Marijuana Policing Destroys Lives Every Week in Boston
Even though Massachusetts overwhelmingly passed marijuana decriminalization in 2008, right now an average of 13 people every week are arrested or harassed by the police because of marijuana.
Just one arrest can permanently change one’s life for the worse, causing barriers to employment, schooling, and housing.
The data shows the majority of police interactions and arrests for marijuana offenses occur in neighborhoods where mostly people of color live.
Let’s explore the data from the 2014 census and the data produced daily by the Boston Police Department.
46% of Boston’s population is white
25% of Boston’s population is Black
And 29% of Boston’s population is other people of color
As you can see, the city is racially segregated
White
People of color
White
People of color
Now let’s look at where police harass and arrest people because of marijuana.
This is where marijuana incidents happened last week
and this is where marijuana incidents happened since August 2015
Do you notice a pattern?
White
People of color
White
People of color
We can help end racially biased policing of marijuana!
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