The retired New York attorney does not mention a drug war in NY Post Op-Ed On Black Lives

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article belong solely to the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Fresh Toast.

Last September, a NY Post by retired New York District Attorney Jim Quinn argued that “Crime, not cops, is by far the greatest threat to black lives. “(He was the senior assistant district attorney in the Queens County Attorney’s Office. He retired in December 2019 after serving 42 years as a prosecutor.)

Quinn explains, “In 2019, 319 people were murdered in New York City. 88 percent of them – 280 people – were black or Hispanic. And 93.2 of them were murdered by other colored people.

Photo by Spencer Platt / Getty Images

“Nearly 96 percent of all shooters and victims of shootings in the Big Apple in 2019 were People of Color. People of color also made up 73.8 percent of the rape victims and 81.3 percent of the rape suspects; 69 percent of the robbery victims and 93.3 percent of the robbery suspects; and 79.5 percent of crime victims and 86 percent of suspects.

“In other words, People of Color in New York are disproportionately both victims and perpetrators of violent crimes. That is a cold fact. These proportions have remained remarkably constant over the past 12 years.

“The murders in New York have risen 30 percent so far this year (2020) – 60 more people killed than last year. Almost 90 percent of the victims were colored. So far this year there have been 1,095 people shot dead in Gotham – 514 more than last year. And 95 percent of these additional shooting victims were colored people. ”

This year it’s gotten worse. According to Gothamist, “299 people were shot dead in 2021 alone, a 54% increase over the same period last year and the most the city has seen since 2012.”

SEE: Why Are Shootings And Murders Rising In NYC? AND: don’t mention the drug war. We need to decriminalize blackness because black freedom is important

Unfortunately, New York is not an isolated incident. A 2016 report from Chicago showed similar figures: “75% of those murdered are black, 71% of the murderers are black.”

These figures speak for themselves, but especially among the unarmed victims, blacks were killed by the police three times as often as whites.

SEE: Racial Inequality in Fatal US Police Shootings, 2015-2020

The fact that more blacks are being killed by blacks doesn’t mean we can ignore this inequality in police shootouts, especially given the racist history of the drug war.

Photo by Michael M. Santiago / Getty Images

As in the Post Op-Ed, the Chicago article makes no mention of the drug war, but one of the comments suggests that “Nobody is talking about ending the drug war. It’s a complete failure. That has to be done through the ballot box first, to support candidates who will act. I appreciate your vision of a heavenly future, but now people are dying, fueled by gang wars and drug trafficking. End the drug war smartly. Let’s see what happens then and act accordingly. “

The drug war leads to global violence between gangs, especially in Mexico, but also between the police and minority communities in the USA

Of course, the drug war may not have been the immediate trigger for most violence, but it has contributed to both acceptance of violence as a literally inevitable part of life in these communities and a legitimate fear of prosecution.

The behavior problems associated with substance abuse, especially alcohol, are also a major contributor to public unrest. Alcohol abuse actually kills more Americans than illegal drugs, but not in drug war shootings.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Excessive drinking in the United States is responsible for more than 95,000 deaths, or 261 deaths per day, each year. These deaths shorten the life of the deceased by an average of almost 29 years … “

Photo by LeszekCzerwonka / Getty Images

More than 70,000 Americans died from drug-related overdoses in 2019, including illicit drugs and prescription opioids.

GO TO Overdose Death Rates

Of course, alcohol is not an “illegal drug”, but public drunkenness is a major cause of police interaction among the poor.

Meanwhile, “According to data and legal aid, people of color made up 94% of marijuana arrests by the NYPD in 2020. “

Fortunately, the long-term public policy impact of marijuana legalization can be seen in the Netherlands, where marijuana has been sold over the counter for almost 50 years. The police are rarely called to the cannabis coffee shops.

It is not enough to simply end the marijuana ban. Places where people can gather socially (peacefully) should be an integral part of the urban scene. Unfortunately, marijuana retail and social consumption are treated as sources of political patronage and tax revenue.

SEE: Marijuana Social Clubs are the final big step towards legalization

The drug war created a culture of fear and violence and it won’t be easy to change, but let peace begin with us.

Richard Cowan is a former NORML National Director and author of Veganism And CBD.