War on Drugs: The Prison Industrial Complex

Overview

The war on drugs has been going on for more than three decades. Today, nearly 500,000 Americans are imprisoned on drug charges. In 1980 the number was 50,000. Last year $40 billion in taxpayer dollars were spent in fighting the war on drugs. As a result of the incarceration obsession, the United States operates the largest prison system on the planet. Today, 89 percent of police departments have paramilitary units, and 46 percent have been trained by active duty armed forces. The most common use of paramilitary units is serving drug-related search warrants, which usually involve no-knock entries into private homes.

Details

Status

Released

Release date

October 7, 1999

Original language

English

Spoken languages

English

Countries

Netherlands, United States of America

Production

VPRO

Budget

Not recorded

Revenue

Not recorded