Compensation for victims of the War on Drugs?

[therevverend]

I think I should be compensated, along with everyone else who's been impacted by the war on drugs. Saying that, it's obvious blacks are targeted and arrested by police far more then whites.
I'm not talking about doing 'stupid stuff'. A black walking down the street with $20 worth of ganja in his pocket is far more likely to be arrested then a white. Three times more.
Poverty and age is a factor, but race plays a huge role. Blacks are far more likely to be pulled over. And when they're pulled over far more likely to be illegally searched. Regardless as to whether they're rich or poor.
A local city councilman and former county executive, basically the most powerful politician in the county. Was pulled over 6 times in a two year period. For no reason. No traffic violations. For being black. If he was a youth, and had any amount of ganja in his car. He'd be a convicted felon.
Not a big fan of racial politics, once it starts it always turns into a quagmire. But it's obvious that the entire criminal justice system is designed to 'keep a brother down'.

 

[therevverend]

It's weird when these situations impact you, makes this stuff actually real.
I was waiting at a bus stop with a bunch of people, half of them black. The garbage can was overflowing with garbage piled all over the ground and on top of the garbage. There was a homeless encampment nearby, also with garbage everywhere.
A bus pulled up at the same time a cop car pulled up. They started lining up the black people and asking for IDs. I thought 'oh shit I really don't want to deal with the cops right now'. Pulled out my i.d. and walked towards the cops. He didn't look at me, waved me onto the bus.
Then he started berating the black people for throwing their garbage all over the place. Even though it was obvious the homeless did it. One of the black people pointed out she couldn't carry that much garbage. She got yelled at.
The cops were running their i.d.s for warrants and frisking some of them. Because I was glad to be on the bus and not getting frisked by the cops I didn't get off to stand up for justice. But I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Thinking about Jews and Nazi Germany. The blacks were no longer protesting, just meekly going through the motions like it was an every day thing. If they were white college types they'd be squawking about 'rights' and 'amendments'.
It was hilarious because the city is militantly liberal, has a gay mayor. All the rich progressive white people who freak out the moment they think something is politically incorrect. But you look under the fingernails and it's the same as any other city.

 

[resin_lung]

As far as reparations go......What about the children of prisoners? All the dead people's families? Their wives and parents? There are a lot of people that have been negatively impacted by the war on drugs..

I'm not trying to throw childish reasons for why I disagree. no pun intended. I'm being serious. The war on drugs reached far and wide.

Worldwide actually.

How could a $ number ever be put on the damage it caused?

Maybe randomly pick an equal number of people living in their neighborhood who haven't been incarcerated(if they can), figure out the average bank balance and cut'em each a check?

Were they all destined to be millionaires?

Sure would make everybody who played it straight feel stupid!haha

I mean I got a lot of homies that never got pinched who still ain't worth a shit.

Freedom doesnt mean financial success is guaranteed.

And as fucked up as the system is...... what about what was in their pocket when they were illegally searched? Some illegal shit.

How much does getting caught with some dope in your pocket get a mthrfkr is what it comes down to as far as reparations go.

These are the things I have trouble getting my head around.

One more thing I just thought of..... how many convicts are alive because they weren't shot dead on the street!lol

I'm laughing but what about them? Surely a few owe their lives(if you call it a life) to the system!lol

 

[oldchuck]

Seems to me that there are a lot of ways to do reparations for slavery and the drug war. Doesn't have to be cut a check for each individual.

 

[resin_lung]

Well I must admit..... I'm stumped oldchuck?

Seriously. I got nothing. I guess I could have maybe googled something but there's no shame in my game!haha

I'd like to hear about these other ways.

You got me feeling mighty dumb oldchuck!haha Not the hardest thing to do but I wouldn't mind being enlightened.lol

Edit: I gotta spread rep before I can give you more.

 

[resin_lung]

Ok.... I had to go beyond what I've come to understand about reparations from all the different conversations I've had about the subject over the years and actually look into it.

Sorry chuck! I couldn't wait! It was driving me kinda nuts!haha

It of course didn't take long for me to indeed find a bunch of different ways. They were basically about granting them access to the things they've been institutionally kept from.

If reparations is about institutionally making thing right....I'm all in! But to me that stuff should be an automatic. Access to loans and housing and education. Giving them every opportunity that everybody has. If making that truly a reality = reparations..... 100% down for that.

As I said before, I didn't look too far before I found an article that listed some other ways to pay reparations so I don't know how good the source is,.... I was just dying to know any other way so I quit when I found one.

Here's a quote from the article.

"On the other end is the policy approach. Instead of cash, the federal government would implement an agenda to tackle racial inequality at its roots. This agenda would focus on major areas of concern: housing, criminal justice, education, and income inequality. As for the policies themselves, they don’t require a ton of imagination. To break the ghettos and reduce the hyper-segregation of black life, the federal government would aggressively enforce the Fair Housing Act, with attacks on housing and lending discrimination, and punishment for communities that exclude low-income residents with exclusionary zoning"

https://www.slate.com/articles/news...ack_americans_here_is_how_america_should.html

Now I kinda feel like these things might go a long way to make things fair but..... would that be enough to make things right?

Is it just like a gesture kinda thing? Like an apology? Those don't really make things right but they seem to count for a lot.

Interesting stuff. I'm enjoying the conversation.

