Publisher's Synopsis
? How does enforcement impact upon drug markets? - ? How have the police developed ways of referring drug users to treatment agencies? - ? What do official and media accounts of crack cocaine and yardies reveal about drugs, race and social reaction? - Ranging across criminology, sociology and cultural studies, this book examines key areas of drug enforcement, police multi-agency relationships, and discourses on the media, race and drugs. Part I examines the emergence of street level drug enforcement; pressure on the police to take action against local drug markets; and reviews the arguments for and against drug legalisation. Part II focusses on drug and arrest referral schemes and presents research on their operation in areas around Britain. Part III looks at official and media discourses. One chapter critiques the idea that the reaction to the ecstasy-related death of Leah Betts can be regarded as a moral panic. Two other chapters explore reactions to crack cocaine and the racialized construction of yardies.
