Mexican Drug War The United States And - amazonia.fiocruz.br

Among the countries targeted was Mexico, which was home to abundant marijuana production and had been resistant to aerial crop spraying.

Rights abuses

Nearly 50 years later, the war on drugs has left a trail of destruction. Almost 72, Americans died as a result of drug overdoses last year.

People of color have been disproportionally hurt by mass incarceration for drug offenses, devastating families and communities. And law enforcement efforts against drug crimes are behind many police killings, including that of Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Ky.

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Here in Mexico, I have spent the last decade and a half covering what more closely resembles a real war. In the 14 years since then, Mexico has suffered more thanhomicides, many at the hands of cartel gunmen or the security forces fighting them. And to rub salt in the wounds, some of the very security officials leading this war in Mexico are accused of working with the cartels. A former secretary of defense, Salvador Cienfuegos, is also accused of working with traffickers; he was indicted in New York but on Here prosecutors agreed to drop the charges and transfer him to Mexico, where the government says the inquiry will continue.

But many here wonder if justice really extends to the powerful in this war.

Yet along with this record of failure, there is an opportunity to forge a new path on drug policy on both sides of the Rio Grande. And Mexico is poised to create the most populous legal marijuana zone.

Following a Mexican Supreme Court ruling in that cannabis prohibition is unconstitutional, the Senate is working on a December deadline to pass a legalization law. The bill would allow people to possess up to 28 grams a little under an ounce and cultivate up to four plants.

Mexican Drug War : Mexico

The leaders of both countries should follow those examples. President-elect Joe Biden has promised justice reform but Mexifan is unclear what concrete measures he will take. A focus on reforming drug policy could give him some direction. After Nixon declared his war on drugs, he talked in absolutist terms of stopping any drugs being available.]