Crack in Spanish Harlem

Crack in Spanish Harlem

Philippe Bourgois

For people that have never had to struggle for a buck, they could never imagine life in the streets. I grew up primarily getting everything I wanted, and obviously everything I needed. Never did I ever once have to ride a city bus, let alone be found anywhere near inner city streets. I use to believe that the people there were "bad," therefore they placed themselves in the street. But after going to school with kids in poverty, and somewhat seeing the streets, I realized that this life is sometimes unavoidable.

Through my ex-boyfriend, I met quite a few people that were dealers, scammers, or who robbed to get by. I was actually quite frightened by them, until I realized that if they did not rob that next car, or sell that next rock, that they would not be able to eat dinner that night. I have never experienced that lifestyle, but I realized that it was a matter of living or not. One of the boys I met was actually born in prison, and then his aunt was given custody of him; she lived in the projects, and he learned to hustle his way to getting what he needed. He tried getting a job making minimum wage, however, one after another he was fired because of not making it on time, having to take care of his baby sister, or because of his criminal record. He did not have many choices, except for getting into dealing. Once he began dealing he was able to drive a high end car, had designer clothes, and lived in a nice suburban townhouse. At that point, how would you expect him to want to stop what he was doing, if he was making more money than he could ever make at minimum wage?

The underground