Policing practices, not drug laws, drive most racial disparities in sanctions

Evidence

Much of the disparity evident in drug sanctions is attributable to differences in the ways in which Blacks and Black communities are policed—not the drug policies themselves. Police are much more likely to engage in aggressive, proactive drug law enforcement in Black communities and when encountering Black citizens. Tactics such as the use of pretextual stops hidden behind minor law violations (often combined with consent searches), pats down based on ambiguously suspicious behaviors, and zero tolerance policing are all much more likely to impact Black Americans. Unless and until these ineffective and often counterproductive law enforcement practices are reformed, racial disparities in drug sanctioning will persist despite policy reforms. — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 1094

Categorization

• ADDENDUM: Parallel to the ‘Grafting & Growth’ article’s theme that surface-level changes leave underlying infrastructure intact — law enforcement practices here function as the unaddressed root system.