In 1969 Preble and Casey’s classic account of the illicit heroin economy in New York broke through prevailing images of the addict as a passive loser to portray the ghetto user / hustler as an active achiever. At the time their analysis seemed far removed from the comparatively civilised situation in the booming Britain of the 1960s. Today it seems heroin users in some of the UK’s inner city unemployment black spots are now also taking care of business.

Taking care of business (PDF)

Additional keywords: day in the life of, drug cultures, drug subcultures, lifestyle, drug users