Meet Bob Williams (1980s): Educated, articulate, crackhead

[Hijo de luna]

An interesting account of the crack epidemic of the early to mid 80's. Bob Williams could have been a great asset to the black community but instead discovered crack cocaine

 

[Remote]

When he first started using crack, he spent $50,000 in the first 9 months.

And old girlfriend first turned him on to crack.
His first night he spent $60 on it.
The next day, he spent $400.



That's some scary stuff, man.

He had a job earning $33,000 per year and only lasted 2 weeks. (Assuming this is 1981-ish...$33,000 per year back then is roughly $89,000 in 2015 money)
He was absent Tuesday from work because he got crack on the way to work.
Then he didn't show up Wednesday either.
He goes to work Thursday and Friday.
Then Monday he leaves work for a quick break to get some crack...didn't go back until Wednesday. Then Friday was his last day. He got fired.

Smart guy, he worked in Telecommunications and Engineering.

At the time of the interview, he says he was spending $100 a day on crack.

He says the most he spent on crack was $1,300 in 6 hours. And this is back in the early 80s, brehs.

He says he's been in a crackhouse where he saw a girl around 16 years old go in with her daddy and say "No, no, daddy. It's my turn to buy"

He says he's seen a 16 year old girl in a Catholic School uniform buy crack.
He says he's personally smoked crack in the ladies' room of a Harlem Hospital with his girlfriend that used to work there.
He's seen mothers with 4 and 5 year old kids go to crackhouses at 9pm and leave the kids outside while they went in to smoke crack.
He's seen a woman pawn her baby to a crack dealer.

He died not long after that interview.
Guy's life was basically New Jack City, man.

 

[SirReginald]

Crack was planted to destroy the Black community.

 

[Barnett114]

fukk the CIA and the black men who moved it.

 

[dennis roadman]

 

[Desirous]

I was thinking "I wonder how long before he dies" because that's some serious drug use...sad story...this is why I don't even experiment with drugs...shyt scares me.

 

[Big Daddy]

Good find. The Epidemic probably has claimed more casualties than even the biggest of world wars. In that time period the Black community was really "getting it's shyt together" at an alarming rate.
They needed something that could cripple that progress, so in comes the crack cocaine. shyt worked.

 

[Apollo Creed]

it amazes me how non blacks act like crack magically appeared in black communities.

Thank God this Meth and Heroine epidemic that nobody wants to talk about isn't hitting us hard like it is some other groups.

 

[Remote]

it amazes me how non blacks act like crack magically appeared in black communities.

Thank God this Meth and Heroine epidemic that nobody wants to talk about isn't hitting us hard like it is some other groups.

Yeah it does seem like Meth is the white community's "Crack" epidemic.

It's fukked up.

Heroin is a growing problem, in part because so many people are getting addicted to painkillers which are derived from heroin...or maybe it's more accurate to say....they're derived from opium.

So a lot of people who have surgeries...people on disabilities....athletes (LOTS of athletes)...eventually move from Oxycodone and things to heroin once they're retired...since they don't have the money for the pills and still need the same high or relief.

 

[Apollo Creed]

Yeah it does seem like Meth is the white community's "Crack" epidemic.

It's fukked up.

Heroin is a growing problem, in part because so many people are getting addicted to painkillers which are derived from heroin...or maybe it's more accurate to say....they're derived from opium.

So a lot of people who have surgeries...people on disabilities....athletes (LOTS of athletes)...eventually move from Oxycodone and things to heroin once they're retired...since they don't have the money for the pills and still need the same high or relief.

aint Lean essentially liquid heroin?

 

[Remote]

aint Lean essentially liquid heroin?

I don't know what lean is.

 

[LexDiamonds]

How did he die?

 

[Remote]

How did he die?

 

[Offthegrid]

how da fuk was dey smoking rocks before da 80s cia put crack in da streets in 86 da video was recorded in 81 n he said he saw ppl hooked on it yrs b4 he went from sniffing powder to smoking rocks. dis not adding up wat if crack was jus a experiment in da,lab dat caught on in hollywood b4 it really hit da hoods of america

 

[Remote]

how da fuk was dey smoking rocks before da 80s cia put crack in da streets in 86 da video was recorded in 81 n he said he saw ppl hooked on it yrs b4 he went from sniffing powder to smoking rocks. dis not adding up wat if crack was jus a experiment in da,lab dat caught on in hollywood b4 it really hit da hoods of america

I don't know the detailed history, but I've always been under the impression that crack "took off" in like 1985-86

But maybe it was out there for a few years before then.

I mean, we hear a lot about meth nowadays but I've seen interviews of people saying meth was around decades ago as like..."heroin" for white trash and biker gangs.