The Bloody 'Bad Old Days': How the Specter of 1970s New York Is Used to Quash Dissent

"'1970s New York' is a foundational text of urban paranoia. It's an abstraction stemming from numerous sociological factors ranging from a crack epidemic to city fiduciary collapses, one that continues to hold significant sway in the popular consciousness. It makes a magnificent foil for the law-and-order types, one that festered in the background of the debate over stop-and-frisk."