women aged 15-21 in 1981 had family incomes below 100 percent
poverty , compared with 14 percent of whites. By 1990, 73 percent of all
children under 18 lived with both parents . Nearly one third lived with
parents who have never been married. Twelve percent of white mothers
living alone with children were under the age of 25, 27 percent had less
than a high school education and 36 percent were unemployed. For
blacks 18 percent were under 25; 34 percent had less than high school
education and 52 percent were unemployed . For Hispanics, the
proportions were 15 percent ,55 percent and 54 percent. Pinkney states,
that studies show that because teenage mothers are emotional immature,
they place themselves and their babies at risk for medical problems. In
addition, school aged children born to adolescent parents exhibit more
behavioral problems and score lower on intelligence test than other
school aged children. In conclusion, Pinkney states, that a basic
problem of adolescent pregnancy and childbearing is poverty. Given the
nature of American society , it is difficult to foresee any positive
outcomes for of adolescent childbirth, especially among minorities.
Pinkney states, of all the industrialized countries , the Unites States
alone has no consistent family planing policy.
On substance abuse, Pinkney focused on both legal and illicit
drugs. The legal drugs being alcohol and tobacco; the illicit ones being
cocaine, crack cocaine and heroin. He discuss crack cocaine in some
length because it is fairly new and believed to have the most serious
adverse effect of any drug on both the individual involved and the
larger society.
Alcohol is potentially dangerous drug, but its sale and use are not
prescribed and it is the major drug of choice in the United States.
Research shows that more males than females have used alcohol and
whites are slightly more likely that blacks and Hispanic to be frequent
drinkers. Among men, however, roughly the sane proportion of each
group were frequent drinkers. White women on the other hand are
somewhat more likely to be frequent drinkers than blacks and Hispanic
women. Whites are also more likely that blacks or Hispanics to drink at
early and at older ages. Of all the categories, Hispanics women are the
least likely to drink and white men are the most likely. Studies show,
blacks drink somewhat less that whites and are more likely to abstain
from drinking. Also, alcohol plays a smaller role in home and family life
among blacks that whites. Although alcohol is legal in the US, its
recreational use is socially acceptable, and it adverse social effects are
greater than those of all illicit drugs. It is said to be the direct cause
between 80,000 and 100,000 deaths annually and it is a factor in nearly
on all of murders , suicides, and accidental deaths. Alcohol related traffic
death are the leading cause of death of adolescence. According to the
U.S. Public Health Service, alcohol is more than 10 percent of all health
problems in the country and 50 percent of all homicides. Also,
cirrhosis of the live killed some 30,000 people annually in the US, and
the mortality rate form the disease among black is double that in the
white population. Fetal alcohol syndrome , is another alcohol related
health problem it is diagnosed in one of every 750 live births. The
diseases is marked by birth defects and usually occurs in women who
drink heavily during pregnancy. The symptoms include brain damage,
low birth weight, and facial and bodily abnormalities.
According to the 1990 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse,
147 million Americans 12 years of age and over have used cigarettes.
Males are more likely have smoked than females and to be regular
smokers. Whites are more likely to have smoked than blacks or
Hispanics and are more likely to smoke regularly. Hispanic women are
least likely to smoke and white men are the most likely. Smoking
increases with age among each of the three groups; within each group
the youngest persons are more likely to use tobacco than any other drug.
Tabacco is a psychoactive substance that stimulates the central nervous
system. It addictive potential is so great that the surgeon general of the
United States declared it to be as addictive as cocaine and heroin.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, cigarette smoking is
declining in the United States, and the annual rate of decline had been
higher among men that women. However, cigarette smoking remains
the most preventable cause of death in our society and is responsible for
an estimated 390,000 deaths annually. According to the CDC, Black
men were more likely to smoke than white, but the rates for black and
white women were similar. According to Statistical Abstracts , the
proportion of blacks in the population who smoke cigarettes has
exceeded the proportion of whites since 1965. In addition, person who
smoked cigarettes were more likely than nonsmokers to use alcohol
beverages and to consume a greater quantities of alcohol. Cigarette
smoking had been found to be a major cause of several life threatening
diseases such as emphysema, cancer of the lungs and airways, coronary
heart disease, and vascular disease. Pinkney states although the
destructive potential of tobacco use is well established , cigarettes are
one of the most heavily advertised products. The advertising usually
associates smoking with a glamorous life style , healthy activities, and
social success. Evidence shows that cigarette companies target their
advertising campaigns to minorities, women, blue collar workers, and
teenagers these groups make up an increasing proportion of the
smoking population.
It is reported in the 1990 National Household Survey on Drug
Abuse some 23 million Americans have used cocaine and of that nearly
one million use some form of the drug at least once a week. Males more
than females are likely to have used some form of cocaine and are more
likely to be frequent users. In terms of race /ethnicity , whites and
Hispanics are more like to used cocaine that blacks . Hispanic males are
more likely than white and black males to have used cocaine and are
more frequent users. White females are more likely than black or
Hispanic females to have ever used cocaine and are more likely to be
frequent users. Cocaine releases adrenaline, thereby stimulating the
central nervous system. It also usurps the need for food and sleep and in
high doses it produces extreme euphoria . Adverse reactions may
include cardiopulmonary, psychiatric, gastrointestinal, and as well as
eyes, ears, nose and throat problems. Pregnant women who use cocaine
frequently experienced spontaneous abortions, premature birth, low
birth rates, congenial fetal malformations, fetal irritability and
malnutrition. Also, cocaine is likely to be use in combination of other
drugs , and because it can cause an increased libido, it has been
associated with the spread of STD’s and AIDS.
