of color in the United States. It is thus not surprising, in- deed, it was expected, that the wars on drugs in the 1980s and early 1990s would impact, perhaps disproportionately, the Afri- can-American community. As Michael Tonry notes, "[t]he War on Drugs foreseeably and unnecessarily blighted the lives of hun- dreds of thousands of young, disadvantaged Americans, especially black Americans, and undermined decades of effort to improve the life chances of members of the urban black underclass."1 Of course, Tonry's perspective, which I share, has been lambasted from the White House to the halls of academia. The architects of the drug wars deny that there is any conscious racial bias in their policies,2 while conservative academics construct elaborate theories that racism has declined to the point of irrelevancy.' I argue that race and racism continue to be significant and determinant factors in the lives of African-Americans and other people of color. And it is these dynamics that, unless "radically- altered," as Tonry notes,4 will continue to guide the direction and practices of the nation's drug war. The drug war has destroyed tens of thousands of destinies and lives in the African-American community and, at the same time, has failed to address in any substantial way America's serious drug crisis. Conservatives such as William Bennett, Thomas Sowell, and Walter Williams have argued that the black community must look internally for resolutions to its problems of crime, violence, t Editor, Black PoliticalAgenda newsletter. Michael Tonry, Race and the War on Drugs, 1994 U Chi Legal F 25, 27. 2 See, for example, John P. Walters, Race and the War on Drugs, 1994 U Chi Legal F 104, 144. ' See William J. Bennett, The De-Valuing of America: The Fight for Our Culture and Our Children 178-202 (Summit Books, 1992); Thomas Sowell, Civil Rights: Rhetoric or Reality? 73-90 (William Morrow Co., Inc., 1984); Walter E. Williams, The State Against Blacks (New Press, 1982). ' Tonry, 1994 U Chi Legal F at 27 (cited in note 1). 84 THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO LEGAL FORUM [1994: drug trafficking, and abuse.5 This is a decontextualized thesis that breaks down considerably when framed by the reality of the aggregate racial experiences of African-Americans. It is only by first examining the dynamics of contemporary black life that a more rational view of the motivations of the drug war and possi- ble resolutions to the drug crisis is possible. By examining the racial vicissitudes of the past decade in terms of the economic, social, political, and cultural life of blacks, it becomes clear that the driving forces behind the current dilemmas lie in the collec- tive sweep of public policies and private practices that continue unabated. Illegal drug abuse and drug trafficking in the black commu- nity must be framed by three factors: racism as an ongoing factor in U.S. society; the applications of racial dynamics in the war on drugs; and the unwillingness on the part of the federal govern- ment to advance long-term solutions. The "outlaw culture" that has come to grip much of the black community, and which must be internally resolved through a resurgence of moral and spiritu- al authority, arises out of the aforementioned mileau. I. THE CONTINUING SIGNIFICANCE OF RACE Profound changes in the U.S. economic picture during the 1980s that disproportionately punished the black community played a critical role in the increase in black underclass involve- ment in the underground drug market. In the 1980s, the loss of millions of manufacturing jobs was central to diminishing the for- tunes of the American middle-class and increasing national pov- erty.' In 1981, 20.2 million people worked in manufacturing.7 A decade later, that number had shrunk to 18.4 million-a decline of 1.8 million workers.8 At the same time, the number of people sixteen years of age or older grew by 19.4 million.' See generally Bennett, The De.Valuing of America 178-202 (cited in note 3); Sowell, Civil Rights 73-90 (cited in note 3); Williams, The State Against Blacks (cited in note 3). ' Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele, America: What Went Wrong xi (Andrews and McMeel, 1992). 