Reflecting on Tuesday’s discussion, I started thinking about the \u00a0intersection between substance abuse, mental health, and imprisonment. Looking for further writing on the topic, I found the transcript of an interview that\u00a0Michelle Alexander gave to PBS’ Frontline for a two-part series \u00a0called “Locked Up In America.” In my view, one of the most potent parts of the dialogue\u00a0comes when she says that mentally ill people in ghetto communities<\/p>\n
“have little choice but to self-medicate, and when they do, when they decide to turn to marijuana or turn to cocaine or turn to some type of substance we\u2019ve designed, we\u2019ve decided is prohibited, is off-limits, then rather than responding to these people with drug treatment and say[ing], \u201cHow can we help you cope with your crisis and help you through this period of time and help you deal with your drug addiction?,\u201d instead we say: \u201cOh, the answer for you is a cage.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Her\u00a0suggestion that substances are\u00a0“designed” to be “prohibited” hints at deliberately crafted policies and their harsh impact on poor, mentally ill blacks\u00a0who enjoy less access\u00a0to the\u00a0prescription medications and therapy that their white counterparts enjoy. Alexander\u00a0thus suggests\u00a0that public officials can\u00a0modify drug policy to ensure that law enforcement does not punish mental illness, while also expanding treatment\u00a0options\u00a0that understands addiction as a medical problem instead of a criminal behavior. I left reading the transcript of her interview questioning how state- and federal-level interventions can intersect to\u00a0take mentally-ill drug offenders out of the prison pipeline and into\u00a0rehabilitative programs.<\/p>\n
For more information on the PBS series, check out the articles and films here<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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Reflecting on Tuesday’s discussion, I started thinking about the \u00a0intersection between substance abuse, mental health, and imprisonment. Looking for further writing on the topic, I found the transcript of an interview that\u00a0Michelle Alexander gave to PBS’ Frontline for a two-part series \u00a0called “Locked Up In America.” In my view, one of the most potent parts … Continue reading A Reflection On Mental Illness, Medicalization, and the Carceral State<\/span>