The 1990 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, reported that
2.7 million Americans 12 years of age and over had used crack and that
nearly half a million were regular users. Males are more than twice as
likely as females to be regular users. A higher portion of black had used
crack cocaine than Hispanics or whites. Blacks were more likely to be
regular users and considerably more black females had used the drug
than Hispanics and white and of the nearly 500,000 regular crack
addicts, more than 200,000 were said to be black. Cocaine hydrochloride
is a white crystalline powder that is about 95 percent pure, is converted
into crack by boiling it in a moisture of backing soda and water. The
mixture is then dried until it becomes a soaplike substance. It is most
often smoked in crack houses were users frequently remain for several
days. The name crack comes from the sudden, sharp sound the drug
makes when smoked. Because it is smoked it goes directly into the
lungs when inhaled and the reaches the brain in a few seconds. It
produces extreme euphoria in a very brief time, and for this reason it
has become the drug of choice for many. Crack cocaine is inexpensive,
highly addictive and easy to use; it is therefore popular among
adolescents. It addictive power is so great that constant users require
hundreds or thousands of dollars a week to support the habit , and
crime is usually the source on income. Crack first appeared on the West
Coast in the early 1980s and made it debut on the streets on New York
in 1984. Scientist doing research states, crack is the most addictive
drug in existence and that the addition comes more quickly and last
longer than any other illicit drug because the drug stimulates the
pleasure center of the brain. The euphoria leaves quickly leaving users
depressed , anxious, and with out pleasure. The biochemistry of crack
addiction is such that the craving for the drug in addicts is so intense
that relapse is almost inevitable the cravings last much longer that for
other drugs. Crack cocaine abuse is associated with the same adverse
reactions as cocaine but often to a greater extent and more severely.
Studies show, the use of crack during pregnancy has serious effects
on the he fetus. It has also been linked to increases in child abuse and
neglect and has been associated with the increase of aggression,
resulting in increase in violent crime and other strains on the criminal
justice system. Although crack has been reported to be prevalent in the
suburbs of New York and elsewhere, its damage has been greatest in
poor black and Hispanic neighborhoods. Pinkney states, one of the most
destructive results of the increase of libido and impairment of
judgment, that result from addition to crack, has increased the role in
spreading STD’s and AIDS. In crack houses where it is often smoked ,
crack is frequently used in exchange of sex. In some cases many as one
half of the crack users seeking drug treatment tested positive for HIV.
The 1990 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, reported that
1.6 Americans 12 years of age and older have used heroin. Men are
more than twice as likely as women to have used the drug and blacks
are more likely than Hispanics and whites to have used heroin. Heroin
use appears to peak at a later age that than that of other illicit drugs.
Regionally, heroin is used mostly on the East and West coasts followed
by the Midwest and least often the South. Heroin is deprived from
opium and is therefore is a depressant. It induces sleep and lessens
nervous tension. Like most opiates heroin produces relief from pain,
hypnosis and euphoria. It is usually ingested intravenously with hyper
hypodermic needle although it can be sniffed or smoked. The effects on
heroin use have euphoric feelings that give the user a general feeling of
well being an escape from reality. With one injection those feeling can
last for hours. Heroin addicts are usually not violent because the drug
depresses aggression and unlike users of some other illicit drugs, those
who use heroin have little or no interest in sex. Some of the many side
effects are respiratory arrest, anxiety, increased blood pressure, nausea,
insomnia and cardiovascular collapse. Also the hypodermic needles are
often shared is associated with AIDS and hepatitis. Minorities,
especially blacks, have long been over represented among heroin
addicts. However the increase use of cocaine and crack decrease the use
of the drug. The use has been on the increase since 1990 according to
drug enforcement officials. The increased can be linked to improved
growing conditions for opium poppies. There is a wide spread myth that
heroin is not addictive and is less harmful when snorted, but that was
soon shattered in 1991 when several addicts died from snorting toxic
heroin called “Tango and Cash”. Although it was sold as heroin , lab test
reveled that it contained a chemical, fentanyl, which is used as a
tranquilizer during surgery. The New York City Health Commissioner
said of the new drug that “it overwhelms opiate receptors in the brain ,
causing the users to stop breathing. Because the addicts are constantly
looking for a more intense euphoria the drug was immediately popular
despite it deadly potential. Heroin use is said to be on the increase,
because newer forms are widely available and they are less expensive
than in the past. Underground chemist continue to experiment, seeking
ways to create synthetic form of heroin that can be made inexpensively
in labs.
Pinkney concludes minorities in the US, especially black
Americans, are over represented among the homeless, adolescent who
become pregnant, and those who are addicted to harmful drugs.
Although the data on the extent of these social problems are sometime
contradictory they are persuasive . Research on these problems reveals
that to a great degree they result from wide spread poverty, brought
about by the racist nature of society. He goes on to say that this makes it
difficult for black citizens and other minorities to conform to standards
of behavior society sets for all citizens.
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