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The Crack Epidemic Analysis

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The crack epidemic in the US was appearent during the Reagan era. The war on drugs began when the CIA decided to bring the drug into the low income communities. This epidemic exploded before anyone really noticed. "Crack was a plague that spread through African American neighborhoods like wildfire" (Bean, 2014). Laws changed so that the powder meant you went to jail for longer even thoough it was a non-violent offense. During this time hip hop began to evolve describing these crimes and how it was affecting them and the communities that they lived in. This is shown in the videos this week "Batterram", "C.I.A.", and "Fuck Tha Police". Planet Rock had a different feel to it. Silverman said that Planet Rock had "more of an impact that any record
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930 Words | 4 Pages

Phillippe Burgois, the author of In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio, lived in East Harlem doing research for 3 years. His wife and child also lived with him during this time. Burgois was interested in studying the social and economic aspects of East Harlem, also known as El Barrio. His research required him to be closely involved with the crack dealers in the area. In my review, I will first, summarize the main points of the book.

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The video that I have chosen is Jayz War on Drugs (Epic Fail). This video informs you on how the war on drugs was started by Richard Nixon in 1971. It also describes how the war on drugs had a negative effect on the African Americans rather it be their families, communities, and schools. The movie The House I live in, describes the war on drugs as black hats vs white hats basically the good guys against the bad guys. In both videos it was discussed how poor neighborhoods were the target for drug bust areas.

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160 Words | 1 Pages

The article “Hip Hop Planet” by James McBride is about how hip hop is not his favorite type of music but, it needs to be heard. McBride shows us this by explaining that he avoided hip hop most of his life. In the article McBride says that he basically ignored “the most important cultural event in my lifetime.” James informs us that hip hop has influenced the world globally and that it has become a phenomenon. Furthermore, McBride made clear that he eventually realized that hip hop is much more than just music, it has a message.

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African Americans Face a War on More Than One Front America has been known throughout history as the home of the free, but that freedom did not come without struggles. While the Revolutionary War and the fight for abolition represent famous past struggles, there are still fights for freedom taking place in America today, specifically in the African American community. African Americans have struggled unnecessarily in America, in particular with police and drugs. The indifference between African Americans and police, although widely publicized recently, is not a recent problem.

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During the years of his presidency, cocaine especially crack cocaine became an epidemic. Crack cocaine differs from regular cocaine because it is cheaper and because it is mostly purchased in crystallized form. Crack cocaine was found in more urban communities, while powdered cocaine was found iron suburban areas. Matthew D. Lassiter explains this throughout his book Impossible Criminals:

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“Beyond Beats and Rhymes” Summary This movie was a broad discussion about hip-hop music (or more specifically gangster rap) and what kind of social issues the music not only showcases but seems to promote. The producer of this film, Byron Hunt, interviewed people involved in all aspects of the hip-hop industry, including famous rappers, to try to get to the bottom of this. Some of the most prominent issues discussed in the film were the over-sexualization of women, gun violence, and anti- homophobic attitudes. Hunt would ask those involved in the industry about why they think these themes are so prevalent.

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1004 Words | 5 Pages

Like the majority of people in the United States, even illegal drug dealers in East Harlem are captivated by the American Dream. In Phillipe Bourgois' ethnography In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio, the Puerto Rican crack dealers of El Barrio want an opportunity where they can obtain jobs to support their families and ultimately become financially successful. However, in the job search, some cultures must face more obstacles than others. Social marginalization, cultural capital “clash”, and institutionalized racism take a significant toll on a minority’s ability to prosper in employment. Despite the ambitions of Puerto Rican drug dealers to succeed in the legal workplace, the structural inequalities they face make it impossible

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Hip Hop is seen as something inspiring, but most people see it as a way to speak out the truth about a problem. As in “Hip Hop planet” being able say the truth can sometimes worsen any situation because sometimes what we say can promote violence and whatever happens after is not in our control. The essay is about how hip hop has changed into speaking out the issues that need to be taken care of in order to maintain a proper society. McBride talked about how rappers use violent lyrics to degrade women and gays and because of this it shows how the music has evolved into something entirely different that no one would have ever expected to have changed. In James McBride's essay “Hip Hop Planet,” he argues that hip hop has a negative influence on American Culture despite people thinking of it as inspirational and how people live through different experiences in life despite of your race.

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I am thankfully not an expert on cocaine or its use, but a cursory Google search tells me that crack cocaine is just powder cocaine mixed with baking soda. However, what's interesting is how these new laws targeted crack cocaine but not powder cocaine. Well, crack cocaine was an inner-city drug, while powder cocaine was something for the Wall Street lifestyle. Basically, white people chose to use powder cocaine, and powder cocaine doesn't result in nearly the same kind of damaging prison sentences as crack does.

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In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio, an ethnography by Philippe Bourgois examines a portion of the East Harlem neighborhood, known as “El Barrio” in Spanish, of Manhattan in New York City during the late 1980s to the early 1990s. More specifically, Bourgois focuses on and examines the daily lives of mainly second and third generation Puerto Rican drug dealers in “El Barrio” through participant observation. Throughout the ethnography, his reflections and conclusions of life in the neighborhood and the struggles of minority populations come through discussions with people who have or still use drugs and alcohol such as, Primo and Caesar. Phillipe Bourgois argues that the perpetually high rates of violence, crime, poverty, poor education

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Opioid Epidemic in the United States              The opioid crisis has risen over the years here in America. The addiction to painkillers has caused many drug overdoses across America. According to the Vox," In 2015, more than 52,000 people have died from drug overdoses from linked to opioids such as Percocet, heroin, Oxycontin or even fentanyl. This problem did not become an overnight health crisis, but it has become quickly known in America.             Expanding our drug treatment centers across America would provide the support to those who are addicted to drugs.

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645 Words | 3 Pages

“Rap is the rock 'n' roll of the day. Rock 'n' roll was about attitude, rebellion, a big beat, sex and, sometimes, social comment. If that's what you're looking for now, you're going to find it here.” (Simpson). Hip-hop is considered to be today’s counterculture known for it’s explicit hip-hop music and the ‘thug life’ it portrays.

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Hip Hop was the wildfire that started in the South Bronx and whose flames leapt up around the world crying out for change. James McBride’s Hip Hop Planet focuses on his personal interactions with the development of Hip Hop culture and his changing interpretations of the world wide movement. Many of his encounters and mentions in the text concern young black males and his writing follows an evolution in the representation of this specific social group. He initially portrays them as arrogant, poor, and uneducated but eventually develops their image to include the positive effects of their culture in an attempt to negate their historical misrepresentation.

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Deconstructing Gangsta Rap The development of hip hop did not occur all at once. There was a prolific timeline that lead to the creation of what is now a dominant and influential segment of our present-day popular culture. Hip hop’s origins were a blend of many diverse cultures, such as African-American, Hispanic, Puerto Rican, and Jamaican. Many various artforms from the streets of 1970s New York City came together and took the shape of what eventually came to be known as hip hop.

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Hip Hop music influence on modern society. Introduction Hip-hop music was initially developed in the late 1970s, only few people knew about its existence as it was created in the most unprivileged districts of New York City in America by African-American citizens. Hip-hop is not a bunch of entertaining words but a poetic language about issues around us, and movement within a culture interrelating ethnicities. The messages of rap music/hip hop tells stories of how life is in the streets dealing with drugs, crime, and violence. Most messages are a reflection of how the youth feels about the system, the police.

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