War on Drugs Archives

January 7, 2019

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BALTIMORE, MD - APRIL 27: Baltimore Police officers arrest a man near Mowdamin Mall, April 27, 2015 in Baltimore, Maryland. The funeral service for Freddie Gray, who died last week while in Baltimore Police custody, was held on Monday morning.

Even after decriminalization, nearly all of the people arrested for marijuana in Baltimore are black

By IBW21 | News & Current Affairs

There is a reason why the Baltimore Police Department was investigated by the Justice Department after the 2015 death of Freddie Gray. By Kelly Macias, Daily Kos — In 2014, when the state of Maryland voted to decriminalize the possession of 10 grams or less of marijuana, advocates said that it would help to reduce racial bias and systemic racism against black people. Even though data shows that blacks and whites use…

December 3, 2018

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Pan Africanism, Marijuana Policy, Gentrification — December 3rd Edition of Vantage Point Radio

By IBW21 | Vantage Point Radio, Video/Audio | No Comments

Topics: The 60th Anniversary of the All African People’s Conference, Ghana • The Marijuana Justice, Equity and Reinvestment Conference • Anti-Gentrification Campaign in Atlanta. Guests: Mwalimu K-Q Amsata (Coord., North American Pan African Federalist Congress, Flagler, FL), Kassandra Frederique (State Policy Director, Drug Policy Alliance, New York, NY) and Kamau Franklin (Founder, Community Movement Builders, Atlanta, GA)

October 29, 2018

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More Americans Than Ever Want Marijuana Legalized. Lawmakers Should Listen.

By IBW21 | Commentaries/Opinions

Nearly two-thirds of Americans want cannabis to be legal — but marijuana arrests are going up, not down. By Paul Armentano, Otherwords — Over 60 percent of Americans — including majorities of Republicans, independents, and Democrats — believe that the adult use of marijuana ought to be legal. And an estimated 20 percent of Americans now live in a state where cannabis use by those over the age of 21 is permitted.…

September 28, 2018

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NJCI - The state Assembly Oversight, Reform, and Federal Relations committee receives testimony in regards to cannabis legalization at the Statehouse Annex Committee Room in Trenton on March 05, 2018.

Black community leader: Legalizing weed should come with reparations to people of color

By IBW21 | Commentaries/Opinions

The state Assembly Oversight, Reform, and Federal Relations committee receives testimony in regards to cannabis legalization at the Statehouse Annex Committee Room in Trenton on March 05, 2018. Photo by Alexandra Pais, For NJ Advance Media. By Charles F. Boyer, NJ.com — Marijuana prohibition in New Jersey has been enforced by race and socio-economic status. African Americans are three times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession than whites even though…

June 25, 2018

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UN Special Rapporteur’s Report on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights

By IBW21 | Editors' Choice

Report of the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights on his mission to the United States of America Note by the Secretariat The Secretariat has the honour to transmit to the Human Rights Council the report of the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Philip Alston, on his mission to the United States of America from 1 to 15 December 2017. The purpose of the visit…

May 21, 2018

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IBW Supports “Reparatory Justice” for Drug War

By IBW21 | News & Current Affairs, Press Releases / Statements, Reparations, War on the “War on Drugs” Posts

New York, May 21 — The Institute of the Black World 21st Century (IBW) announced today that the organization supports initiatives in New York and around the country that seek to repair the devastating damages done to Black communities by the War on Drugs and racially biased criminal justice policies. As the struggle for drug and criminal justice policy reform intensifies in New York City and NY State among policy advocates…

May 9, 2018

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ew York gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon speaks at the NYC Cannabis Parade and Rally on May 5, 2018. Nixon has been criticized by black leaders for saying that marijuana licenses could be a “form of reparations.”

Cynthia Nixon called marijuana licenses a “form of reparations” for black people. Not exactly.

By IBW21 | Commentaries/Opinions, Reparations

Marijuana reform can help black communities. That doesn’t make it “reparations.” By P.R. Lockhart — New York gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon is facing criticism after suggesting that giving black people access to marijuana licenses could serve as a “form of reparations” for black communities. The controversy started after Nixon, who is challenging current Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the state’s upcoming Democratic primary, appeared at the NYC Cannabis Parade on May…

May 8, 2018

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A billion-dollar industry, a racist legacy: being black and growing pot in America

By IBW21 | Commentaries/Opinions

What does it take to succeed as a young black entrepreneur in a sector largely dominated by white men seen as daring trailblazers? By Rose Hackman — Three years ago, Jesce Horton, a former engineer in his early 30s, quit his corporate job to set up his own small, family-owned cannabis cultivation business in Portland, Oregon. Horton is part of a nascent industry that netted $6.7bn last year and is projected to reach $50bn by 2026….

May 7, 2018

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New York gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon speaks at the NYC Cannabis Parade at Union Square Park on May 5, 2018.

Cannabis Industry Could Be ‘A Form of Reparations’ Says Cynthia Nixon

By IBW21 | News & Current Affairs, Reparations

By Mona Zhang — “I don’t know whether you heard this or not, but I want to legalize cannabis in New York state,” said Cynthia Nixon on Saturday at the NYC Cannabis Parade. The crowd cheered for the candidate who is challenging Governor Andrew Cuomo. Nixon made marijuana a central part of her campaign when she announced adult-use legalization as her first policy plank in early April. On Saturday, she was one of…

April 18, 2018

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Image: Ronald Reagan, with Nancy Reagan, signing the Anti Drug Abuse Act of 1988

The Untold Story of Mass Incarceration

By IBW21 | Commentaries/Opinions

By Vesla M. Weaver — Two new books, including National Book Award nominee ‘Locking Up Our Own,’ address major blind spots about the causes of America’s carceral failure. Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America by James Forman, Jr.; Locked In: The True Causes of Mass Incarceration and How to Achieve Real Reform by John F. Pfaff