Today, Congressional Black Caucus Chairman Steven Horsford (NV-04) and members of the Congressional Black Caucus issued the following statement applauding new clemencies and marijuana pardons by President Biden:
“The CBC applauds President Biden and the Department of Justice for today granting clemency under new DOJ sentencing guidelines to 11 individuals who have been unfairly criminalized for non-violent drug offenses. The new DOJ guidelines are a positive step forward in addressing long-standing racial disparities in crack and powder cocaine sentencing, which for generations, has disproportionately imprisoned Black Americans. It is our hope that clemency be granted to more Black Americans who have been criminalized by the decades-old policies of the War on Drugs era.
“Additionally, the CBC applauds President Biden’s proclamation to pardon marijuana offenses, including the use on federal lands, which have disproportionately incarcerated and upended the lives of far too many Black Americans by creating barriers to employment, education, and housing.”
