'When Crack Was King': Author Donovan X. Ramsey On His Book About A Misunderstood Era

On this episode of Queue Points, we delve into the book, "When Crack Was King: A People's History of a Misunderstood Era” with author Donovan X. Ramsey. Donovan discusses the tragic legacy of the crack epidemic through the eyes of four individuals, illuminating the vulnerability and resilience of the Black community. We discuss topics like harm reduction, the vital role of community, and the significance of having authentic representations of the people impacted by the crack epidemic. 

Sharing deeply personal experiences, we explore the continuous ripple effects of the crack era, the failure of the criminal justice system, and the intersections between historical events like the Great Migration and the onset of the crack crisis. This episode confronts the disparities, the stigma, and the systemic negligence that fueled the crack epidemic. Join us on a journey of understanding and compassion of a misunderstood and misrepresented epidemic.

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Donovan X. Ramsey Bio

Donovan X. Ramsey is a journalist, author, and an indispensable voice on issues of identity, justice, and patterns of power in America. Ramsey has covered Black American life as a staff reporter at the Los Angeles Times, NewsOne, and theGrio. He served as an editor at both The Marshall Project and Complex. His freelance reporting has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, GQ, WSJ Magazine, Ebony, and Essence. In 2023, he published When Crack Was King: A People's History of a Misunderstood Era, a work of narrative nonfiction exploring how Black America survived the crack epidemic for One World, an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House, the world's largest trade book publisher. Ramsey holds degrees from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and Morehouse College. He lives in Los Angeles.

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