There were few drug prohibition laws prior to World War I. In the 1920's alcohol was banned briefly. Prohibition of other drugs grew slowly in the United States, often based on a perceived racial bias. The 1914 Harrison Act targeted the Chinese and the 1937 Marijuana Tax targeted blacks. These laws didn't actually prohibit those drugs but setup taxing authorities which effectively limited legal cocaine and marijuana to the select few who could get the tax stamps. These laws opened the door to federal enforcement under the the interstate commerce clause of the Constitution which to this day continues to be the authority for federal drug enforcement.

At first the laws were weak and enforcement was lax. In the 1960's and 1970's when the drug counter culture became a political force in opposition to the Vietnam War, federal authorities took notice and began raising the stakes. In the 1980's President Reagan raised the stakes by naming a Drug Czar and bringing the DEA to prominence (and making Miami Vice and Don Johnson a mega hit on TV). Since then it has been most  unrelentingly "game on" in the war against drugs. The feds pressured the states and the laws became draconian over just a few decades.

Nine percent of African American males are in jail. Half of these are incarcerated are in for drug related crimes. A significant segment of the community feels threatened by the police and society as a whole because they are the buyers and users of illegal drugs and must be alert not to be caught and imprisoned themselves. The police are viewed with suspicion. Others who don't use drugs get caught up in the underground because they don't want to see family and friends imprisoned. Yet others are intimidated by members of the drug underground to remain silent as the risk of their lives. The drug underground in New Orleans is a huge problem for the society.