NAACP calls war on drugs racist, supports marijuana bill Political - California emily holding July 07 2010 The California State Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) announced their "unconditional support" of Prop 19, the initiative to legalize, regulate and tax marijuana, at a news conference last week. "We are joining a growing number of medical professionals, labor organizations, law enforcement authorities, local municipalities, and approximately 56 percent of the public in saying that it is time to decriminalize the use of marijuana," said Alice Huffman, President of the California State Conference of the NAACP, in a press release. The NAACP has criticized the war on drugs, calling it a failure because it has focused on low-level drug offenders, with the burden falling "disproportionately on people of color" rather than on drug lords. Stephen Gutwillig, California director of the Drug Policy Alliance, joined Huffman at the news conference to present the findings of a study titled "Targeting Blacks for Marijuana." The report showed that in the 25 largest California counties, blacks are arrested for marijuana possession more than whites, typically at double the rate and sometimes even quadruple. "The findings in this report are a chilling reminder of the day-to-day realities of marijuana prohibition and the large-scale racist enforcement at its core," said Gutwillig. "Racial justice demands ending this policy disaster and replacing it with a sensible regulatory system that redirects law enforcement to matters of genuine public safety. Proposition 19 is California's exit strategy from its failed war on marijuana." Prop 19 would legalize marijuana for adults over 21, allow small residential cultivation and permit cities to tax and regulate pot sales. Huffman and Gutwillig believe this is the way to get rid of racism in the drug war, but Sacramento minister Rob Allen could not disagree more. Allen, president of the International Faith-Based Coalition and bishop of the Greater Solomon Temple Community Church in Oak Park, insists legalizing marijuana poses a greater threat to African-Americans as it endangers youth and communities. For this reason, Allen, who is also a NAACP member, says he is disappointed with the state NAACP's backing of the initiative. "Most African American pastors are disappointed, absolutely disappointed with the decision," Allen told the Sacramento Bee. "If anyone should know the effects of illicit drugs in the black community, it should be one of our most respected civil rights organizations." Allen, along with the International Faith-Based Coalition, which represents 3,600 congregations, has scheduled a news conference at the state capitol to demand the resignation of Huffman "due to her ties with the marijuana lobby." http://sandiegonewsroom.com/news/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=42448:naacp-calls-war-on-drugs-racist-supports-marijuana-bill&catid=49:california&Itemid=50