The American Drug War - a Conflict Theory Perspective

In the mid to late 20th Century, the United States has experienced several states of Cultural Revolution. The Civil Rights Movement, the Women's Movement, the anti-War Movement during the Vietnam era, and the increasing presence of a widespread, politically active and highly vocalized youth counterculture led the United States government to feel that maybe, they were losing control of their population. The white, upper class men, who for centuries had dominated the political realm, began to feel their grip on power falter. By targeting drug use, the government would be free to "deal" with minorities especially African Americans, Hispanics, the free-love generation, and left-wing "radicals," all while claiming that they were protecting our country and our borders from the international drug trade, as well as ridding our streets of drugs and related violence. In addition, many government worried that if drug use became widespread, they would no longer be able to control a newer, "freer thinking" society. With the launch of the War on Drugs by President Richard M. Nixon in 1972, the United States government and unsuspecting citizens alike were embarking on a journey of discreet, institutionalized racial and class discrimination in order to ensure that the majority of governmental power stayed where it has since long before the adoption of capitalism: among the elite white males. Subsequent policy has included Reagan's militarization of the War on Drugs, the 1998 "Souder" Amendment to the Higher Education Act, and the prosecution the citizens of states such as California, where marijuana has been legalized, with federal crimes. These policies have had an increasingly negative effect on society, including overcrowding of jails and prisons, denial of federal higher education financial aid, life prison sentences for nonviolent repeat offenders, and other social atrocities. All the while, most law enforcement officials feel that they are "losing" the War on Drugs, and most drugs are even more widely available and affordable now than in 1972, when "war" was declared. This paper will seek to explain the War on Drugs from a conflict theory perspective, including its effects on both the poor and the elite, and how the War on Drugs may be one of the most important tools of the bourgeoisie in perpetuating the unequal distribution of power in our society.

CONFLICT THEORY

Karl Marx (1818-1883), is known as a member of the sociological "holy trinity," along with Emile Durkheim and Max Weber. Marx authored the original idea of conflict theory, which has been adapted into many other theories that have developed since his death. Central to conflict theory is the idea of the oppression of the proletariat by the bourgeoisie. The bourgeoisie, who control the modes of production in a capitalist society, control the proletariat through the exploitation of the proletariat's labor resource. According to Marx, those who are the ruling material force of society are also the ruling intellectual force. Thus, the bourgeoisie can maintain their status within the society, because as the ruling class, they create the laws through which society operates.

In addition to systematic oppression through the control of labor and wages, the bourgeoisie also manipulates the proletarian masses by creating competition between them. By emphasizing racial, ethnic, religious, and other differences, as well as the obviously competition for jobs and barely living wages, the bourgeoisie foster a sentiment of hostility between the proletariats, which makes it much more difficult for them to unite against the ruling class in an attempt to better their position in society. The labor situation within capitalism, Marx claimed, made it impossible for workers to recognize their species-being, or their full potential to perform. As the Industrial Revolution took hold, crafts disappeared, replaced by highly repetitive, unskilled positions within the numerous factories. This detaches workers from the product which they are making, because they never see the product from beginning to end. Workers became further detached from their labor as it became apparent that though they had a job, often they did not even make enough money to be able to buy the product that they assisted in producing.

Marx predicted a worker revolution, in which workers would indeed unite in their struggle for equality. This revolution never occurred, however. Possible reasons for this include improved safety standards, the movement away from heavy industrial labor towards an information and service based economy, the shortening of the work day to eight hours, the implementation of employee benefit and retirement plans, and the widespread American belief in achievement ideology. The American achievement ideology is especially notable; it has been one of the most successful pieces of propaganda promoted by the bourgeoisie, and has had such a drastic effect on the motivation of the youth in America, especially those minority youths who suffer the most from inequality. Also, the bourgeoisie could have shifted their control by manipulating another aspect of proletariat life, thus alleviating the stress from labor and placing it somewhere else - such as vice laws, including the Drug War.

MINORITIES: THE NEW PROLETARIAT

There are several parallels which should be addressed when viewing the Drug War in the light of conflict theory. If Marx's original conflict theory is based upon pitting the capitalist against the worker, then the Drug War pits the lawmakers against those affected by the laws. The means of the oppressor are slightly different, though the basic idea remains the same: whereas the oppressed in Marx's explanation of conflict theory is being used for his or her labor resources, the oppressed in the Drug War are either being used to "fill" the necessary slots in society for a lower class (and thus provide a larger pool of cheap labor, as well as ample recruitment opportunities for the US military), or to maintain the status quo of elite (and generally conservative) rule by denying key paths to success to those who are likely to challenge conservative ideals. Basically, keep the people in power in power, and push everyone not in power as far down as possible, until total dependency (and submission) to those in power is inevitable.

Laws against drug users are designed specifically to limit their opportunities in society. First (and probably most unjust) is the fact that these generally nonviolent drug felons are prohibited from voting in elections, even after they are released from prison. At this point, they have been robbed by one of the main rights and responsibilities of