In the 1980s, the United States has witnessed a scar that swept many Americans off their feet. The scar consisted of the effect that crack had on Americans in the 1980s. Many Americans believe that drugs are the main thing that is causing many social problems in society. For instance, in 2004, New York Senator Charles Schumer stated, “Twenty years ago, crack was headed east across the United States like a Mack truck out of control, and it slammed New York hard because we just didn't see the warning signs” (n.p). Therefore, crack was a serious problem during the 1980s and it was also destroying society. Due to the negative impact of crack, America began to create homeless addicts, crack babies, an increase in gang violence, and an increase in burglaries.
According to Gary Webb, “San Francisco Bay Area drug ring sold tons of cocaine to the Crips and Bloods street gangs of Los Angeles and funneled millions in drug profits to a Latin American guerrilla army” (n.p). Therefore, the crack epidemic was no accident; the crack was purposely shipped out for personal gain of war materials. Due to the selfishness of this action, many people in America will be suffering severe consequences. The majority of the cocaine was being shipped to the infamous crack dealers known as Ricky Ross, Oscar Danilo Blandon, and Norwin Meneses. Ricky Ross was the most beneficial because he was the first man to think of transforming the cocaine into a substance now known as crack. “The cash Ross paid for the cocaine, court records show, was then used to buy weapons and equipment for a guerrilla army named the Fuerza Democratica Nicaraguense” (Webb n.p). Therefore, the actions of the Nicaraguan Democratic Force will forever have a lasting effect on Black America...
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In the 1980’s crack cocaine hit the streets of Los Angeles for some it brought quick fortune but for many doom. Crack cocaine had become a major source of income for those who had been locked out of mainstream America. Heavily armed the Rolling 60’s were one of the most violent, active gangs in Los Angeles. The Rolling 60’s gang members no longer fought over neighborhood rule but, profit endeavors. Gang members had became both a slave to the business, doing whatever the drugs demanded them to do. Crack cocaine had erased those codes of res...
“Just Say No!” A statement that takes us deep into yet another decade in the history of the United States which was excited by controversies, social issues, and drug abuse. The topic of this statement is fueled by the growing abuse of cocaine in the mid 1980s. I shall discuss the effects of the crack cocaine epidemic of the mid 1980s from a cultural and social stand point because on that decade this country moved to the rhythms and the pace of this uncanny drug. Cocaine took its told on American society by in the 1980s; it ravaged with every social group, race, class, etc. It reigned over the United States without any prejudices. Crack cocaine was the way into urban society, because of its affordability in contrast to the powdered form. In society the minorities were the ones most affected by the growing excess of crime and drug abuse, especially African Americans; so the question was “Why was nearly everybody convicted in California federal court of crack cocaine trafficking black?” (Webb: Day 3). The growing hysteria brought forth many questions which might seem to have concrete answers, but the fact of the matter is they are all but conspiracy in the end, even though it does not take away the ambiguity and doubt. I will take on only a few topics from the vast array of events and effects this period in time had tended to. Where and who this epidemic seemed to affect more notably, and perhaps how the drugs came about such territories and people. What actions this countries authority took to restore moral sanity, and how it affected people gender wise.
The Cocaine Kids focuses on the lives of eight Latino and black young cocaine dealers in New York City from 1982 to 1986. This...
In quite a few lower-class communities, phrases like “your mom is a crack head,” or “shut up crack baby” are said jokingly to make fun of someone during what we call a “rip session.” Although said as a joke, some are very offended by the comments. Why? because for some, crack addiction hits too close to home for comfort. Seeing how easy it is obtained in lower class and poverty stricken neighborhoods, many find themselves falling victim to the powerful substance, crack cocaine. Low sociable economic systems are just one of the many factors that can lead to the use, and addiction of crack cocaine, others include movies, music, peer pressure, alcohol and cigarette ads. In this report I will discuss the effects, consequences, and possible treatment for crack cocaine addiction.
... Capital, Corporation Finance and the Theory of Investment", The American Economic Review, vol. 48, no. 3, pp. 261-297.
