Assassin of youth : a kaleidoscopic history of Harry J. Anslinger's war on drugs

Commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics from its establishment in 1930 until his retirement in 1962, Harry J. Anslinger is the United States’ little known first drug czar. Anslinger was a profligate propagandist with a flair for demonizing racial and immigrant groups and perhaps best known for his zealous pursuit of harsh drug penalties and his particular animus for marijuana users. But what made Anslinger who he was, and what cultural trends did he amplify and institutionalize? Having just passed the hundredth anniversary of the Harrison Act—which consolidated prohibitionist drug policy and led to the carceral state we have today—and even as public doubts about the drug war continue to grow, now is the perfect time to evaluate Anslinger’s social, cultural, and political legacy. In__Assassin of Youth__, Alexandra Chasin gives us a lyrical, digressive, funny, and ultimately riveting quasi-biography of Anslinger. Her treatment of the man, his times, and the world that arose around and through him is part cultural history, part kaleidoscopic meditation. Each of the short chapters is anchored in a historical document—the court decision in __Webb v. US__ (1925), a 1935 map of East Harlem, FBN training materials from the 1950s, a personal letter from the Treasury Department in 1985—each of which opens onto Anslinger and his context. From the__Pharmacopeia__of 1820 to death of Sandra Bland in 2015, from the Pennsylvania Railroad to the last passenger pigeon, and with forays into gangster lives, CIA operatives, and popular detective stories, Chasin covers impressive ground.__Assassin of Youth__is as riotous and loose a history of drug laws as can be imagined—and yet it culminates in an arresting and precise revision of the emergence of drug prohibition. Today, even as marijuana is slowly being legalized, we still have not fully reckoned with the racist and xenophobic foundations of our cultural appetite for the severe punishment of drug offenders. In __Assassin of Youth__, Chasin shows us the deep, twisted roots of both our love and our hatred for drug prohibition. Commissioner of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics from its establishment in 1930 until his retirement in 1962, Harry J. Anslinger is the United States' little known first drug czar. Anslinger was a profligate propagandist with a flair for demonizing racial and immigrant groups and perhaps best known for his zealous pursuit of harsh drug penalties and his particular animus for marijuana users. But what made Anslinger who he was, and what cultural trends did he amplify and institutionalize? Having just passed the hundredth anniversary of the Harrison Act—which consolidated prohibitionist drug policy and led to the carceral state we have today—and even as public doubts about the drug war continue to grow, now is the perfect time to evaluate Anslinger's social, cultural, and political legacy. In Assassin of Youth , Alexandra Chasin gives us a lyrical, digressive, funny, and ultimately riveting quasi-biography of Anslinger. Her treatment of the man, his times, and the world that arose around and through him is part cultural history, part kaleidoscopic meditation. Each of the short chapters is anchored in a historical document—the court decision in Webb v. US (1925), a 1935 map of East Harlem, FBN training materials from the 1950s, a personal letter from the Treasury Department in 1985—each of which opens onto Anslinger and his context. From the Pharmacopeia of 1820 to death of Sandra Bland in 2015, from the Pennsylvania Railroad to the last passenger pigeon, and with forays into gangster lives, CIA operatives, and popular detective stories, Chasin covers impressive ground. Assassin of Youth is as riotous and loose a history of drug laws as can be imagined—and yet it culminates in an arresting and precise revision of the emergence of drug prohibition. Today, even as marijuana is slowly being legalized, we still have not fully reckoned with the racist and xenophobic foundations of our cultural appetite for the severe punishment of drug offenders. In Assassin of Youth , Chasin shows us the deep, twisted roots of both our love and our hatred for drug prohibition. Intro -- Contents -- Prologue -- 1. The Trouble with Harry -- 2. In a Word -- 3. The Square Last Mentioned -- 4. Maybe Born in Bern -- 5. A Willing and Cheerful Obedience Thereto -- 6. To Prohibit Vice is Not Ordinarily Considered within the Police Power of the State -- 7. Now Building at Altoona -- 8. In All Cases of Doubt or Uncertainty -- 9. Alcohol is a Poison -- 10. The Narcotic Element is the Siren -- 11. Lotus Eaters: Whosoever -- 12. The Education of Harry Anslinger -- 13. Horseplay Turns to Tragedy -- 14. A High-Priced Man: So Stupid that the Word "Percentage" has no meaning to him -- 15. Keystone State of Mind -- 16. The Harrison Act -- 17. Becoming a Fed -- 18. Only Words from which there is no Escape: Jin Fuey Moy -- 19. Not One Minute Darkness -- 20. Within the Words -- 21. I Would Not Endeavor to Descrive -- 22. On the Basis of Science -- 23. Human Wreckage: Wally Reid -- 24. Lotus Eaters: In Dolce Far Niente -- 25. Linder v. United States (1925), or Vice Versa -- 26. A Set of False Teeth in its Stomach -- 27. Prohibition as Substance: Putting the Bureau in Bureaucracy -- 28. The Federal Bureau of Politics: With Camel Hair Glued Over Them -- 29. A Plastic Palimpsest -- 30. The Collected Stories of Harry J. Anslinger -- 31. Funking the Necessary Immigrations -- 32. The Marijuana Tax Act -- 33. The Unbridled Powers of a Czar -- 34. Anslinger Nation, or Double Agency -- 35. Fiction Alone has no Monopoly in this Field: Real Detective Stories -- 36. This Fellow Ought to be the Figment of Somebody's Imagination -- 37. In Doctor Nation -- 38. Spindoctrination -- 39. The World's Leading Authority -- 40. The Oriental Communists had a Twofold Purpose -- 41. Lotus Eaters: 1953, or the Imponderabilia of Actual Life -- 42. Dr. John Blank -- 43. Chasing the Ghostwriters -- 44. Every Inch a Man -- 45. Out with a Whimper -- Epilogue. 46. Chasing the Ghost -- 47. Toward a Poetics of Drug Policy -- 48. Lotus Eaters: Charadrius Dubius -- Acknowledgments -- Backlit By -- Notes. In Assassin Of Youth, Alexandra Chasin Gives Us A Lyrical, Digressive, Funny, And Ultimately Riveting Quasi-biography Of Anslinger. Her Treatment Of The Man, His Times, And The World That Arose Around And Through Him Is Part Cultural History, Part Kaleidoscopic Meditation. Each Of The Short Chapters Is Anchored In A Historical Document--the Court Decision In Webb V. Us (1925), A 1935 Map Of East Harlem, Fbn Training Materials From The 1950s, A Personal Letter From The Treasury Department In 1985--each Of Which Opens Onto Anslinger And His Context. From The Pharmacopeia Of 1820 To Death Of Sandra Bland In 2015, From The Pennsylvania Railroad To The Last Passenger Pigeon, And With Forays Into Gangster Lives, Cia Operatives, And Popular Detective Stories, Chasin Covers Impressive Ground. Assassin Of Youth Is As Riotous And Loose A History Of Drug Laws As Can Be Imagined--and Yet It Culminates In An Arresting And Precise Revision Of The Emergence Of Drug Prohibition. ...--publisher Description.