We’ve seen cannabis laws across the country loosen up, but a new study provides data showing that minorities are being punished at an all time high. Data collected from both the cities of Los Angeles and Fresno by the Drug Policy Alliance and the ACLU of California show that black citizens are getting cited for cannabis four times as much as white citizens.
More from SF Gate:
“The disparity is worse than the rates at which blacks were arrested for simple possession of marijuana prior to 2011, when possession was a misdemeanor offense,” said Amanda Reiman, California Policy Manager of the Drug Policy Alliance. “In 2010, black were 2.2 times more likely than whites to be arrested for marijuana possession.”
Latinos are also arrested 1.7 times more than white people in Fresno and 1.4 times more in Los Angeles, despite similar usage levels throughout the two cities’ black, white, and Latino populations. The DPA contends that the rate could actually be much higher, however.
“California has a long history of data collection challenges regarding Latinos, who are often classified by law enforcement officers as white and thus undercounted,” said Reiman.
Reiman believes that AUMA, California’s upcoming ballot initiative to legalize marijuana, could do a lot to end the racial imbalance.
“It’s far past time to stop the bleeding of prohibition that has been centered in our most vulnerable communities, and legalize cannabis in California,” said Reiman. “Once we move cannabis into a regulated market, we can slowly dress the wound left by decades of disparate enforcement.”
The post California Marijuana Laws More Severe for Black Citizens appeared first on Potbox.
from
https://www.potbox.com/news/california-marijuana-laws-severe-black-citizens/
No comments:
Post a Comment