The war on drugs has contributed to the creation of a "cycle of incarceration" that has ensnared many poor urban African American families. Many members of the Brown family have spent time in prison because of issues with drugs. Vicky Brown, right, hangs out with her children in front of her mother's home in east Austin. Vicky is a recovering crack cocaine addict and has spent 12 years of her life in and out of treatment programs and prison. Because she has been away so much her relationship with her older children has been strained.

Beverly Brown's great granddaughter Raven, 6, watches television in the family living room.

Beverly Brown's house has been the "homestead" for her family for nearly half a century.

Beverly Brown covers her eyes as she rests in her living room.

Beverly Brown watches her brother Leroy as he makes a phone call. Leroy has spent time in prison and also has one son who is currently serving time.

Chelsea Shorts, who dreams of becoming an artist and a business woman, hangs out with friends in during twilight on Austin's east side.

Teenagers take a break from skating to socialize at the Millennium Youth Center, in Austin.

Chelsea Shorts set up a studio in a shed in the backyard of her east Austin home. She uses the space to makes clothes, draw and paint. The shed is a refuge from the crowded house that she shares with her parents, grandparents, cousins and one sibling.

From a place hidden from the view, teenagers share a blunt packed with marijuana on Austin's east side.