Power of the state, capitalism, and family. Young African Americans describe the drug trade as something they use to finance future legal ventures. Bergmann says that African American youths in Detroit have a unique journey due to the involvement in the street drug trade. Many cultures have specific rites of passage or rituals that transition individuals from childhood to adulthood, for example, the Christian confirmation ceremony and the Latin American Quinceañera. Although each culture may have their own unique celebration that represent the turning point in one’s life, Bergmann’s ethnography hints to the idea that there is no certain turning point or celebration for the African American youths. This turning point is ever changing based on
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This establishes the fact the young African Americans accept the idea that death is potentially a consequence from being involved in the drug trade. This idea is confronted head on when a staff members asked who had been to a wedding, no one raised their hands, but, when asked who had been to a funeral, everyone raised their hands. This shows exactly how deep this goes into the youth community. Another instance in which lethal gun violence is a direct result of the drug trade is the murder of Elaine, a member of Dude’s affinal kin. Elaine knew important people in the drug trade; she and her boyfriend were selling drugs out of their home and making upwards of fifty thousand dollars at various points in time (88-89). However, Elaine “couldn’t make it last” and was brutally shot while coming home from the store and discussing drugs with her young murderer (89). The connection between the drug trade and gun violence extends so deeply into the youth community that it forces them to acknowledge that fact that gun violence can and likely will be a part of their lives. The acceptance of this idea replaces the youth innocence with a grim outlook on life. The association between gun violence and the drug trade has broader implications beyond the immediate danger of life or death. The drug trades effect on the youths’ outlook on life is only one consequence of the business’s broader
This establishes the fact the young African Americans accept the idea that death is potentially a consequence from being involved in the drug trade. This idea is confronted head on when a staff members asked who had been to a wedding, no one raised their hands, but, when asked who had been to a funeral, everyone raised their hands. This shows exactly how deep this goes into the youth community. Another instance in which lethal gun violence is a direct result of the drug trade is the murder of Elaine, a member of Dude’s affinal kin. Elaine knew important people in the drug trade; she and her boyfriend were selling drugs out of their home and making upwards of fifty thousand dollars at various points in time (88-89). However, Elaine “couldn’t make it last” and was brutally shot while coming home from the store and discussing drugs with her young murderer (89). The connection between the drug trade and gun violence extends so deeply into the youth community that it forces them to acknowledge that fact that gun violence can and likely will be a part of their lives. The acceptance of this idea replaces the youth innocence with a grim outlook on life. The association between gun violence and the drug trade has broader implications beyond the immediate danger of life or death. The drug trades effect on the youths’ outlook on life is only one consequence of the business’s broader