Conflicts and social struggles are an inevitable part of any society, in any country. These struggles may include increased crime rates, unemployment, domestic/general violence, and general civil depression. When governments can't seem to find ways to achieve their ends, they often turn to the cause of their struggles, and that thing is most often drugs. For many years, several opioids and medications were used primarily for medical purposes, were considered to have many health benefits, and were widely accepted within communities. However, with increasing social conflict and economic conditions, authorities turned to many different forms of once-accepted drugs and scapegoated them for the problems they faced. In the United States in the early 1900s, marijuana use among the Mexican immigrant community was used as a scapegoat to explain rising unemployment rates, with politicians stating that marijuana use caused violence, extreme criminality and radical behavior. This myth became widespread in the United States, eventually giving marijuana the infamous term "killer weed." Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayIn Dublin, Ireland, excessive heroin use has become the scapegoat for many problems such as public health problems , unemployment, violence, deaths, housing degradation and other crimes, ultimately labeling heroin as the cause of all the country's problems. The main objective of this essay will be to examine the reasons behind the laws that prohibit narcotics and other forms of drugs and the changing perception that society has about them. , with particular emphasis on Himmelstein and his guiding concepts of law. Research also shows that changing ideas about the use of certain drugs are not so much due to the potential risk of addiction and overdose, nor to the widespread recreational use, but rather to the situation and concerns underlying national economies. Himmelstein, a prominent figure and author of the article "From Killer Weed to Drop-Out Drug," suggests that drug control, laws and reforms are strongly influenced by three important "guiding concepts": entrepreneurship, location social and symbolic politics. explains: Entrepreneurs, or moral entrepreneurs, are people, or organized social groups, who take it upon themselves to start a revolution and play a key role in how a drug is perceived in society. Aldous Huxley, Leary & Ginsberg, and Ken Kesey are all examples of moral entrepreneurs who voiced their opinions, gained a large following, and attempted to change drug laws. Social locus refers to people who use a particular drug. It is “the relationship between the moral and legal status of a particular type of drug use and the social position of groups identified as primary or typical users; the lower the social position of users, the more likely their use is to be considered deviant, disreputable and bad.” This was seen with Mexican immigrants, as noted above. When the unemployment rate rose uncontrollably, the blame lay with the ethnic minority and their drug use. Finally, Himmelstein states that symbolic politics is when, in short, drugs anddrug control are used as scapegoats for broader social conflicts. Drug use among some lower-class groups can become a symbol of threat in times of social conflict and stress. Anti-drug laws are then put in place to help control these social conflicts and reassert the dominance of the upper social classes. “The banning of illicit drugs by governments has, in a number of cases, involved taking action against particular minority groups. and racial subcultures, to limit or control their behavior.” When social anarchy breaks out or the government's financial situation deteriorates, it is easy for moral entrepreneurs to place blame on minority groups and racial subcultures. This happened in America in the early 1900s, around the time of the Mexican Revolution. In 1910, large numbers of marijuana-smoking Mexican immigrants sought refuge in the United States in search of work. Many wealthy farmers were eager to give them work, as Mexicans were willing to work for very low wages. Most Americans were unhappy with the influx of Mexican immigrants because it made it much more difficult for locals to find jobs. As unemployment rates rose and small businesses declined, Mexican immigrants became the "social venue" and "scapegoats for economic conflict between business and workers." Excessive marijuana use within the Mexican community was seen as an easy target for racist politicians and moral entrepreneurs. In an attempt to control Mexican immigration to America, Harry J. Anslinger, along with many other small anti-marijuana campaigns and tabloids began to demonize the drug, claiming sweeping and false reports that the drug causes permanent insanity , extreme violence and erratic behavior. ultimately giving marijuana the term “killer weed.” Jerome Himmelstein argues that the image of "killer weed" emerged because of society's views on the drug and its users, as Mexican and other lower-class workers were often seen as violent. This idea of ​​marijuana continued until the main group of marijuana users shifted, in the 1960s, to middle-class youth. The term "killer weed" for marijuana was quickly replaced by "quit drug" as by the 1960s marijuana was once again being used as a scapegoat for the laziness and lack of motivation of young people. drug use is a direct reflection of Hammerstein's three guiding concepts. Lower-class immigrants were targeted by upper-class moral entrepreneurs because of their drug use and used as scapegoats for the social and economic conflicts fought. In the 1970s, a similar drug epidemic occurred in Dublin, Ireland. Heroin was, and still is, a national problem that has been symbolically associated with violence, public health problems, unemployment, dilapidated housing, and other crimes. Since the start of the heroin epidemic in the 1970s, Dublin has seen a dramatic increase in violent crime, prostitution and murder, with the most notorious murder being that of Victoria Guerin, a journalist shot dead while was investigating drug crimes in Dublin. As heroin addiction increased in the 1990s, employment rates fell to just 55% of the population..