>my second point is...MOST PEOPLE THAT ARE IN PRISON ARE IN
>FOR NON-VIOLENT OFFENSES. so your point about pedophiles and
>murderers is moot cuz no one is saying "let the serial
>killers stay free." your point about "pimps" is always moot
>because few ppl actually go to prison for facilitating
>prostitution. pimps are usually in jail for a drug related
>offense or a violent crime.
Just because your crime is "non-violent", does that mean that you are less of a "threat" to society? You may not be likely to go bust a cap in a brother's head, but are your crimes a threat to the FABRIC of society? And by the way, I personally know 2 pimps who have done time for "facilitating prostitution"...my wife's father and her half-brother. Convicted for a prostitution ring...hookers on the street, "massage" parlors, a couple of brothels, the whole 9.

>lastly, when we talk about criminalization of drug
>trafficking, we need to be explicitly clear about the drug
>trade. DEALERS DONT MAKE PPL USE DRUGS. if there were no
>Black dealers, Black ppl will use illicit drugs. i'm of the
>opinion that we need to have a better (and by better, i mean
>more honest and non-condemning) conversation on why folks
>use drugs. simply ask two questions, "what's a drug?" and
>"are all drugs bad?"
>
>the real problem with the drug trade, imo, is the violence
>that surrounds it. that's what's truly detrimental to the
>community.
A couple of comments on the drug subject...you say dealers don't "make" people use drugs. That may be true, but they certainly are a vital part of the "support system" that feeds people's weaknesses...and that has been known to decimate communities...one of the ways that this decimation takes place is via the violence that you refer to...not to mention contributing to the breakdown of the family unit and increases in other forms of crime as well. As far as the criminalization of the drug trade, I am well aware of the fact that the Black kid selling rocks with a 9mm in his waistband is going to be looked at by "white society" as much more of a menace than the white Ivy league school graduate who owns a brokerage or a law firm that is laundering money for his partner's thriving business of importing and wholesaling cocaine from Bolivia. That is where racism rears it's ugly head once again in the legal system. But all that being said, the young brother selling pain and death, and participating in the CYCLE of pain and death still needs to be LOCKED UP. For what crime? Treason, in my opinion.