Code of the Street

Published in 1999, Code of the Street is both a definite reflection of the time in which it was released and a comprehensive, thematic analysis of urban dynamics that remains relevant in contemporary society. Written in the pre-“Y2K” era, Anderson does not bring technology—whether its scarcity or abundance—into his arguments throughout the book. This is where the book most notably shows its age since a similar exploration of inner-city life today would analyze the impacts of social media and the Internet. So much of contemporary urban life, particularly in terms of identity formation and “campaigning for respect,” is now associated with social media personas. However, even as technologies have revolutionized societies on a global scale, systemic poverty in urban areas that is exacerbated by racial inequality remains just as evident today.

The social context of 1999 should be considered in the context of policies passed in the 1970s and 80s, including the rise of the prison-industrial complex, the War on Drugs, and cuts to social welfare programs. While US incarceration rates were declining before the 1970s, President Richard Nixon launched the War on Drugs in 1971, which instituted mandatory minimum sentencing for drug possession. This resulted in skyrocketing arrests and convictions for drugs; the US prison population increased from 196,441 in 1970 to nearly 1.4 million in 1999. (Delaney, Ruth, et al. “American History, Race, and Prison.” Vera Institute for Justice) (“Prisoners in 1999” US Department of Justice). This disproportionately affected Black Americans, as courts penalized crack possession more severely than other drugs (Abrams, Jim. “Congress passes bill to reduce disparity in crack, powder cocaine sentencing.” Washington Post, 29 Jul 2010). As a result, Black people were incarcerated at higher rates for drug crimes despite Black populations using drugs at the same rates as other populations (“The Drug War, Mass Incarceration, and Race” Drug Policy Alliance, June 2015). Mass incarceration not only pulls people out of their communities, but it affects their opportunities after they are released as many employers refuse to hire them. Unable to find legitimate employment, many find themselves pulled back into what Anderson calls the underground economy, selling drugs or performing sex work in order to get by. This perpetuates poverty and high recidivism rates in inner-city communities.

Additionally, families affected by incarceration and poverty were less able to rely on welfare and other forms of state aid due to decades of welfare cuts. President Ronald Reagan cut $22 billion from social welfare programs in 1981 and 1982 alone, eliminating the safety net keeping many out of the underground economy (Bond Potter, Claire. “The Shadow of Ronald Reagan is Costing Us Dearly.” New York Times, 11 Nov 2011). Likewise, President Bill Clinton passed his own welfare reform bill in 1996, called the “Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act.” This bill instituted work requirements for state assistance and also limited the amount of time one could collect benefits. The effects of this bill were just beginning to be felt in 1999, when “the President unveiled landmark regulations covering Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) that promote work and help those who have left the rolls to succeed in the workforce and stay off welfare” (“Reforming Welfare by Promoting Work and Responsibility” The White House 15 Dec 2000). With this, families who could make ends meet through state assistance were frequently denied benefits, resulting in greater precarity.

Code of the Street was also published before 9/11 when American mentalities changed regarding things like support for greater surveillance and stronger policing. 9/11 marks a definitive shift in American politics and culture toward the current political polarization that dominates modern American political discourse. In particular, police power has increased since 1999; for example, the NYPD budget ballooned from $2.9 billion in 2000 to $11 billion in 2020 (“Analysis of the Mayor’s Executive Budget for 2000.” NYC Independent Budget Office, 15 May 1999) (“A Look Inside the New York City Police Department Budget.” Vera Institute of Justice, 2020). This has resulted in increased police violence, with Black Americans 2.9 times more likely to be killed by police than white Americans (Mapping Police Violence, 31 Aug 2022). Since 2013, mass protests under the slogan Black Lives Matter have taken place across the nation to demand accountability for Black victims of police violence.

Anderson focuses on two major ideological premises: one, that the traditional, or nuclear family unit still has an important role to play in finding solutions to the issues that inner-city communities experience; two, that systemic racism and stereotypes account for a significant portion of the existence of the code of the street. His analysis highlights the distrust between Black communities and law enforcement, an issue that has only grown since 1999. Were Code of the Street published today, Anderson might expand his thoughts on systemic racism to include these heightened tensions.