The article presents the issues of underground deals of vending crack. The author, Bourgois Philippe, starts with the motives compelling the sellers to embark on this type of business. A more substantial portion of the inner-city dwellers does not turn to this vice till after they encounter humiliating, low paying, and biased occupations. Having endured all these skimpy occupations, they set their eyes on underground businesses to take care of their needs. Not only does this business offer them better earnings but also eliminates discrimination and humiliation tied to formal jobs.
These drug sellers feel “proud that they are no longer being oppressed by the white people, but they feel “like fucking assholes” for their poverty levels (Bourgois, 6). Though the primary reason for venturing into crack auctioning is to escape the mistreatment of the Whites, there are also those who are lazy to labor in white color jobs, and for this reason venture into drug selling. Bourgois also narrates how violent conduct or behavior that mirrors unreasonable violence and self-destructive to the middle class is instead regarded as “a thoughtful instance of public relations, publicity, rapport bonding and long-term speculation in an individual’s “human capital growth” (Bourgois, 7). in other terms, these drug sellers apply violence to safeguard their businesses. Being “soft” like the case of Gato would lender them vulnerable to attacks from other drug sellers. They often culture terror to secure their businesses since they entirely rely on them (Bourgois, 8).
The article also highlights innocent individuals in the company of these drug traffickers. The excitement, affluence, and conducts of these business people entice them. Females are highlighted as being gradually tangled in the drug business. Seemingly, more of them are addicts and cannot do without crack, the reason for the rise in sexually abuse. This whole article appears to symbolize a never-ending downward curve for these inner-city dwellers.
- Bourgois, Philippe. “Crack in Spanish Harlem: Culture and economy in the inner city.” Anthropology Today 5.4 (1989): 6-11.
