O contexto de vida de pessoas usuárias de crack: das relações às sanções sociais

Abstract

The consumption of psychoactive substances in humankind dates from prehistory, serving the human being for a series of purposes, ranging from the search for pleasure to religious, mystical and therapeutic purposes. In 2010, the theme of drugs gained prominence in the Brazilian political-media landscape, and crack was the drug that most impacted public health and drew attention, for its use was attributed to violent crimes and the supposed moral degradation of Brazilian youth. Anthropology is an important tool to get to know in depth the social phenomena linked to people who use drugs. In the light of anthropology, it was decided to approach the theory of gifts, written by Marcel Mauss, to guide the construction of this research. This choice was made because it is believed that the concept developed by Mauss encompasses the meaning of the relations of exchange and social relations between individuals, for it is understood as a gift everything that circulates in society that is neither linked to the market nor to the State, and neither to physical violence. It is what circulates for or in the name of the social bonding. The objective of this study was to understand the organization of the life of people who use crack in the perspective of the relationships and social sanctions they experience or live. It is an ethnographic research that followed up people that use crack in the context of their experiences in the city of Pelotas, interviewed six people and observed about 20, all recorded in a field diary. Access to users occurred through the Harm Reduction Strategy and data collection occurred from July to December 2017, making up five months of field. The Ethics Committee, under the number 2.128.305, approved the research. The insertion in the field made it possible to know part of the daily life of crack users and to realize that in this routine of life they are constantly subjected to strong sanctions and relationships, in which they also benefit. Many of the people observed are living in a situation of misery, which is historically elated to poverty, which permeates the use of crack. However, the necessary experienced can be seen in the light of Mauss as relations of exchange and solidarity, since users in precarious conditions of shelter, housing and food, help one another in the attempt of comfort and well-being. Also, the presence of adolescents and children in scenes of use and in the middle of the commercialization of drugs is remarkable, as well as the prostitution of girls as a form of sustenance and obtaining of drugs. Violence and losses is a marked reality in the daily lives of these people, whether from the traffic or the police. They show solidarity and receive it in return. The family is essential when it comes to hosting and recovery. It is observed that assistance to the drug user is a challenge, and different overviews and actions have a major impact in the user of crack as an individual, and also at a collective spectrum, considering the social determinants that involves it, besides to develop inter and multidisciplinary actions.