Drugs have influenced American ideas, culture, and music for centuries. Illicit drug trafficking has left the Union in a state of immense debt. Anti-drug policies have invested billions and billions of dollars in prevention, punishment and rehabilitation. From the roaring twenties to prohibition, drugs have always been fought (Bailey). In most cases, drugs start out as medicinal and end up being harmful (Morris). Perhaps, the most important and influential eras for drug use in America were the two decades of the 1960s and twenty years later, the 1980s. It could very well be that these two decades have shaped America into what it is today. The 1960s got a huge boost from conservative post-war America. Vietnam veterans returned home with heroin addictions, the counterculture spread their free love, and music festivals introduced millions of people to the new America. The 1960s were the first decade that popularized the use of non-alcoholic drugs among young people. When it was first realized that drugs would be a major political debate, many representatives, such as Nixon, adopted some of the first anti-drug policies since Wilson. And although LSD was created much earlier, the “acid,” as it was called, spread to specific American sects. The 1980s saw threats from Ronald Reagan's war on drugs, the crack epidemic in major cities, and the emergence of the Colombian cartels. Kingpin “freeway Ricky Ross” made his debut in the eighties and built an empire solely on drugs. Advertising campaigns were launched featuring the first lady, Nancy Reagan, in an attempt to get children to "just say no" and "no to drugs" (Martin). The crack epidemic hit so hard that many conspiracy theories claimed that the CIA was sending crack... middle of paper ... more careful about who they slept with and were safer to wear protection in the form of condoms. No one knew where AIDS came from, but the gay community was to blame. It was assumed that if you were gay you had AIDS and vice versa. This mentality sparked the first major gay rights movements in America. These movements did not gain much popularity, but they left a lasting impression that is still felt today. The movements of the 1980s were a springboard for today's movements for gay marriage and anti-discrimination laws. Cocaine indirectly led to gay rights. With drugs having such a large impact on America, it is difficult to imagine an America without them. Maybe America wouldn't be in debt; however, the same could be achieved by avoiding dumping billions of dollars into the DEA. America has always been affected by the counterculture and the war on drugs.