Events
1970 U.S. Prison Population
357,292 (0.17%)1980 U.S. Prison Population
513,900 (0.23%)1990 U.S. Prison Population
1,179,200 (0.47%)2000 U.S. Prison Population
2,015,200 (0.71%)2014 U.S. Prison Population
2,306,200 (0.72%)1970 Canada Prison Pop. Rate
0.1%1980 Canada Prison Pop. Rate
0.1%1990 Canada Prison Pop. Rate
0.12%2000 Canada Prison Pop. Rate
0.11%2014 Canada Prison Pop. Rate
0.11%June 1971 - Nixon declares "War on Drugs"
stating drug abuse was "public enemy
number one"Aug. 1977 - Jimmy Carter campaign, "I support
legislation amending Federal law to eliminate all
Federal criminal penalties for the possession of
up to one ounce of marijuana.”Sept. 1986 - In an effort to raise awareness for
drug abuse, Nancy Reagan kicks off her "Just
Say No" campaign1990 China Prison Pop. Rate
0.1%2000 China Prison Pop. Rate
0.11%2014 China Prison Pop. Rate
0.12%Oct. 1986 - Reagan signs Anti-Drug Abuse Act,
criticized for promoting racial disparities in the
prison population1981 - Lee Atwater has infamous interview
unveiling the Southern Strategy to persuade
racist voters without sounding racistJuly 2015 - Obama becomes first sitting
president to visit a prison, spoke on the extreme
incarceration rates and non-violent crimesOct. 1989 - H.W. Bush creates the Office of
National Drug Control Policy, "drug czar" William
Bennett aims to make drugs socially unacceptableSept. 1994 - The Violent Crime Control and Law
Enforcement Act is signed under the Clinton
administration, fast-tracked a generation of
black men into prisonJuly 2015 - Bill Clinton apologizes for the 1994
Federal Crime Act at NAACP convention, "I
signed a bill that made the problem worse, and I
want to admit it."2017 U.S. Prison Population: 1,486,000 (0.46%)
Declining due to: declining crime rates, declining
number of arrests, and reduction in sentences
for drug-related crimesApril 1989 - Trump takes out full-page ads in 4
city newspapers calling for the execution of the
Central Park Five, who were innocent
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