Substance Abuse Increasing In Inner-city Minorities

1123 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Introduction on impact of mass media on youth

Substance Abuse Increasing in Inner-City Minorities

Substance abuse is an ever increasing epidemic facing America's inner- city minorities. There are several different drugs that are gaining popularity amongst inner-city youths 1. Juice, that is marijuana soaked in embalming fluid is starting to show up in more and more inner east coast cities 2. Crack or rock cocaine is by far one of the most addicting drugs out there, it's been engulfing
America's inner-cities since the early 80's 3. Heroin, is also making a comeback
4. Alcohol and marijuana are still very popular in the lower and upper classes 5.
There are some very distinctive differences in the substance abuse seen in the less fortunate classes and the abuse in the middle and upper classes. The upper classes drug of choose is powder cocaine. The less fortunate classes prefer rock cocaine. Alcohol is popular in both classes but also in different forms. The upper and middle class teenagers seem to want to experiment more with designer or new age drugs. The reason that there is so much media hype about the drug abuse amongst the poor is because the rich have the political power to cover it up, the poor don't.
Crack is cocaine mixed with baking soda and cooked in to rock form 6.
Even though crack and cocaine are the same drug (just in different forms) the courts give out stiffer sentences for crack offenders than powder cocaine offenders 7. According to federal law if a person is caught with five grams of crack they get a mandatory five year sentence 8. To get a five year sentence for trafficking powder cocaine a person would have to be caught with 500 grams 9.
African-Americans account for 88.3 percent of all federal crack distributors 10.
This sentencing shows how the judicial system goes harder on black people for drug violations than whites 11.
The upper and middle class teens do there far share of drugs 12.
Growing more and more popular amongst upper and middle class teenagers is a drug called Ritilin 13. Ritilin, was designed to help children suffering for ADHD 14.
The teenagers get a hold of some Ritilin and mash it in to a powder and snort it like cocaine 15. "It gives you the same feeling that cocaine does " say on collage freshman 16. Another very poplar drug amongst the upper class teenagers is nitris-oxide better known as l...

... middle of paper ...

...e a presenter who is from their kind of environment. Also, this holds true for the middle and upper class children. For example, if a valley girl from
Beverly Hills goes to Harlem and tells her tales of how she inhaled huge balloons filled with laughing gas everyday, it would no purpose because the children would have no clue what she was talking about.

ENDNOTES

1. Leland,74
2. Leland,74
3. Smolowe,44
4. Smolowe,45
5. Leland,75
6. Leland,74
7.Smolowe,44
8.Leland,75
9.Leland,75
10.Leland,74
11. Leland,75
12. Smolowe,45
13. Leland,75
14. Smolowe,44
15. Smolowe,45
16. Smolowe, 44
17. Leland,75
18. Leland,74
19. Smolowe,44

Show More
Related

  • Alcohol, Sex, and Violence in Catcher in the Rye

    1090 Words  | 3 Pages

    high school students age 14 - 17, 60% of the students use alcohol once a week,

    Read More

  • Overview of Cocaine

    1765 Words  | 4 Pages

    Cocaine is a classified ‘Schedule II’ drug, also known as “crack”, and “coke” it is a powerful drug, and addictive stimulant well known as a psychoactive substance. That comes from a plant called coca leaf that has been around since the mid-1800s and throughout the 20th century. “In the mid-1980s, addiction to the drug was seen as exaggerated or dismissed as psychological and not addiction” (Miller, Gold, Smith, 1997, p.62). In the past, cocaine’s original use was for medical purposes as local anesthetic for surgeries. Now its usage is illegal and this drug is immersed into the body through various ways. However,...

    Read More

  • HIstory of Cocaine

    1390 Words  | 3 Pages

    Credibility material: Its intake results in adverse medical conditions that are further exalted by its addiction properties that ensure a continued intake of the substance. The drug can be abused through multiple means and is medically recorded to produce short-term joy, energy , and other effects such as increased heart rate and blood pressure. This ultimately results in numerous psychiatric and social problems; factors that played a major role in its illegalization after multiple and widespread cases of its effects were reported in the country during the 1900s. In addition to this, the drug results in immediate euphoric effect, a property which the National Institute of Drug Abuse (2010) attributes to be the root cause for its increased po...

    Read More

  • Anti-Drugs Policies in the 1960s

    1002 Words  | 3 Pages

    The sixties had a huge pull from conservative America of the post-war era. Vietnam veterans were returning home with heroin addictions, the counterculture was spreading their free love, and the music festivals were introducing millions of people into the new America. The sixties was the first decade that made non-alcoholic drug use popular among young people. When it first dawned that drugs were going to be a big political debate, many representatives, like Nixon, made some the first anti-drug policies since Wilson. And though LSD was created much earlier, “acid” as it was called, became widespread in specific sects of America.

    Read More

  • Substance Abusers: A Vulnerable Population

    835 Words  | 2 Pages

    A vulnerable population are people that have specific characteristics, or risk factors, that increase the probability of developing health problems (Harkness & DeMarco, 2012, p.103). A Vulnerable is important because anyone can become a part of this population. One is going to be describing the characteristics of substance abusers. Next, give the common health issue and needs. Then, give specific resources that Peoria have to offer. Finally, how substance abuse relates to Healthy People 2020. Overall, this will give one an overview of the vulnerable population such as substance abusers.

    Read More

  • Drugs, Gangs and Juveniles

    1074 Words  | 3 Pages

    drug primarily is considered a highly addictive drug of choice. The other drug that John tes...

