Ethnicity Flashcards
What are the 3 trends in crime and ethnicity?
1) Despite making up only 4% of the population, 13% of the prison population is black
2) Black and Asians on average are sentenced an extra 10 months in prison than whites
3) Black individuals serve the highest percentage of their sentence compared to any other ethnic group
What are the 2 Explanations for ethnicity and crime?
1- Black groups commit disproportionately higher amounts of crime
2- The CJS is institutionally racist, therefore statistics are inaccurate
What is the first part of explanation 1?
Resistance to racism and oppression
Resistance to racism and oppression
Why is ethnic minority crime considered a political act?
Black criminality is viewed as a form of politics, may not be recognised to the outsider, essentially a political struggle against oppression
- excluded from organised political structures
- BLM, London riots
Resistance to racism and oppression
What are the criticisms of this approach?
X high crime rate only appeared in 2nd and 3rd generations so if crime is part of an anti-colonial struggle why was the 1st generation so law-abiding?
X black youths appear conformist (apart from their view of the police)
X no evidence to support that black people commit crime and a widespread awareness of this amongst black youth
What is the second part of the 1st explanation?
Formation of subcultures
Formation of subcultures
Who did Bourgois study and how?
Researched El Barrio which is a deprived area in East Harlem, New York
- several years living and researching street life and economy
Formation of subcultures
Why did an alternative economy develop amongst the ethnic minorities in East Harlem?
The economic exclusion combined with negative social attitudes towards them forced them to develop an alternative economy]- a wide range of both marginally legal and clear illegal activities
e.g. kerbside car repair to selling crack cocaine
Formation of subcultures
What were the consequences of this deviant behaviour?
Because of illegal trade in drugs, involves a lifestyle of violence, substance abuse and internalised rage
- chaotic and violent community
- destroys families
- further involvement in crime
- worsening of situation and spiralling of serious crime
Left realism: The crimogenic triangle
Lea and Young suggest there are 3 elements to an understanding of crime and ethnic minorities
What 3 elements do left realists Lea and Young propose and to why ethnic minorities commit crime?
1) Marginality
- less successful, on the edge of society
2) Relative deprivation
- high aspirations, cannot achieve legally
3) Subcultures
- respond differently to mismatch between aspirations and the constraints of reality, drift towards petty crime
Chinese, Indian and Pakistanis cultures
All have relatively low crime rates
- some disputes are sorted within the community and may not be reported to the police
What 3 other reasons are given as to why Asian crime rates are lower?
1) Greater economic success
2) Stronger family and community
3) Distinct culture
An ethnicity or Social Class issue?
Fitzgerald claims that the fact black criminals are male, more likely from lone parents families and lower class is much more significant in causing crime than their ethnicity
What does Fitzgerald mean?
Social class is more influential than ethnicity
- less economic opportunity
Could we also apply this to gender?
Assumption that W don’t commit crime
- socialised differently
- time and movement restrictions
What is the 1st part of the second explanation?
Racism within the CJS
Racism within the CJS
How do Bowling and Phillips define institutional racism?
Define institutional racism as procedures, practises and culture that excludes or disadvantages non-white people
Racism within the CJS
How have the police attempted to reduce racism since the Macpherson report?
- training to raise awareness of issues relating to race
- recruit more members of ethnic minority groups
Racism within the CJS
Have the police attempts being successful?
NO- only 4% of police officers are rom minority ethnic backgrounds
- still a white dominated police culture
Racism within the CJS
What does Reiner mean by canteen culture?
Police officers have developed working values and a strong collective identity that reinforces racial stereotypes and attitudes
- as a result of isolation, pressure and hostility they can face in their jobs
What are the core characteristics of canteen culture?
Racism, cynicism, conservativism, suspicion
Bowling and Phillips stop and search
Black and Asian people are more likely to be stop and searched repeatedly and have more intrusive searches
Bowling and Phillips
Differences in arrests and sentencing between white people and ethnic minorities and the ministry of justice
After arrest, EG considered more likely to remains silent, not seek logical advice and to deny offence
- more suspicious of police
- arrested for offences they haven’t committed
- be convicted and given immediate custodial sentence
- bodily harm and possession of class A drugs
Marxist interpretations
-Hall, 1970s media created moral panic concerning mugging
- muggers stereotypes as young black males (folk devils)
- moral panic justified ‘repressive’ policing, turned WC against each other
- Strikes n public protests common and a problem for capitalism, government needed to use force against protesters
- because of the perceived problem of mugging the public were more supportive of harsh repressive policing
- police clamping down on the problem amplified the deviance
Ethnicity and victimisation
What were the chances of being a victim of crime for ethnic groups compared to white people?
The risk is higher for ethnic groups
7.2% compared to 5%
Ethnicity and victimisation
Why might this be according to Bowling and Phillips?
High proportion of minority ethnic groups live in inner cities which is where crime rates are higher
Ethnicity and victimisation
What is the trend regarding hate crime?
124,000 racially motivated incidents, increase in hate crimes, more likely targeted in minority ethnic groups
Where are hate crimes most likely to take place?
Higher outside major cities in rural areas
- only relatively small ethnic populations
