Social Deviance, Inequality, and Drug Dealers: A Look Into Appearances, Body Language, and Social Stigmas - Research Paper
Abstract
The
idea of an individual’s appearance and drug addiction are explored. Does the media play a role in how we view
drug users and dealers? Does it
stereotype them in our minds for us? Are
stereotypes different between the genders?
Do individuals from different age groups have a different idea of what
drug users and dealers look like? Does
race play a role in ones view of drug users and dealers? An in depth survey was used to determine whether
these elements played an important role in stereotyping.
Imagine for a moment that you are
walking down the street and before you is a man dressed in sloppy clothes, he
has long frayed hair, and a large beard.
He stands around six feet tall, his broad features appear to make him
look rather bearish, and he is walking towards you. Do you walk by, hoping he doesn’t bother
you? Approach him and tell him what a disgrace
he is? Or do you cross the street just
to avoid even being close to him?
For many individuals, the first or
last response would probably be the most realistic. Why is that?
Do we associate individuals who fit this mold as being a deviant to
society? Are we afraid they might try to
mug us? Beat us up? Or even try to offer us drugs? What if this man was a Hispanic, Asian, or
even African-American? Would that make a
difference?
Many people, especially young
adults, have an assumption that one’s appearance, specifically, that which was
mentioned in the opening paragraph, is directly related to drug dealers, users,
and other forms of deviants. Jerry
Rubin, founder of the YIPPY movement back in the late ‘60s and 70’s once said
that, “Young kids identify short hair with authority, discipline, unhappiness,
boredom, hatred of life, and long hair with just ‘letting go.’ Wherever we go, our hair tells people where
we stand on Vietnam, lawless campus destructions, and drugs. We’re living TV commercials for the
revolution. Long hair is the beginning
of our liberation from sexual oppression…”[i]
Coming from a man who had the long
hair, who had the long facial hair, he was promoting a lifestyle, a revolution
against authority. He was aware that his
appearance attracted those who used drugs, and was no doubt approached for
them.
Interview
He always sat alone on the busses
and other public transportation systems, individuals would seek refuge from his
presence on the other side of the street, drug users were constantly
approaching him, and the police, not knowing him as undercover agent, would
harass him, all because of his appearance.
“It was towards the end of the
hippie era where individuals that looked like me were associated as being drug
users. I knew that, they knew that, and
the police knew it.” He recalls an
instance where six police squad cars pulled them over, demanded they get out of
the car, and continually asked them who they were and what they were
doing. “It became a pain after a
while…You had to be really careful.”
The media
had a big part in portraying this lifestyle.
Everything from news on the television, newspapers, and magazines played
a part. Even the film industry had an astounding effect on this negative
stigma.
However, that was during the ‘60s and the ‘70s. Does that stereotype that existed then exist
today, or has it been reshaped by society and current events? A survey was constructed to determine what
social stigmas are present today. The
full list of questions asked can be found at the conclusion of this
article.
The survey[iii]
that was constructed established people’s stereotypes about drug users and
dealers. Out of the thirty-five surveys
sent out, thirty-one were returned and usable data. There results at first glance seemed chaotic
at best, but at a closer look, there seemed to be a distinguishing factor
between not only the sexes, but age as well.
Among questions asked were if men
who had long unkempt hair, along with facial hair, that wore grumpy clothes
were associated with drug users or dealers.
While the younger generation, (Those mainly under the age of thirty)
answered that they did not associated that appearance with drug users, women
proved to be a little more apprehensive, answering that they would go to great
lengths to avoid those who stay clear of those individuals.
The older individuals however did
associate that appearance with drug users, hinting that the feelings of this
particular stereotype are a generational assumption. The common thread however was the idea of age
of both users and dealers, ranging between twenty-one to thirty years old.
With the rise of Columbian drug
imports, and more generally those from Latin America, social stigma on drug
dealers especially, but users as well, has shifted from the more traditional
stereotypes of Caucasian and African American, to that of Latin culture.
The last aspect of the survey asked
if gender was a deciding factor in stereotyping drug users, and they came back
in an overwhelming yes. Men were heavily
seen as drug dealers, while men and women alike were seen as viable users. The age of users had a much lower age range
than dealers as well, showing that users were seen as being between the ages of
fourteen to twenty five.
Theories
Theorists have used the labeling
theory[iv]
in many aspects to prove their stances.
The theory suggests that we label individuals on how they are perceived
by the general public. When an
individual is seen walking down the street and is in drab clothes, has long
hair, facial hair, and mumbling to himself, we see him as someone who is
mentally unstable, and where possibly drugs play an important role.
Societal Reaction Theory is the
idea that “we all… display strange behavior from time to time. If we do this…and if the agents of social
control become aware of these behaviors, we may be seen as having a problem.”[v]
This problem can be viewed as in
need of psychiatric help, physical help, to drug addiction. How we view these individuals is based on our
preconceived notions of what is normal and acceptable in human behavior. Individuals who lived during the Hippie era,
may have a strong stereotype of those who appeared were amongst the free love
and drug society.
The stereotype of drug users and
dealers is still present in today’s society, but has gone under a
reformation. The media has changed how
we view these individuals. A stigma that
belonged to the Caucasians, has shifted to the Latin realms.[vi]
We are constantly being shaped by
the world around us. What may be
prevalent in today’s society may change dramatically in the next decade. We see that the social stigmas that existed
thirty years ago have less of an effect in the present setting.
Our general appearance is a strong
sense of who we are and how we are interpreted by those around us. How we are seen by others is a major
determining factor of how we fit in society.
“Your dress and grooming send
messages about you to others and influence the way you and others
act. When you are well groomed and
modestly dressed, [you] exercise a good influence on those around you”[vii]
[i] Jerry
Rubin, founder of the YIPPY movement
[ii]
Interview of Steve Clark, a former FBI undercover agent in NYC from 1972 - 1981
[iii] Survey
conducted among class peers in the Sociology 3250 class in the fall of 2007.
[iv] Deviance: The Essentials. Henry Vandenburgh (pg 98)
[v] Ibid
(pg. 70)
[vi]
According to survey
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