Hip Hop and the Crack Epidemic

hit in the 60’s and as cocaine made its way in the 70’s, it was the “it” drug of the era. It was very popular amongst celebrities, executives, athletes, and the very rich. Even with its infiltration of the nation, the federal government didn’t get as involved as it did when crack hit the streets. The DEA mostly targeted big smugglers and major dealers. Cocaine started to get a negative rap only because of the violence and killings that started to come with it. Those who were out to stop the crack epidemic had something else in mind- to target the users. The users were the same users as those who used powdered cocaine. The Drug-Abuse Act of 1986 was the law that separated crack from cocaine in the eyes of the law. When crack cocaine first

One of the more interesting implications that are presented in the later parts of this essay is the economic ramifications of the hip-hop culture. McBride paints the picture of a lower income Caucasian American teenager in Dayton, Ohio who finds truth in the story of hip-hop. McBride notes:

The short term effects of the crack includes: higher breathing rate, elevated blood pressure, soaring heart rate, compressed blood vessels, lack of appetite, dilated pupils, extreme euphoria for both casual and heavy users. The long term effects are the following: depression, violent, fearful performances, hallucinations, bad temper, psychosis, heart attack/stroke, sterility (for both men and women), brain convulsion, respiratory malfunction and even death for heavy users! Since crack cocaine is exceedingly addictive, addicts can easily build up tolerance and become addicted in a short time by smoking it constantly. There are many ways to take crack cocaine. Users can smoke through a hand pipe or a water pipe, snort, infuse through vein, or they can combine crack with marijuana, heroin etc (University Of Maryland). While taking crack, users face plenty of risks like: coughing, respiratory bleeding, out of breath, paranoia, lung trauma and many more (“Crack cocaine facts”). Dealers shipped crack cocaine from the Bahamas and the Caribbean to Miami, where the dealers would sell it for lower incomes (“A Complete History of Crack Cocaine”). Anyone can be addicted to crack cocaine – from adults to teens. Crack cocaine is most rampant in urban regions but addicts from rural areas can also be seen. Crack is highly addictive because a user trying for the first time becomes addicted to it and he uses it many times throughout the day. A single dosage is inexpensive but a crack

The coca leaves used to make cocaine has played a large part in our history. However, crack cocaine was not synthesized until the 1970s when cocaine was very popular. Then came a source of a new drug, crack cocaine which swept the nation of America. Due to an immense influx of cocaine, the value decreased predominantly, though it was still considered a drug for the high class. So when crack hit, mainly in the inner cities, it took a drastic turn for the

The “War On Drugs” and Anti Drug Abuse Act of 1986 required aggressive enforcement. One method is the use of undercover police to enforce these laws. Three factors can jeopardize a dealer’s income: 1) Nonpayment, 2) other dealers encroaching on territories; turf wars and the biggest factor 3) being caught by the police. A method that crack cocaine dealers used to protect these three factors was the use and possession of guns. In the 1980s and 1990’s guns were as plentiful as illegal drugs. The U.S. Department of Justice in a manual of “Promising Strategies To Reduce Gun Violence” cites that “those who are most likely to possess

The foundation of rap started to evolve into a form of art, and it was intended for people to express their problems about growing up on the “streets.” Originating within the Bronx of New York City, it was used to share the struggles of growing up in violence, hardships, and as a minority in America. Companies began to capitalize on the growth of rap in the 90s through marketing techniques used to portray stereotypes of the culture associated with the genre. In her essay Selling to Children: The Marketing of Cool, Juliet B. Schor says “In the 1990s, ads aimed at white, middle-class Americans began to be filmed in inner-city neighborhoods with young black men as the stars” (220). Schor then goes

In his letter to president Reagan, Snoop Dogg addresses the policies Reagan enacted during his term that attacked the poor and hard-working communities in the United States to benefit the wealthy. In turn, the accomplishment of Civil Rights movement was quickly replaced with the crack epidemic and war on drugs, annihilating hope for the future. All the thoughts of despair and poverty associated with the life of the ghetto is reflected in Hip Hop culture and music. In his letter, communities united together to form a Black America against a common enemy: the president of the United States.

However, the same article (Source D) acknowledges that gangsta hip-pop is aggressive, sexual and materialistic in manner which is “how hip-pop function universally”. This hints at the use of hip-pop music to make people idolise vices as equally as it can encourage them strive for a better future. Exemplar’s of gangster icons in Hip Hop culture are rap group NWA. Group member, Eazy E, appears in an interview photo dressed in stereotypical thug attire (Source F) wielding a gun and explaining the use of it for violence while

Just as a mirror reflects the problematic discoloration and rise of unwanted pimples or unruly hair, as does Hip Hop as it allows black youth to question and interpret the socio-economic and political ills and conditions reflecting their generation. Nixon’s declaration of the war on drugs characterized the growth of the Hip Hop generation as it aggravated the abuse and neglect directed towards African American communities. As birth products of the war on drugs, mandatory sentence minimums and racialized incarceration demonstrates the association with poor, pre-dominantly black communities. The war on drugs heavily influenced the Hip Hop generation and music; moreover, the economic, political, and social factors that impacted the African American communities formed a reflective, yet pervasive soundtrack of gangster, conscious and political rap.

