The Rev. Mike Starks witnessed the destruction of crack cocaine, but not from the sidelines — he was a self-described gangster and drug addict before he became a minister. The Akron community activist recalls authorities responding to the epidemic, which is said to have lasted from 1984 to the early 1990s, with the all-out War on Drugs. Lawmakers enacted mandatory prison sentences for dealers. Stories in the media blamed addicts for their choices and told of gang-ravaged inner cities. Starks was caught up in the middle of the war. Drugs ruled his life, and he spent several stints in prison in the 1980s and ’90s. He said the public and politicians have reacted very differently to...
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