Many people who sell drugs are people whom don’t want to live in poverty and have no other means to get food on the table. Ricky Ross is a great example of this since he himself said that he would have never imagined becoming a drug dealer and actually wanted to be a cop or a firefighter growing up. However, he needed a way to get food on the table without having to steal it from stores and get himself out of poverty. When crack cocaine hit the streets and was being advertised on every new media outlet as being the cheapest and strongest drug out there and people should stay away from it, he got into the drug business and started using marketing tactics and making turning himself into something of a person to look up to on the streets because of his success. Several people throughout the film said that the war on poverty was replaced with the war on drugs and the war on drugs is America’s last hope in combating poverty and those who live in poverty. Drugs come from poverty because it inspires crime and thus reducing confidence and pride in low income areas. It is also known that the war on drugs give people the power to sell drugs in particular neighborhoods, where it is harder for the people in the city to keep drug dealing from being done out in the open and paraphernalia from littering the streets thus making it a norm so drug dealers can go to these areas know they’ll get
Drugs seem to be an issue everywhere. Just like alcohol, the drug trade is not a primary issue for one race. Drugs serve a heavy impact to all those involved. Drugs are not just reserved to those that use them, but also to the manufacturers and distributors of the drugs. An excerpt from Anderson (1990) involves a former dealer describing the drug culture. He states, “The way I see it, there’s top dogs, middle dogs, and low dogs. The top dogs are the guys with the money, dudes with the cars…the middle dogs are the ones who sell drugs for the top dogs…and they sell it to the low dogs” (p. 7). However, it does not stop there. Drugs also affect the family and friends of those involved. Many residing within areas centered on drugs often times express feelings of anxiety and fear. Wacquant (2007) states that petty theft, drug use, the resale of stolen goods, vandalism, and alcoholism are the most visible form of delinquency (p. 208).
When societies finally become comfortable with reality, they begin to abandon the murderous laws that impede their growth. Currently, the social stigma and legislated morality regarding the use of illicit drugs yield perhaps the most destructive effects on American society. Drug laws have led to a removal of non-violent citizens from society- either directly by incarceration or indirectly by death - that is genocidal in quantity and essence.
In the 1970s, cocaine was expensive and considered a "status" drug. The introduction of inexpensive crack increased the accessibility of this substance, and crack has become the drug of choice for many users, especially for inner...
It is also very important for people to know about this topic because the issue is not only about drugs but also the growth of inequality between the rich and poor, black and white, upper class and lower class in this country. The war of drugs deals with issues about why they were passed through congress and if there were motives that deals connect directly to black communities. The issues where brought about in Dan Baum book entitled “Smoke and Mirrors” where John Erlichmann, the chief domestic affair advisor talk about how the Drug War fever has been escalated and manipulated from its modest beginnings at the start of the Nixon administration and clarifies the various interests which that escalation has served. He talks about the Drug War on “blacks” and “hippies” but politicians could not say that so had to say the War on “heroin” and “Marijuana”. He also said that “We knew drugs were not the health problem we were making it out to be, but there were political benefits to be gained." This shows that there is more to the war of drugs that the government is letting on.
“[The war on drugs] has created a multibillion-dollar black market, enriched organized crime groups and promoted the corruption of government officials throughout the world,” noted Eric Schlosser in his essay, “A People’s Democratic Platform”, which presents a case for decriminalizing controlled substances. Government policies regarding drugs are more focused towards illegalization rather than revitalization. Schlosser identifies a few of the crippling side effects of the current drug policy put in place by the Richard Nixon administration in the 1970s to prohibit drug use and the violence and destruction that ensue from it (Schlosser 3). Ironically, not only is drug use as prevalent as ever, drug-related crime has also become a staple of our society. In fact, the policy of the criminalization of drugs has fostered a steady increase in crime over the past several decades. This research will aim to critically analyze the impact of government statutes regarding drugs on the society as a whole.
Almost a century has passed since two revolutionaries have been born to change the world: television and drugs. It is clear that both drugs and television made their way to society at the same time, but it doesn't seem that obvious what is that made them escalate together. Some studious people say that it may have to do with the presence of drugs in the media, but it remains a mystery. In 'Crack and the Box' by Pete Hamill, there is an intention to explain the reasons to this phenomenon. Hamill accuses television to be the instigator of drugs. However, his statements fall into contradiction because the effects of television watching cannot be compared to those of drug consumption.
She describes that the mass incarceration policies that were made are a “comprehensive and well-disguised system of racialized control that functions in a manner strikingly similar to Jim Crow”(Alexander2016). The War on Drugs escalated quickly in 1982 with the Reagan administration, claiming that they were responding to the crack cocaine epidemic that was going on around black neighborhoods and ghettos. The Reagan administration actually were contributing to the high rise of crack cocaine consumption in the US, mainly inner cities. Alexander points out that the Drug on War had escalated way before 1982, in the mid 1980’s the use of crack cocaine had escalated so quickly that they Federal Drug authorities had to publicize the issue and use scare tactics to try to get control over the
This supports the conservative’s claim that the war on drugs is not making any progress to stop the supply of drugs coming into America. Conservative writer for the magazine National Review, William Buckley, shows his outrage towards the Council on Crime in America for their lack of motivation to change the drug policies that are ineffective. Buckley asks, “If 1.35 million drug users were arrested in 1994, how many drug users were not arrested? The Council informs us that there are more than 4 million casual users of cocaine” (70). Buckley goes on to discuss in the article, “Misfire on Drug Policy,” how the laws set up by the Council were meant to decrease the number of drug users, not increase the number of violators.
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