Street Addicts in the Political Economy

by Alisse Waterston

Overview

In this book, Alisse Waterston reveals the economic, political, and ideological forces that shape the nature of street-addict life. Disputing the view that hard-core, low-income drug users are social marginals situated in deviant subcultures, the author dispels popular images of the mythic, dark dope fiend haunting our city streets. Using dramatic, first-person accounts from New York City addicts, Waterston analyzes their position in the social structure, the kind of work -- both legal and illegal -- they perform, and their relations with family, friends, and lovers. She presents a moving account of daily life from the addict's point of view and demonstrates how addicts are structurally vulnerable to the larger sociocultural system within which they live.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781439904169
Publisher:	Temple University Press
Publication date:	06/25/2010
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	304
File size:	371 KB

About the Author

Alisse Waterston is Research Associate at the HIV Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies at Columbia University. She is currently Visiting Associate Professor in the Graduate Faculty in Sociology at the New School for Social Research.

Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
1. Toward a Political Economy of Drugs
2. Homelessness and City Shelters
3. Making a living
4. Crime and Punishment
5. Medical Solutions
6. Lovers and Other Strangers
7. Drugs Culture and Society
Appendix
Notes
References
Index