Sen. Rand Paul, Kentucky Republican, wrote Tuesday that tensions in communities such as Ferguson, Missouri, are emblematic of larger problems with the country’s criminal justice system and the so-called “War on Drugs,” pledging to continue the fight for reforms while calling for a leader outside of politics to preach “a gospel of hope and prosperity.”
“In Ferguson, the precipitating crime was not drugs, but theft,” Mr. Paul wrote in a piece for Time. “But the War on Drugs has created a tension in some communities that too often results in tragedy.”
He went on to write that three out of four people in jail for drugs are people of color and that African-Americans “perceive as true” that their children are more likely to be killed.
“Can some of the disparity be blamed on a higher rate of crime in the black community? Yes, but there is a gnawing feeling that simply being black in a high-crime area increases your risk for a deadly altercation with police,” he wrote. “Does bad behavior account for some of the interactions with law enforcement? Yes, but surely there must be ways that we can work to prevent the violence from escalating.”
Mr. Paul, who has traveled to Ferguson since the Aug. 9 incident in which white police officer Darren Wilson killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, has actively worked to expand the Republican party’s reach to inner city locations, such as Detroit.
A grand jury has determined there was not sufficient evidence to bring criminal charges against Officer Wilson, prompting a wave of protests in Ferguson and across the country this week.
Mr. Paul, who is actively considering a 2016 presidential bid, wrote that the link between poverty, lack of education, and children outside of marriage “cuts across all racial groups.”
He wrote that escaping the “poverty and crime trap” requires more than just criminal justice reform and that “if the plan doesn’t include the self-discovery of education, work, and the self-esteem that comes with work, the cycle of poverty will continue.”
He wrote that he’ll continue to fight to end racial disparities in drug sentencing, and on issues like restoring rights for non-violent felons.
“I will continue the fight to reform our nation’s criminal justice system, but in the meantime, the call should go out for a charismatic leader, not a politician, to preach a gospel of hope and prosperity,” he wrote. “I have said often America is in need of a revival. Part of that is spiritual. Part of that is in civics, in our leaders, in our institutions. We must look at policies, ideas, and attitudes that have failed us and we must demand better.
“Real solutions will include a revival of spirit, purpose, and action. I, for one, pledge to be part of those solutions,” he concluded.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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