Its been a long time since I have sat down to write a new post. I'm hoping putting my inner thoughts and fears about what may soon be changing drastically re long ongoing attempts to reform our criminal justice system, with a new (Trump) Administration about to replace the current one in the White House, will somehow help assuage those anxieties today.
Until my family found ourselves tumbling down the 'rabbit hole' that leads to America's Prison World I admit I knew next to nothing about where we, as a nation, had evolved/devolved in regards to our criminal justice system, in particular in re the Governments 'War on Drugs', ongoing since Nixon officially declared it a 'war' in 1970. However, the ten year journey my son, my family embarked on, and survived, in the crazy, upside down netherworld that is America's Prison World, taught me more than I ever wanted to know, much of it how to live with the pain of having a loved one encarcerated, how to help that person live through the experience and come out on the other side as undamaged as possible, and prepared to begin a new, and hopefully a good and successful life. We have seen progress in reforms, mostly "proposed" reforms still in the works, as many in Congress, on both sides of the aisle, have come to realize the enormity of the problems created through mass encarceration, the unfairness of the minimum and mandatory sentencing structure, the cost, financial and in lives, to such a system. We have an entire Prison Industrial Complex, including Private-for Profit Prisons, run by private corporations, costing the tax payer Billions annually, but enriches the many individuals and corporations invested in warehousing human beings. However, the reforms, and "proposed' reforms that have taken so so long to come about, now face a very real and present danger.
With the results of the November election many fear that the reforms and hopes for reform will be stopped dead in their tracks. I read this interesting posting on Professor Bermans blog this morning (Sentencing Law and Policy), written by Bill Piper, and in it we are warned about what to expect going forward:
Monday, November 21, 2016

"Four Ways Drug Policy Reformers Must Play It Smart Under the Trump Administration"

The title of this post is the headline of this notable new commentary by Bill Piper, which gets started this way:

"I began working, advocating and lobbying for federal-level drug policy reform in Washington, DC in the last year of Bill Clinton’s presidency. I’ve continued to do so ever since: I was a loyal soldier in the war against the War on Drugs through eight years of George W. Bush and then eight years of Barack Obama. But now, with the election of Donald Trump, it feels like the work during those three presidencies was just basic training—the real challenge is just beginning.

Like many people, I’m still trying to wrap my mind around the very idea of Donald Trump as president. But what’s certain is that drug policy reformers are going to have to play it smart in the new era, and I do have some initial thoughts.

First, we’re in uncharted territory. We have never had a president like this—so far removed from establishment norms, openly promoting white supremacy, believing in and promoting wacko conspiracy theories. Complicating matters, he doesn’t seem to have fixed positions, rarely gives specifics and contradicts himself often. No one knows for sure what exactly to expect, but we should assume the worst.

His administration, which looks set to be staffed by drug-war extremists, could go after state marijuana laws. Instead of just opposing sentencing reform, they could push for new mandatory minimums. They might demonize drugs and drug sellers to build support for mass deportations and a wall. Trump’s law-and-order rhetoric could fundamentally alter the political environment, nationally and locally.

Right now there is a bipartisan consensus in favor of reducing incarceration—that consensus is in danger. We could be set back decades if we’re not careful. We need to rethink a lot of what we’ve been planning and think about how we message. And it’s more important than ever that we support our allies in other movements and stand strong for racial justice. We need to re-learn how to play defense."

*Bill Piper is the senior director of DPA’s office of national affairs in Washington, D.C., where he is responsible for developing and implementing strategies for ending the federal war on drugs. He lobbies Congress in support of cutting drug war waste, protecting state marijuana laws from federal interference, reforming draconian sentencing laws, re-structuring federal law enforcement agencies, and preventing drug overdoses and the spread of HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C.
http://www.drugpolicy.org/staff-and-board/staff/bill-piper-senior-director-national-affairs

"War grows out of the desire of the individual to gain advantage at the expense of his fellow man". ~Napoleon Hill