Systemic racism, inequity, and rampant prejudice exist in America?
Yes, absolutely! But it’s not caused by the reasons you may think. Want to actually fix the problem vs white-washing the symptoms? Here’s how:
1) Abolish All Racist Drug Laws
20+ million black Americans have been arrested for non-violent drug-related crimes. Whether or not they were targeted and prosecuted by a racist police force and/or a racist legal system is nonconsequential. The outcome is the same: existing racist drug laws on our books punish and condemn African Americans disproportionately to white Americans.
These racist drug laws should be abolished!
Every drug should be made legal. The state and local government(s) cannot be in the business of attempting to police morality, as it did once before with alcohol and attempts to do more so everyday (prostitution, gambling laws, etc).
As any critically-thinking person understands, making consumption/use of something illegal does not get rid of it; in fact it often magnifies its use by creating black markets and huge incentives. These work as magnets, pulling people away from more legitimate work. They also breed violence and gangs and “drug wars.”
In short, racist drugs laws—while both ineffectual and immoral—perpetuate the very problems it tries to solve! Our “war on drugs” has cost more money, taken more time, ruined more lives, and been less effective than any other war in our history…with perhaps the exception being our “war on poverty.”
Our attempts to police morality have led to racist policies that serve to promote the very things we hope to avoid in our culture: violence and lack of work for black and underserved communities.
Millions of African Americans have had their **lives destroyed** by a single felony charge related to drug use or sale. This is the most systemic and incideous of all the racist laws we have on the books.
Abolishing racist drug laws will allow both poorer disenfranchised Americans and blacks in lower income neighborhoods from continually being made a perpetual victim of violence and abhorrent racism.
Instead of just paying lip service to the #blm movement and virtue signaling, actually do something next time you vote and *demand any racist state drug laws you see on the ballot to be appealed immediately.*
We must also make a stand against all federal drug laws. Non-violent “offenders” flood our prisons and we steal their futures because of these racist antidrug policies and laws.
2) End Racist Occupational Licensing Laws.
Ironically, every year millions of black and other racial groups are prohibited from entering legitimate marketplaces and building their own businesses because of government regulation in place for “their own good and safety.”
These laws are flagrantly racist in their implementation. They make it harder or impossible for many black and/or poor individuals to open up their own salons, florists, and a hundred other honest jobs. Instead, many turn to blackmarket drug sales or other lucrative ventures which can be conducted without onerous government overreach.
Why disincentivize people from creating legitimate jobs by mandating the government play a role in their creation? End racist occupational licensing laws today!
3) End Racist Minimum Wage Laws
Ironically, once again, the government steps on its own toes and disenfranchises the very people it hopes to help: the poor!
And sadly in many cases, young black Americans are made the worst off because of these state and federal racist minimum wage laws.
Minimum wage laws put an artificial price floor in place that steals literally hundreds of thousands of jobs every year from the African American community. Those who would be given a job at a lower wage (especially younger people like high school kids, ie those most in need of structure and discipline!) are instead not given a job at all. Because of racist minimum wage laws blacks are kept from working. They are kept unemployed instead of allowed to work at a lower rate—due to this racist policy.
Ending racist minimum wage laws would allow for millions of younger Americans across the country to work, whereas today they are left out of the workforce completely—an unintended, but entirely predictable, consequence of government meddling.
4) End Racist “Equal Pay for Equal Work” and Racist Job Discrimination Policies
These policies also ironically severely hurt the very class(es) of people the government hopes to help. A small business person who might otherwise overcome his/her prejudices and hire a person at a lower rate (to serve his/her own economic interests) now would not hire the black or under-represented person at all!
Government, even with the best of intentions, cannot be seen as an effective tool to stomp out all that is unfair in this world. The government cannot prevent all bigotry or racism; but it is currently actively *promoting* it through mail-incentives.
The free market would allow for people to gain employment whom would otherwise not get it. For employment even at a lower rate is better than no employment at all. Again, this may not be “fair,” but life is not fair and some government policies, in an attempt to right all wrongs, just perpetuates bad behavior vs allowing the free market to actually cure or remediate the disease. It only make things so much worse.
Additionally, due to other such racist government programs the employer now must be fearful of lawsuits and other legal reaction of not just his actions but also his employees. So he/she will be less willing to hire someone of color, gender, sexual orientation etc for greater fear of frivolous lawsuits. All poorly crafted and racist misincentives, courtesy of the government’s attempts to help.
Help lend your voice and support ending these unfair and racist policies and make the America safer, more free, and less bigoted.
