Involvement in Drug Abuse in the US Society - Essay Example

Criticism of the drug abuse laws in the United s The Us society has undergone socio-cultural surgery to the extent that even the law is to be put under screening for its effective usage in administration of the country. This can be supported by the fact that even some laws meant to reduce some of the common vices in this society is under scrutiny. The US is one of the countries that suffer relatively higher prevalence of drug abuse and this has immensely affected its societal framework by inducing unprecedented cases of extreme weird behavior among the victims. The laws that were put forward to deal with this sensitive issue of drugs are seemingly stringent and almost enslaving hence not playing the rehabilitation role they are meant for but instead infringing to human rights. It is in this respect that some of such statutes have attracted criticism across the nation and beyond. The federal government enacted laws that was meant to mitigate abuse of hard drugs and this umbrella statute has always been adopted by the various states in managing their own cases (Mays and Latham, 28-56). One of the most conspicuous declarations of these hard drugs possession maxims is that the punishments depend on the severity of the offense committed under the influence or abuse of drug. The harshest part of the law established to guard against drug required that any body found in possession of drug must be taken for a minimum mandatory sentence irrespective of any other factor. In the general social perspective, this law attracted mixed reaction from different people and most of the sociologists and legal professionals criticized it to be impractical and theoretically inhuman (Swartz, 34-61). The point in this case is that drug related laws are meant to help in rehabilitating the society and realigning the moral standards in the society if used well. Imposing such a blanket rule seemed to worsen the situation since the circumstances under which the victims abused the drugs or the social and economic wellbeing were not given any attention. It is important to note that this kind of statute just increased the population in jails and this is not healthy for the general society. The argument on this criticism was that the idea of ending up in jail for even first time attempt initiated a psychological discomfort among people and this made many people to be hopeless with the law and the general society which indirectly lead to an exponential rise in drug abuse victims against the expected impact of such law. The issue of unfairness to the minority groups by this law was also at play (Newton, 21-24). This was with particular reference to the pregnant women, the children and the elderly in the society. These are people in the society that need to be considered under special cases when dealing with law as the umbrella statute on drugs is likely to shake the society negatively if they are indiscriminately subjected to the same harsh legal provisions. Some critics pointed out that there are cases where the elderly is also having responsibilities of caring for some people and if subjected to the mandatory minimum penalty, the people under their care would greatly be affected negatively. Another legal bill pushed forward a statute that required all the tenants to observe non-existent abuse or possession of drugs within or around their premises. This zero-tolerance legal policy posed one of the greatest injustices by the law against what it was meant to achieve (Romero, 45-50). It imperative to accept that in most circumstances some tenants would not be in a position to supervise all the illegal activities concealed by people around the premises or may be ignorant about the drugs appearance and usage. In such cases, the law was not considerate in convicting such people and this was seen as a violation of human rights through fair justice. The eviction policy was particularly subjective to the elderly who could not afford alternative accommodation and this rendered the law inefficient and enslaving the very people it should protect. The zero tolerance law is discriminative and raised eyebrows from its immense direct effect on the minority group like the elderly who could not seek an alternative way of getting fair justice. The disproportionate penalties across different communities in the US is also a great challenge in the sense that the blacks seemed to get longer sentencing period and this is not fair. Another challenge that the US legal system on drugs seem to fail on is the mode and side of its approach towards management of the menace of drug abuse. It tend to control drug abuse from the supply side rather than demand side and this opens a loop hole within the social system that leave many people vulnerable to even greater abuse through black market operation (Newton, 21-24). The discordance of law between the supply control and suppression of demand has been responsible for the increased cases of drug related legal battles between the stat and the citizens. There is the bill that highlights the penalties of one being caught with Marijuana which seems too complex for no reason since at the end of a lengthy legal procedure, the culprits are barely sentenced or jailed for a very short period of time. Involvement in drug abuse itself is already costing the US society in various ways ranging from social to economic aspects. The complex and ineffective legal system is even adding to the burden of the country and this explains why there is this type of wide criticism from different people. Comprehensive legal system must capture the structural component of the society and strive to improve the welfare of citizens rather than punishing them. It is therefore imperative that some of such laws aimed at reducing the cases of drug abuse be critically assessed and reviewed to fit the dynamism of the contemporary society (Mays and Latham, 28-56). The emerging trend in changes of the social, economic and political model of the society compels the US to scrutinize its laws and ensure that they are consistent with the demands of the current liberal society. Unless the legal provisions are reorganized, war against drug abuse in the society may not bear fruits. Works cited Hart, Carl L, and Charles Ksir. Drugs, Society, & Human Behavior. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. Print. Retrieved on 10th march 2013 from : http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=pP6fMgEACAAJ&dq=Drugs,+Society,+%26+Human+Behavior&hl=en&sa=X&ei=OqU7UbKROOaL7AagvYHgDA&ved=0CCwQ6AEwAA Mays, G L, and Latham T. Winfree. Essentials of Corrections. Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning, 2008,pg28-56. Print. Retrieved on 10th march 2013 from : http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=4af2Ko82tZIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Essentials+of+Corrections&hl=en&sa=X&ei=iqU7Ub_2GtGP7AbInoGoDw&ved=0CDAQuwUwAA Newton, Michael. Gangs and Gang Crime. New York, NY: Chelsea House, 2009, pg 21-24. Internet resource. Retrieved on 10th march 2013 from : http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=wLNZ10G5B4sC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Gangs+and+Gang+Crime&hl=en&sa=X&ei=vqU7UZSmKIKS7AbjwoHIAg&ved=0CC8QuwUwAA Romero, Fernando. Hyperborder: The Contemporary U.s.-Mexico Border and Its Future. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2008,pg 45-50. Print. Retrieved on 10th march 2013 from : http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=3wnHR8GeATYC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Hyperborder:+The+Contemporary+U.s.-Mexico+Border+and+Its+Future&hl=en&sa=X&ei=xKU7UeO0IM-y7Aa4oID4Cw&ved=0CC8QuwUwAA Swartz, James. Substance Abuse in America: A Documentary and Reference Guide. Santa Barbara, Calif: Greenwood, 2012,pg 34-61 . Print. Retrieved on 10th march 2013 from : http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=TR7YUGYZXPAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Substance+Abuse+in+America:+A+Documentary+and+Reference+Guide&hl=en&sa=X&ei=yqU7UcbCCIfR7AaouoBo&ved=0CC8QuwUwAA Read More