The sample population consisted of approximately 100 people who were active in the community (members of charitable organizations, youth clubs, political groups, etc.) or who had direct experience with drugs (former addicts, dealers, physicians, social workers). The results of the study indicated that the inhabitants of Brixton did not consider illegal drug use a major problem in their area. In fact, most interviewees were unaware of the interrelation between crime and drug abuse. They also failed to identify particular causes of drug abuse. Instead, they saw drugs as commodities like many others, which become a necessity simply because they are available; thus, they were more concerned with the problems the drug created rather than the drug itself. In addition, all interviewees considered the drug economy of Brixton as much less profitable than it is usually perceived. Perhaps, this is an indication of the paradox that impoverished areas fail not only in legal, but also in illegal forms of the economy. 29 references