People Against Crack

White text outlined in black on a blue background with a piece of white wall that has a crack

The 1980s were marked by drug hysteria and high incarceration rates. Then President Ronald Reagan’s zero tolerance policy—dubbed The War on Drugs—was targeted especially towards users of crack cocaine, which in turn disproportionately impacted people of color and those impacted by poverty. 

Reagan’s anti-drug campaign was highly effective: in 1985 a poll revealed that only 2-6% of Americans saw drug abuse as a top concern. By 1989, however, that number shot up to 64%. Although subsequent presidents were outwardly more lax in their drug policies, heavy criminalization continued. By1997, there were over 400,000 nonviolent drug offenders in prison. As of 2023, public perception has largely shifted, and criminalization has been reduced significantly in favor of more treatment-based approaches.