"War on Drugs" is Nothing More Than a Racist Dog Whistle
<p>During my first year as a psychology student, I learned about some harmful misconceptions people hold about addiction. For starters, people can become addicted to just about anything, not just drugs and alcohol, as the police officer who visited our elementary school told us. Some people develop an addiction to sugar, others gambling, shopping, or playing video games. And yes, many people do become addicted to drugs. In psychology, this is known as a substance use disorder, and according to the National Institute of Health, it refers to someone's "<a href="https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/substance-use-and-mental-health#:~:text=Occurring%20Mental%20Disorders-,Overview,most%20severe%20form%20of%20SUD." rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank"><strong>inability</strong></a> to control their use of substances like legal or illegal drugs, alcohol, or medications." The keyword that caught my eye was "inability," since before learning about substance abuse disorder, I often heard people blame and berate people struggling with addiction.</p>
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