Guns and Violence: The Enduring Impacts of Crack Cocaine Markets on Young Black Males

The emergence of crack cocaine markets in the 1980s brought a wave of violence to US cities that has repercussions today. Using cross-city variation in crack’s arrival and the experience of older cohorts, we estimate that the murder rate of young black males doubled soon after these markets were established, and that their rate was still 70 percent higher 17 years later. Using the fraction of gun-related suicides as a proxy for gun availability, we find that access to guns explains both the rise in young black males' murder rates after crack’s arrival and their elevated murder rates today.