Special reports cocaine, conspiracy theories and the cia in. The crack epidemic the history of crack cocaine drugfree. Aug 30, 2012 in october 1998, the cia released a declassified version of hitzs twovolume report, and the cia was cleared of its alleged complicity in the spread of crackcocaine in to the innercities. It was followed by other articles and editorials declaring that the crack cocaine crisis had been created by the cia andor agents of the united states government. Gary webb in his own words 2002 cia cocaine dark alliance. Other government reports central intelligence agency.
Crack cocaine is a potent form of cocaine, which is a drug derived from the coca plant from south america. On august 18, 1996, the san jose mercury news published the first installment of a threepart series of articles concerning crack cocaine, the central intelligence agency cia, and the nicaraguan contra. The crack cocaine epidemic 1980s and 1990s the largest explosion of crack cocaine users originally occurred in the. Although they may have used it in some of their covert tests, i doubt they are the ones who invented it. A former cia officer, john vanderwerker, confirmed to schou that nelson and lister knew each other webb p195. Snowfall is a onehour drama set against the infancy of the crack cocaine epidemic and its ultimate radical impact on the culture as we know it. The cia, the drug dealers, and the tragedy of gary webb. Later in the same region, while the cia was sponsoring a secret war in laos from 1961 to 1975, it was openly accused of trafficking heroin in the area then known as the.
The crackling sound of the cocaine rocks popping brought forth the name crack in modern drug lexicon. The history of crack michaels house treatment centers. Did the cia play a role in launching the crackcocaine epidemic. A ciasponsored drug ring funneled millions of dollars in drug profits to the nicaraguan contra rebels and, in the process, opened the first pipeline for crack. Congress passed laws that created a 100 to 1 sentencing disparity for the possession or trafficking of crack when compared to. It refuted charges that cia officials knew that their nicaraguan allies were dealing drugs. Blacks were targeted for cia cocaine it can be proven. Decadesold cia crackcocaine scandal gains new momentum. Oct 10, 2014 in his report, webb who had won a pulitzer in 1989 for a different story claimed that the cia was partly responsible for bringing crack cocaine to the united states in the 1980s. Gary webb linked the cia to americas introduction to crack cocaine. Allegations of a cia connection to crack cocaine epidemic select. From the 1980s epidemic of the drug, to general facts and statistics, gain a better understanding of how the drug became what is it today, and how it.
Based on a yearlong investigation, reporter gary webb wrote that during the 1980s the cia helped finance its covert war against nicaraguas leftist government through sales of cutrate cocaine to south central l. The central intelligence agency cia was involved in cocainetrafficking during the 1980s. Six weeks after the declassified and heavily censored first volume of the cia report was made public, inspector general. Mar 21, 2015 the cia, the drug dealers, and the tragedy of gary webb in 1996, journalist gary webb began looking into links between nicaraguas drugrunning contra rebels and the cia. The birth of crack cocaine as the land border became more tightly controlled, cocaine would be shipped via the caribbean and the bahamas and end up in miami. The crack epidemic in the united states was a surge of crack cocaine use in major cities across.
The cia, contras, gangs, and crack institute for policy studies. I thought id come here for some help in looking for an answer. Special reports cocaine, conspiracy theories and the cia. The manual of adolescent substance abuse treatment calls it the most addictive form of cocaine. Crack cocaine was particularly devastating for africanamerican communities. Teddy mcdonald carter hudson, a cia operative running from a dark past. The cia dropped crack into the inner cities in the 80s. The cias suspect past made the sensational articles an easy sell. This resulted in a number of social consequences, such as increasing crime and violence in american inner city neighborhoods, as well as a resulting backlash in the form of tough on crime. Crack has destroyed millions of lives since it was first introduced to the streets of america. Freeway rick ross on how he introduced crack to the u. Did the cia really invent and distribute crack cocaine in.
