Skip to main content

Donald Trump's Bizarre Explanation for Charlotte Unrest: "Drugs"

Submitted by Phillip Smith on (Issue #945)
Consequences of Prohibition
Politics & Advocacy

This article was produced in collaboration with AlterNet and first appeared here.

Donald Trumps blames unrest in Charlotte on "drugs." (Gage Whitmore/Wikipedia)
Donald Trump's efforts to reach out to the black community took yet another stumble-footed turn Thursday when he went off-script to blame the unrest shaking Charlotte this week not on police violence or racial inequality, but drugs.

"If you're not aware, drugs are a very, very big factor in what you're watching on television," the GOP contender claimed. He offered no evidence to support his claim.

Charlotte is only the latest American city to see outbreaks of street violence amid protests over the police killings of black men. In this case, it was the gunning down of Keith Scott Tuesday by an undercover Charlotte police officer. Scott's family maintains he was unarmed and holding only a book, while police say he was armed and they recovered a weapon at the scene. Police have so far refused to release body-cam video of the killing.

Casually blaming "drugs" for the community anger over the Scott killing is in line with Trump's effort to portray himself as a "law and order" candidate who will protect the black community. But that's a tough sell in minority areas where relations with police are, to put it mildly, fraught.

Trump is trailing Hillary Clinton by roughly 80 percentage points among African-American voters, and this is just the latest off-kilter attempt to woo them. Telling them they live in blighted communities hasn't worked, telling them they're living in the worst time ever for black Americans hasn't worked, relying on the likes of Don King hasn't worked. Blaming the unrest in Charlotte on "drugs" is unlikely to turn the tide, either.

But Trump is trying to make that "law and order" appeal.

"There is no compassion in tolerating lawless conduct. Crime and violence is an attack on the poor, and will never be accepted in a Trump Administration," he said at the beginning of remarks to the Shale Insight Convention. "Our job is not to make life more comfortable for the violent disrupter, but to make life more comfortable for the African-American parent trying to raise their kids in peace, to walk their children to school and to get their children a great education. We have to cherish and protect those people."

But then he ad-libbed his "drugs" remark, once again stereotyping the black community and contributing to the suspicion that his efforts to reach out to African-Americans are really aimed not at winning black votes but at convincing moderate Republicans and independents that he's not a racist.

And he followed up with a shoutout to law enforcement. He praised police for risking their lives, although he did acknowledge that they could make mistakes.

"Police are entrusted with immense responsibility, and we must do everything we can to ensure they are properly trained, that they respect all members of the public, and that any wrongdoing is always vigorously addressed," Trump said. "But our men and women in blue also need our support, our thanks, and our gratitude. They are the line separating civilization from total chaos."

And drugs.

(This article was prepared by StoptheDrugWar.org's lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also pays the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)

Permission to Reprint: This content is licensed under a modified Creative Commons Attribution license. Content of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear courtesy of DRCNet Foundation, unless otherwise noted.

Comments

sjr (not verified)

People greedy for power seem to always have a scapegoat at hand to blame and deflect accusations to. 
 
I hate to hear the ignorant BS that without cops society would descend into hand-to-hand combat between us all as we try to rape, loot & pillage each other. 
 
Both Clinton and Trump stink. 
Sat, 09/24/2016 - 1:06pm Permalink
saynotohypocrisy (not verified)

The cops are saying that they noticed marijuana and were going to overlook it and then noticed the gun which as far as they knew wasn't a crime in open carry North Carolina, but after noticing the gun they decided not to overlook the weed.

The war on weed strikes again. Shouldn't this be on STDW list of domestic war on drugs law enforcement related deaths?

Sun, 09/25/2016 - 2:42pm Permalink
sicntired (not verified)

That's what makes 99% of what he says so funny.He tries to pretend to be a man of the people when he's really an elitist and owes his fortune to government handouts.If he ever becomes President,and I doubt Hillary would be any better,we're all in big trouble.The police are hired by the rich to keep the poor in their place.They are used to break people's movements,unions and demonstrations against the overreach of elitist power.They are the foot soldiers of the war on drugs.

Mon, 09/26/2016 - 8:40am Permalink
William Aiken (not verified)

Unfortnately, the issue of drug policy has had no traction in this election. Thus, when Trump makes these absurd comments, the media never presses him to explain them. Mike Pence has been the worst on drug policy and could influence Trump on turning back the clock to the 90s.

Mon, 09/26/2016 - 10:36am Permalink
LEAP_Speaker (not verified)

Donald Trump has proven time and time again he has no idea about the laws, or the history of these United States, or even what the United States Constitution or Bill of Rights say. He thinks having police stop citizens with no probable cause of a crime is a good thing.

If you're dressed in black parked in an ally behind a business at 3 AM, cops need to talk to you. If you're walking down the street at 3 PM or 3 AM, you should not be stopped by police unless officers can point to specifics that gave them probable cause to believe a crime had been committed or was about to be committed.

In Trump's America police could stop and frisk anyone anytime for guns. That's to keep us safe of course, and if they happen to find drugs, just imagine how great house to house searches would be in trump's America.

Thu, 09/29/2016 - 3:14pm Permalink
saynotohypocrisy (not verified)

To reduce conflict between police and the community, and in particular the black community.

Disempowering international and local gangs, restoring freedom to use a far safer substance than alcohol, providing desperately needed jobs and taxes for government, providing an alternative to killer alcohol and opiates and toxic exorbitantly priced big pharma concoctions, and improving race relations and police-community relations.

Relegalizing weed should be a no brainer. All the more so if you are familiar with its virulently racist origins.

Which makes the views of most police unions, and their refusal to honestly discuss cannabis, and alcohol vs. cannabis, all the more galling.  

Sat, 10/01/2016 - 1:50pm Permalink

Add new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.