 

[Andyo]

big wide world

big wide world

If you dont like a countrys laws then leave !
Its that simple.A

 

[resin_lung]

If you dont like a countrys laws then leave !
Its that simple.A

Come on now. haha

Do you vote?

If you do, you don't really believe what you say.

If you don't, what you believe really don't matta.

Edit: not trying to clown too hard but that love it or leave it shit doesn't make it easy.

 

[Andyo]

i dont vote

i dont vote

Come on now. haha

Do you vote?

If you do, you don't really believe what you say.

If you don't, what you believe really don't matta.

Edit: not trying to clown too hard but that love it or leave it shit doesn't make it easy.

I dont vote. or herd
One life bro, live it ,Im the boss of me.
I make my rules .A

 

[resin_lung]

I dont vote. or herd
One life bro, live it ,Im the boss of me.
I make my rules .A

Oh.... didnt realize you were talking to yourself homie! Thought you were making a statement that had to do with the topic not making a "note to self"!lol

It's good to keep one self in check though. Ya heard!

EDIT: POST-it notes!lol

 

['Boogieman']

More race baiting politics, just what we need. I live close to Chicago and guess what happens if the police find my white ass on the west side, they pull me over and search me for drugs, every damn time. So much for my white privilege.

 

[resin_lung]

More race baiting politics, just what we need. I live close to Chicago and guess what happens if the police find my white ass on the west side, they pull me over and search me for drugs, every damn time. So much for my white privilege.

Right! How easy is it to just NOT be rollin dirty when there's a good chance they're gonna "find"(implys you don't live there and just being there is a crime) your "white ass".

What if the west side( I guess it's a bad area) is where you lived? Finding you there wouldn't be a chance, it would be a matter of time! You gotta drive right?

Now.... have you ever had anything illegal in you pocket as you pulled up to your house? No? Ever have friends come over with some snaps? Ever sell a bag of fkn weed???

You get the idea.

Rolling through is one thing and living knee deep in it is another.

Hard for ME to expect them to live a completly legal life when I break the fkn law every chance I get.

The head of some cop union was complaining about the abuse law enforcement was taking because of their aggressiveness and the guy looked right in the camera and said something like "well we'll see how the citizens like it the next time we see 4-5 guys standing on the corner and we just drive on by".

Can you imagine! That's what they're suppose to fkn do when they see 4-5 guys standing on a fkn corner!haha

 

[oldchuck]

Thank you resin. When I read your first post last night I thought, Goddamn now I'm going to have to write a whole essay to answer this guy's questions. So good, you found some answers yourself. Other options are possible too. The only thing I would add is that the political climate needs to be right to make something happen. Consider how long and how difficult it was to get the government to even apologize to the Japanese people who were put in concentration camps during WWII.

 

[resin_lung]

my pleasure chuck.lol

In all honesty, I wasn't looking to be spoon fed so much as I didn't want to....disrespect you! If that makes any sense. Take anything from you, if you will and I don't mind being taken to school. Not by people I like anyways.haha

Might sound weird but what can I say.... I'm weirdo.

In my defense it wasn't long before I felt silly as I know your not the type to relish in exposing someone's ignorance. Didn't know you hated to type so much though!haha

Anyway, all that coupled my with dislike of feeling ignorant... I decided it was easier to just pay respect with the edit about rep and checked it out for myself.haha

I don't like typing either btw but I LOVE shootin the shit. Being nearly a hermit and totally unable to make a point without writing a fkn book....I'm kinda fkd! Everyone who reads my posts kinda is!haha

I learned a lot from the numerous things I've read since first posting about my enlightenment though.

I agree that all would have to be aligned, politically speaking for anything to even begin to come from any of this. We're obviously far from that today.

I had to do some reading about the Japanese Americans during WW2. I knew about what had happened but not enough to know about the civil liberties act. I had heard of it but honestly didn't know what it was.

Embarrassing but 1988 was an important year for me....I had finally squeezed on some boobies and was preoccupied! So that one wasn't REALLY my fault. It was hormones'n shit!lol

Seriously though...that seemed like an open and shut case compared to the topic of this thread. I guess that was half your point. The other half being that it took 46 years so.... no sense in anybody holding their breath.

Good point amigo.

Interesting how much the formal apology HAS indeed meant to those impacted.

 

['Boogieman']

Right! How easy is it to just NOT be rollin dirty when there's a good chance they're gonna "find"(implys you don't live there and just being there is a crime) your "white ass".

What if the west side( I guess it's a bad area) is where you lived? Finding you there wouldn't be a chance, it would be a matter of time! You gotta drive right?

Now.... have you ever had anything illegal in you pocket as you pulled up to your house? No? Ever have friends come over with some snaps? Ever sell a bag of fkn weed???

You get the idea.

Rolling through is one thing and living knee deep in it is another.

Hard for ME to expect them to live a completly legal life when I break the fkn law every chance I get.

The head of some cop union was complaining about the abuse law enforcement was taking because of their aggressiveness and the guy looked right in the camera and said something like "well we'll see how the citizens like it the next time we see 4-5 guys standing on the corner and we just drive on by".

Can you imagine! That's what they're suppose to fkn do when they see 4-5 guys standing on a fkn corner!haha

I work for a plumbing contractor and we have to go through the area a lot, they are usually looking for heroin and guns. I was being too sarcastic as I think they are just doing their job and they never care about weed anyways.

 

[oldchuck]

Interesting how much the formal apology HAS indeed meant to those impacted.

Yeah, man, that was the important thing, the apoloogy.