In this episode, chris calton explains how the potent mix of politicans and fake news created the myth of the crack baby. From the 1980s epidemic of the drug, to general facts and statistics, gain a better understanding of how the drug became what is it today, and how it presents a danger to the person using it. These claims have led to investigations by the united states government, including hearings and reports by the united states house of representatives, senate, department of justice, and the cias office of the inspector general. Crack cocaine deliberately infiltrated into south central l.
When the contra revolution took off in the 1980s, plumlee says he continued to transport arms south for the spy agency and bring cocaine back with him, with the blessing of the u. History of crack cocaine the recovery village ridgefield. When people are into drugs they come up with all kinds of ways to use it. When some authority wasnt apprised and made an arrest, powerful strings were pulled to result in. The emergence of crack cocaine started in the 1970s and 1980s during the boom in cocaines recreational use. It was probably invented by someone looking to get higher off of cocaine.
During the korean war, the first allegations of cia drug trafficking surfaced after 1949, stemming from a deal whereby arms were supplied to chiang kaisheks defeated generals in exchange for intelligence. Decadesold cia crackcocaine scandal gains new momentum rt. The coca plant has been used as a stimulant by the native people of south america for many centuries, but it wasnt until 1859 that modern cocaine was developed as a drug in germany. A number of writers have alleged that the united states central intelligence agency cia was. One claim brought up often in this is the cia invented crack, which is more than likely untrue. The introduction to the first installment of the series read. On august 18, 1996, the san jose mercury news published the first installment of a threepart series of articles concerning crack cocaine, the central intelligence agency cia, and the nicaraguan contra army. Thats a long way from the cia invented crack to destroy africanamerican communities, but the salacious version is the one that travels most widely. Understand the origins of the drug and how it became what it is today. Both eazye and knight were involved in cripblood crack cocaine rings at that time.
A washington post investigation into ross, blandon, meneses and the u. The crack epidemic in the united states was a surge of crack cocaine use in major cities across the united states between the early 1980s and the early 1990s. Ive heard the cia first synthesized crack cocaine, and ive heard albert neiman, the german chemist who discovered cocaine, but i doubt it was albert neiman. Freeway ricky ross, the drug kingpin who ignited crack. A cia sponsored drug ring funneled millions of dollars in drug profits to the nicaraguan contra rebels and, in the process, opened the first pipeline for crack. The crack epidemic the history of crack cocaine drug. Rockingup cocaine powder and smoking it was originally the method developed so distributors of cocaine could test the purity of the drug before it was purchased from the manufacturers. In 1996 gary webb wrote a series of articles published in the san jose mercury news, which investigated nicaraguans linked to the cia backed contras who had smuggled cocaine into the u.
Did the cia play a role in launching the crack cocaine epidemic. Crack cocaine, also known simply as crack or rock, is a free base form of cocaine that can be smoked. The millions of dollars made from those sales were later used to fund. A powerful series by investigative reporter gary webb of the san jose mercury news says the answer may be yesand the charge. Webbs series led to three federal investigations, none of. Another theory posits that crack cocaine was an outgrowth of experimentation with freebasing cocaine, a method of administering cocaine that was particularly popular on the west coast in the 1970s and early 1980s, and coca paste smoking. Mar 28, 2018 crack cocaine, commonly shortened to crack, is a free base version of cocaine a drug that has been used in various forms in south america for centuries. According to the series, blandon was the johnny appleseed of crack in californiadistributing thousands of kilos of colombian cocaine to black dealers like ricky ross. The cia, contras, gangs, and crack institute for policy. Crack, which is a form of cocaine, was likely not invented by the cia. I want to know who invented crack cocaine out of curiosity and knowledge. Nicaraguan drug rebels were exporting drugs for money, with the cias covert assistance. Oct 18, 2017 during the 1980s, the war on drugs became defined by cocaine and crack.