Webb discovered a drug operation between a California drug ring, the C.I.A., and the Nicaraguan Contras. Evidence showed that the C.I.A. had direct contact with smugglers, knowing that the profits being made from the drugs were used to purchase equipment for the Nicaraguan Contras. The San Francisco Bay Area drug ring had tons of cocaine, which they turned into crack cocaine. Crack cocaine was a cheaper version of the drug that was highly addictive. This more affordable drug was distributed to the Los Angeles street gangs by drug dealer, Ricky Donnell Ross better known by his nickname, “Freeway Ricky.” They then sold the product to people in the black communities. By 1994, Freeway Ricky was known as the master marketer mainly responsible for flooding the streets of L.A. with cocaine. Today, Los Angeles is known as the “crack” capital of the world.

In fact, the Federal Sentencing Guidelines state that a given amount of crack as equivalent to 100 times the amount of powered cocaine. According to the reading, Crack and Cocaine Introductory Material; it comes down to a minimum 5-year sentence for 500 grams of powder cocaine as to crack cocaine it is a 10-year minimum sentence for 50 grams of crack. Although the book stated that the media relates the usage of crack to mostly African American, I have learned through CRJU 385 by Dr. Brown’s lectures that, it’s a myth; in reality White people are the heavy crack users. Since the mid 1980’s crack has been labeled as the most addictive and destructive drug in existence. Crack was used by people who had less money, as to powder cocaine is used by people who have more money, rich man’s drug. “Interesting to say cracks highs are followed by intense lows that may drive user to desperately seek another hit”, (Morgan and Zimmer, 1997). The book stated that the characterization of crack as the “fast food of the drug market” is consistent with reports about the rate at which it is used. This reminds me of Mc Donald’s, just picturing the rush of money that they make every day, I know it is over exaggerated but I can picture it both. In the reading Refining Rock; Cocaine can be bought in rock form and then smoked. It can also be converted from powder into rock then smoked. It is faster to use when it is in rock form. Since I am majoring in Criminal Justice, I was curious to learn the connection between cocaine and crime. I learned that it has six types of use: snorting, intravenous use, crack smoking, freebasing, coca paste smoking, and new form of cocaine. Most crime was drug dealing, which made the most sense. Other crimes included: acts of violence, grand theft, petty theft, and prostitution. As stated earlier, alcoholism was an impact on my family. During the course I

Crack cocaine is a highly addictive crystal form of cocaine that comes in solid bocks or sometimes crystals in varying colors from light pink or white to yellow and is the most powerful form of cocaine. It is less expensive than regular cocaine, allowing younger people with less money to access it, and users can become addicted to it after just one usage. Cocaine is made of coca leaves that were first used three thousand years ago, and crack cocaine (crystal form) was first developed in the 1970’s and became popular in the 1980’s. On the streets, crack cocaine is also known as chemical, crack, French fries, gravel, hard rock, hotcakes, paste, rocks snow coke, tornado, and electric kool-aid. It is usually available as rocks that vary in

It has been 30 years since Hip-Hop was first “introduced” to the world. Whether it be fashion or politics, this musical genre/culture plays a huge role in everyday life and has generated billions of dollars across the globe. In this paper I will be discussing when, where, and how Hip-Hop was created, “old school Hip-Hop, “Hip-Hop’s Golden Age”, “Hardcore rap” “Gangsta rap”, “G-Funk”, 21st century Hip-Hop, and how Hip-Hop affects society.

Songs such as “John” by Lil Wayne and Rick Ross, and “Crack” by 2 Chainz influence behaviors such as shooting people and selling drugs. “John” talks about how they have an AK-47 in their trunk and Lil Wayne says load it up and “hit them where it hurt.” Later in the song Lil Wayne says, “You know the rule, kill them all and keep moving.” This means just shoot and act like nothing happened. In 2 Chainz’s song he talks about how he is standing on the corners selling crack, cooking it in his kitchen, and has over one thousand grams of it on him. The future generations of America are listening to this stuff, and it is corrupting their minds.

The use of cocaine in the United States has declined over the last twenty years while the use of crack has increased. Many people avoided the use of crack because of the harmful chemicals used in creating the drug. One of the reasons why crack became popular is because of not needing to inject the drug hence less risks of being infected by the AIDS