7 Id. ' Id. Id. 83] THE CONTINUING SIGNIFICANCE OF RACE 85 Decline In Manufacuturing Jobs 1980s (in millions) 25 20.2 20 - 18.4 15 - 10 - 5 0 1981 1991 Source: OonaldJ. Barlettand James B. Steele,Amerka, WhatWent Wrong x (Andrews and McNeel,1992). Historically, low-skilled, entry-level employment, particularly in the manufacturing sector, has been the chief means out of pov- erty for young African-American males.'0 Young black families, employed at factories and shops in Detroit, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, and many other cities and towns, were able to stabi- lize and have confidence that their children would be educated, that housing would be accessible, and that a future was assured. These dreams have evaporated rapidly over the last dozen years. For those young black males with criminal records, which in some cities is higher than 50 percent," employment opportuni- ties have virtually disappeared altogether. A study by the Na- tional Bureau of Economic Research found that while 50 percent of those incarcerated had a job before they entered prison, only 19 percent had jobs after they left prison. 2 o See Kimberly Christensen, Political Determinants of Income Changes for African- American Women and Men, Review of Radical Political Economics 52, 55-58 (Spring 1992). " A study issued by the National Center on Institutions and Alternatives found that 56 percent of young African-American men in Baltimore are either incarcerated, on pa. role, or on probation. Hobbling a Generation: Young African American Males in the Crimi- nal Justice System in America's Cities: Baltimore, Maryland (National Center on Institu- tions and Alternatives, 1992). 12 Jonathan Marshall, How Our War on Drugs Shattered the Cities, Washington Post C1, C2 (May 17, 1992). 86 THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO LEGAL FORUM [1994: The crisis threatening African-America is not simply black poverty. Rather, it centers around the chronic nature of that pov- erty. Under Reagan and Bush, from 1980 to 1991, more than 1.6 million African-Americans fell below the poverty line, with the period 1989 to 1991 accounting for 940,000 of that number." The Bush era contributed significantly to the ongoing economic devastation in the black community. According to the Washington Post, 841,000 young people, a disproportionate number of whom were African-American, fell under the poverty line in the first two years of the Bush administration." These drops in income caused the official poverty rate for blacks in 1993 to increase to 33.1 percent-10.2 million people, one-third of black Ameri- ca-which is higher than the poverty rate for Hispanics (30.6 percent), Asians (15.3 percent), or whites (12.2 percent). 5 Poverty Rates for Different Racial Groups 1993 40% 33.1% 30.6% 30% 20% 15.3% 12.2% 10% 0% -___ Blacks Hispanics Asians Whites Source:Bureau of the Census, Census Bureau Announces Number of Americans in Poverty Up for Fourth YearAlthough Poverty Rate Unchanged; Household Income and Health Care Coverage Drop (Oct. 6, 1994) (press release). "2 David H. Swinton, The Economic Status of African Americans During the Reagan- Bush Era: Withered Opportunities,Limited Outcomes, and Uncertain Outlook, 1993 State of Black America 135, 168. "4 Barbara Vobejda, Children's Poverty Rose in '80s, Washington Post A3. (Aug 12, 1992). " Bureau of the Census, Census Bureau Announces Number of Americans in Poverty Up for Fourth Year Although Poverty Rate Unchanged; Household Income and Health Care Coverage Drop (Oct 6, 1994) (press release). THE CONTINUING SIGNIFICANCE OF RACE African-Americans at all levels trail whites when it comes to economic cushions. According to the Census Bureau in 1988, few- er blacks had savings accounts than whites (44.5 percent versus 76.6 percent); fewer had checking accounts (30.1 percent versus 50.9 percent); fewer had stocks (7 percent versus 23.9 percent); fewer had equity in their homes (43.5 percent versus 66.7 per- cent); and fewer had IRAs or Keoghs (6.9 percent versus 26.4 percent). 6 Differences in Black-White Economic Cushions 100% 80% 76.6% 66.7% 60% 50.9% 44.5% 43.5% 40% 30.1%2 23.9% 26.4% 20%-- 7.0 6.9 Savings Checking Stocks Home IRAs Accounts Accounts Equity ] Blacks [] Whites Source:Donald H. Swlnton, The Economic Status of Afrtcan-Americans During the Reagan-Bush Era:Withered Opportunities, Limited Outcome, and Uncertain Outlook 1993 Stateof BlackAmerica 135,168.