Key figures in ciacrack cocaine scandal begin to come forward. The majority of european crack cocaine users are located in three citieshamburg, london and paris. Crack cocaine was first introduced to the united states in the early 1980s, going on to become an epidemic with millions of users and contributing to over 25,000 hospitalizations a year. Congress passed laws that created a 100 to 1 sentencing disparity for the possession or. Cocaine can make a person feel full of energy, but also restless, scared, or angry. Jan 16, 2011 within a few short years in the early and mid1980s, crack a highly addictive, smokable and, most importantly, cheap form of cocaine had rocketed into virtually every big city in america. The powdered form of crack cocaine either inhaled through the nose snorted, where it absorbed through the nasal tissue or dissolved in water and injected into the bloodstream. A complete history of crack cocaine drug rehab options. In 1985, crack sold for about five dollars a rock in most cities. In response to customer demands, ross begins marketing readymade crack and learns how to turn a kilo of powder into three or more kilos of rock by adding an anaesthetic called procaine, a process known as blown up. Ciacontracrack cocaine controversy department of justice. His articles asserted that the cia was aware of the cocaine. The contra rebels were in full flow in nicaragua, and reportedly the cia turned a blind eye to the rebels exporting significant amounts of.
Plumlee flew weapons into latin america for decades for the cia. Back in 1996, gary webb of the san jose mercury news broke a story stating not only that the nicaraguan contras supported by the united states in a rebellion against their leftleaning government were involved in the us crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980s, but also that the cia knew and turned a blind eye to the operation. But crack cocaine use has also been reported as a significant problem in three french overseas territoriesguadeloupe, french guiana and martiniqueand in some communities in the netherlands. Cnn cia admits it overlooked contras links to drugs. The contra rebels were in full flow in nicaragua, and reportedly the cia turned a blind eye to the rebels exporting significant amounts of cocaine for funding. When the first crack house was discovered in miami in 1982, it drew little. It was whites who invented crack and who imported it into the country, and it was whitesnotably the ciawho profited from the drug trade at the upper levels. Cia involvement in contra cocaine trafficking wikipedia.
The reagan administration and the cia also collaborated with nicaraguan cocaine traffickers to support the contras led to the crack epidemic of the 1980s. As crack cocaine grew in popularity, the drug devastated a nation. Many blacks are more likely than whites to believe cia had role in l. The charges of cia involvement in contra cocaine trafficking were revived in 1996, when a newspaper series by reporter gary webb in the san jose mercury news claimed that the trafficking had played an important role in the creation of the crack cocaine drug problem in the united states. Smoking cocaine has existed for as long as the drug, and even sigmund freud was know to enjoy cocaine cigars, and the practice predates the cia, by some 6070 years. Where did the cia introduced crack to the inner cities in.
Key figures in ciacrack cocaine scandal begin to come. The igs report cleared the cia of complicity with the innercity crack cocaine trade. The press did not begin reporting on the issue of crack cocaine until 1984, but those articles suggested that the mounting crack problem had existed prior to that time. As the land border became more tightly controlled, cocaine would be shipped via the caribbean and the bahamas and end up in miami. Apr 25, 2007 the first article also made other specific allegations of cia knowledge of, or involvement in, the drug rings activities. Crack first saw widespread use as a recreational drug in primarily impoverished neighborhoods in new york city, philadelphia, baltimore, washington, d. Nov 03, 1998 justice report finds no cia link to crack cocaine trafficking july 23, 1998 contra leaders say cia not involved in drug sales november 26, 1996 deutch confronts angry l. During his interview with the oig, ross said he had sold a total of 30 to 50 kilos of cocaine in tyler and dallas, texas, from 1984 through 1986. Many people would steal or participate in other criminal activities to support the crack addiction. This resulted in a number of social consequences, such as increasing crime and violence in american inner city neighborhoods, as well as a resulting backlash in the form of tough on crime policies. Straight outta compton, did the cia infiltrate rap music. A further weakness in the claim that ross and blandon are responsible for the spread of crack nationwide is ross inconsistent accounts of his distribution networks across the country. Crack is a form of cocaine that has processed to make a rock crystal also called freebase cocaine.
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