My first Magazine Final Draft Multimodal Project 4 | Page 4

Illegal drugs are a lifestyle choice that pose little threat to anyone other than the individual opting
to use them. Popularized by hippies in the 1960’s, they were and continue to be largely used by
those looking to escape a society controlled by wealthy white men. The criminalization of drugs,
particularly the drastic increase of prison time attached to the trafficking, possession and use of
banned substances can be attributed to the moral objection that legislators held towards them.
President Nixon came to power in 1976 amidst the controversy of the Vietnam War. The nation
was divided between conservatives who unquestioningly believed that American youth ought to
fight to preserve democracy and liberals lodging protests against the idea of war. The pot-smok-
ing left endorsed the idea of “live and let live” while the right found it difficult to conceal their
disdain for hippies. The vast majority of those holding positions of power in America aligned
themselves with conservatives. To combat the perceived anarchy that the liberals embraced,
morality-based legislation was enacted to curb what many considered un-American behavior.
President Nixon advocated for a War on Crime, ultimately redefining the scope of what consti-
tuted a serious criminal offense, and the nation’s prisons burgeoned in size.