In the mid 1980’s, the rise of crack was portrayed as an “urban” or non-affluent problem. In response to this, rather than addressing “the range of economic (and social) issues plaguing increasingly marginalized inner-city neighborhoods across the country,” the Reagan administration further escalated the War on Drugs (Massaro, 373).
However, the harshest penalties and consequences for drugs were reserved for racial minorities and the poor. For example: “In 1988, the Omnibus Anti-Drug Abuse Act expanded the law to allow for harsher criminalization of crack cocaine users. A possession of 5 g would result in a five-year minimum sentence, while powder cocaine possession [the drug of choice for more affluent individuals] for the same amount would only result in a one-year maximum sentence” (Santoro & Santoro).