Class power and crime, Gender/ Ethnicity crime and justice Flashcards
(15 cards)
BAME criminal satistics
Black, Asian and minority-ethnic groups are over-represented in Official criminal statistics. Black people make up just over 3% of the population but 13.1% of the prison population
Victim surveys such as the CSEW also suggest that people from BAME backgrounds are also more likely to
be victims of crime
what are the differences between Afro Caribbean and Asian ACCORDING TO THE MINISTRY OF JUSTICE (2013)
Policing practices – Institutional Racism?
Discrimination in sentencing?
Arrests, charges and court proceedings?
Afro Caribbean’s were:
Twice as likely to be cautioned
Three times more likely to be arrested
If arrested more likely to be charged
Five times more likely to be in prison
Asians were:
Twice as likely to be stopped and searched (mainly for drugs) and more likely to be arrested for fraud. More likely to be charged and face court proceedings than to receive a caution; more likely to receive a custodial sentence if found guilty and for a longer term
Stop and search
BAME groups More likely to be stopped and searched?
The power the police has to stop and detain then in order to search them. In 2017 - 2018, there were 3 stop and searches for every 1,000 white people, compared with 29 stop and searches for every 1,000 black people.
Evaluation of high crime statistics among ethnic minorities morris
There are demographic explanation for this. BAME groups contain in the UK a disproportionate amount of young people
The statistics might just be a reflection of younger people committing higher levels of crime, and not their ethnic background
He calls this a STATISTICAL ILLUSION
Lea and young reason for crime amount ethnic minorities
-The statistics represent real differences in rates of offering. Ethnic minorities are more criminal. This is a vie favorer by structuralists (left and right realime)
-lea & young (left realists) BAME are more likely to be involved with street crime than whites. First criminologists to suggest this. Reasons marginilisation, relative deprivation, sub cultural responce get by day to day drug dealing/ prostitution
critisisms of Lea and young
Holdaway ignore hoe official satistics can’t be take at face value as within the police force there is racist attitudes which can influence their attitudes to stop and search black people leading to more arrests among black people and unrepresented official statistics.
However Lea and Young would argue they are aware that the police often act in racist ways however they do not believe that discriminatory is the reason for differing in statistics. They suggest 90% of crimes known to the police are reported by a member of the public and therefore nothing to do with the police in the first instance. And that blacks have higher rate of criminalisation than Asians meaning the police would have to be very selective in there racism attitudes for it to be the single cause being the differing rates in crime.
Tripple Qudranary Theory: Tony Swell reason for crime amount ethnic minorities
-Negative experience’s of hite cultures: education success. 2006 only 23% of afro Caribbean boys archived 5 GCSE’S. Affects there self confidence, employability. —-Family structure- lack of father figure 60% of young black males live with just one parent. Single parent families tend be poorly lead than a nuclear families so the link could be related to poverty as well
-Mass media- influence of black rap artists according to some new right & conservative thinkers rap music encourages violence and crime. This view has been challenged questionable to simply blame one form of entertainment
Gilroy against reason for crime amount ethnic minorities
-Official statistics are socially constructed & do not actually reflect reality. The criminal justice system is unfair & prejudiced against ethnic minority group’s. View favoured by neo-marxist, social constructionists, interprotivists & labelling theories.
-Gilroy (Neo marxist) argues that there isn’t a greater criminality among black people. Myth created by negative stereotyping by the police and the media that minority ethnic groups are untrustworthy . Afro Caribbean males labelled as ‘muggers’ and Asians as potential illegal immigrants. Young black British males react to racism by committing politically motivated crime
The ‘Black Mugger’ Moral Panic (Hall et al 1978)
In 1970s UK faced economic and political crises (inflation, strikes, national debt, police unrest with African-Caribbean community). Moral Panic create by the media exaggerated “mugging” (street crime) as a new threat, associating it with black youth. No significant rise in street crime; the “black mugger” became a scapegoat for societal issues (unemployment, capitalism, high living costs). This divided the working class on racial lines, weakened opposition to capitalism, and justified authoritarian rule. Black youth framed as a threat to British social order, distracting from deeper societal problems.
critisisms to Hall
Left Realists argue that inner-city residents’ fear of mugging is not ‘panicky’ but real. By arguing that this was simply a media construction is to ignore the effects of the crime on the victims. Also see his theory as outdated as his idea is interesting, it only tells us about the social construction of the crime stats at that time, it doesn’t tell us why EMGs are still over-represented in the OCS now
Pollak reason women seen to commute less crime than men
Chivalry thesis to describe sexism in the criminal justice system and the male dominated police force and law courts. Women seen as more vulnerable, less guilty and in need of protection so treated more favourably than men. 1/2 as likely to be given a sentence of immediate imprisonment. More likely to be punished by informal methods (Cautions warnings.) Twice as likely to be granted bail when charged with drug offence.
But women who commit serious crimes likely to be faced with more serious punishments (double jeopardy) more likely to remain in custody than men when awaiting trial for a serious crime and women appear to have harsher sentences than men for same crime.
Evidence against Chivalry Thesis
-Farringon & Morris studied 408 offences of theft and found women were not sentenced more leinainly for comparable offences.
-Box seviewed self-reports in Britain and American women who commit serious offenses were not treated more favourably than men.
-Buckle & Furringon observed shoplifting found males were twice as likely than females despite statistics shwoing it was more or less equal. Show women more likely to be persecuted men.
Bias against women
Heidenshn- Argues courts treat women more harshly when deviating away from gender norms. Double standards. Girls punished more than boys for promiscuous sexual activity. Girls are more likely to end up in care without committing an offence. Women who do not accept conformity to monogamous, heterosexual and motherhood are punished more harshly.
Carlen- Women aren’t judged for seriousness of crime but more a court assessment of them as a wife, mother and daughter. Girls who are perceived as out of control are more likely to receive cusdonial sentences than girls who live conventional lives. Found in Scotland judges more likely to jail women who have children in care than women who are seen to be good mothers
why are women less likely to committee crime
Parsing- sex role theory different socialization women have the expressive roll (housework, family management, employment) fewer opportunities to commit crime.
Smart- supports idea of patriarchy, criticised theory bias on biological assumption. Feminists characteristics such as being emotional, less competitive, tough, and reluctant to take risk. Gender socialization = less likely to commit crime.
Heidensohn- Social circumstances, opportunities, Socialization process, Informed and informal social control. Fewer opportunities in the home (housewife, mother) In public less likely to go to deviant places. Don’t want to have a bad reputation. Gender inequality at work less likely to commit white collar crime.
Carlen- socialized ‘guardians of domestic morality’ shame/ stigma double jeopardy unfeminine lose more than men
what are we beginning to see an increase in female crime and what are feminist reaction to it.
-from 2002-2010 male crime decreased but female crime went up to 25%
-Adler said increase in female criminality due to changing gender roles and ‘Liberation Thesis’ women have more independence, successful education, employment wise.
-traditional forms of female control decrease
Denscombe emerge of ladette culture women adopting behaviour traditionally associated with men. feminisation of poverty, increased marginalisation 1980’s women more lily than men to experience poverty (low pay lack of benefits)
-Heidensohn- most female crime committed by WC shoplifting/ prostitution to overcome economic deprivation not liberation