    Read More

  • Racial Disparities in Drug Crime

    1961 Words  | 4 Pages

    The past quarter century of American history has been profoundly impacted by the “war on drugs.” Ever since the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970 was passed by President Richard Nixon, the number of yearly incarcerations for drug violations has grown exponentially. America’s drug policies have cost billions of dollars and imprisoned hundreds of thousands of Americans, yet rates of drug, property, and violent crime have failed to decrease. Yassaman Saadatmand summates the consequences of Nixon’s policies: “Not only has the drug war failed to reduce violent and property crime, but it has also shifted criminal justice resources (the police, courts, prisons, probation officers, etc.) away from directly fighting violent and property crime.” The issue is further complicated by racial inequalities in the rates of drug use and crime. Whereas Whites consist the majority of the population of any state, they are outnumbered by African-Americans in both state and federal prisons (E. Ann Carson 2013). This incongruity is paralleled with many other races, such as an overrepresentation of Native Americans and an underrepresentation of Asians in rates of drug use. What causes this imbalance? What purpose do the higher rates of incarceration for certain minorities serve? As this topic is explored, it becomes evident that the racial disparity in drug crime is perpetuated by America’s legacy of bigotry and racism, capitalism, and a cycle of poverty.

    Read More

  • Cocaine in the Brain

    1216 Words  | 3 Pages

    Cocaine (C17H21NO4) comes from the leaf of an Erythroxylon coca bush. It is a drug that effects the central nervous system. It causes feelings of euphoria, pleasure, increased energy and alertness. People under the influence of cocaine often do not feel the need for food or sleep. They also feel energetic and may talk a lot. However, depending on factors such as environment, dosage, and the manner in which the drug is taken, cocaine can have adverse effects such as violent, erratic behavior, dizziness, paranoia, insomnia, convulsions, and heart failure to name a few. Long- term effects of cocaine include, but are not limited to strokes, heart attacks, seizures, loss of memory, and decrease in learning capability (1).

    Read More

  • Crack Cocaine Research Paper

    1695 Words  | 4 Pages

    Crack is the name given to cocaine that has been transformed into a condensed, more pure, rock form that can be smoked. It is the most addictive form of cocaine due to a higher potency level than the typical batch of street cocaine. Crack cocaine has often been referred to as a ‘soul drug’ because it has a tendency to rob its victims of everything including money, family, morals, and even life itself. Furthermore, it is possible to become addicted to crack cocaine from the very first time it is used, creating a vortex of misery for those who come into contact with it. Compared to other drugs, crack cocaine has a rather short history in America since it was only introduced the 1980’s. However, within this short period, Crack cocaine

    Read More

  • The Coca and the Cocaine War

    820 Words  | 2 Pages

    The “War on Cocaine” has been trying to fight a battle on two fronts. The first objective of the American government is to deter the consumer from using illegal products. The genesis of punishment against users is sited in the 1914 Harrison Act, in which addicts and others that possessed drugs were punished for buying or possessing cocaine or heroin without a prescription (Bertram, 26). This act began a trend that still today allows law enforcement to arrest the user along with the supplier. The supplier (drug trafficker) is the key in this type of police action, because most of the time the user will be unaware of the exact origin of the substance or have any knowledge as to where it was purchased or manufactured. The main problem with this type of arrest is that 70 to 75 percent of the narcotic arrests per year are for possession and only 25 to 30 percent are for actual drug trafficking offenses. Although the user should not be overlooked, a greater emphasis ought to be focused on the supplier in order to reach the actual manufacturer of the illegal substances.

    Read More

  • Substance Abuse: A Nationwide Epidemic

    2210 Words  | 5 Pages

    The consequences that follow the use of any drug are unfavorable. Although many individuals may see drug addiction as a mere lifestyle choice, it is a problem that many individuals suffer from and inevitably a growing issue that leaves major social and economic impacts.

    Read More

  • Past and Current Trends of Drug Abuse in the United States

    700 Words  | 2 Pages

    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 virus. Carroll (2000) states cocaine is the most powerful stimulant of natural origin. Most users snort or inject the drug to enable a quicker “high.” Cocaine use brings on many health problems. Fatal complications occur from regular use, for example, liver damage, seizures, elevated blood pressure causing stroke, heart failure, or heart attack.

    Read More

  • My Addiction to Sugar

    1399 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hyman, Mark. (2014). Sweet poison: How sugar, not cocaine, is one of the most addictive and dangerous substances. Daily News. Available at: www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/white-poison-danger-sugar-beat-article-1.1605232 (Accessed on 10 February 2014).

    Read More

  • Effects of Socioeconomic Status on Children

    1373 Words  | 3 Pages

    from the same class, and the same goes for middle and high socioeconomic status. This period in a child’s life is cr...

    Read More

  • History of the Crack Cocaine

    772 Words  | 2 Pages

    The powder cocaine is heated and a solid material isolates the boiling assortment. Next, it is removed and dried out and cut into “rocks” ( Streetdrugs). Crack cocaine gets its name from the crackling sound it makes when it’s simmered. Since coca trees grow primarily in South America, it is very easy to produce crack and many statistics show that US and Canada has the most crack addicts. Crack cocaine is also considered a stimulant because it increases the action of the central nervous system and speeds up the metabolism resulting in increased energy and alertness. Since it’s a stimulant and a narcotic, once a person takes it he yearns for it more. Taking crack cocaine produces a sense of euphoria, well-being (University Of Maryland). Symptoms of crack cocaine are both physical and psychological. Physical and psychological withdrawal begins if the addict lacks crack cocaine. Once he hits on the drug, his tolerance level boosts; he takes increased amounts of the drug each time to get desired effects. Psychological indications include the following: excessive thoughts over buying crack cocaine, regular craving ...

    Read More

More about Substance Abuse Increasing In Inner-city Minorities

Open Document