ethnicity and crime Flashcards
1
Q
EXAMPLES: Chris Kaba
A
- black man shot dead by policeman in south london
- officer said he fired as he wanted chris’s vehicle to stop
- officer believed there was a threat to life
2
Q
EXAMPLES: Mark Duggan
A
- 29 year old father of 6
- killed by tottenham police
- prompted protests and riots
- senior member of a violent gang
- V53 defended by police as a justified killing
3
Q
official ethnic prison population statistics
A
- black people cover 3% of the uks population, yet have a 13.1% prison population
- asian people cover 6.5% of the uks population, yet have a prison population of 7.7%
4
Q
how many (x) are black people overrepresented in crime?
A
- 7x more likely to be stopped and searched
- 3x more likely to be arrested
- 5x more likely to be in prison
- these stats relate to the activity of the CJS
- doesn’t reveal anything about offending behavior
5
Q
CSEW victim survey showcases / limitations
A
- shows that black people are overrepresented when victims are asked about the ethnicity of the offender
- rely on memory - victims often state the offender was black even if they are not sure
- only cover personal crimes
- exclude under 10s and white-collar crime
6
Q
self-report studies
A
- ask what crime the participant has committed
- home office has conducted 9 of these studies since the 1990s and they show that white/mixed ethnic groups are most likely to commit crime
- contradicts the stereotype of black people being more likely to offend
7
Q
how are the police accused of being oppressive?
A
- since 1970s there have been many allegations of oppressive policing of minority ethnic communities
- mass stop and search
- paramilitary tactics
- excessive surveillance
- armed raids
- deaths in custody
- failure to respond to racial violence and hate crimes
8
Q
why is stop and search a major problem
A
- MACPHERSON REPORT identifies s&s as the key factor in bad police relations
- ethnic minorities are more likely to be stopped and searched
- 2010-2014 police deployed tasers 38,000 times
- chances for involvement: asian least likely, followed by white, and black people were most likely
9
Q
explaining stop and search patterns
(MACPHERSON REPORT)
(PHILLIPS AND BOWLING)
A
- MACPHERSON REPORT 1999 concluded that institutional racism was widespread throughout the police force
- canteen culture - sums up attitudes that prevail within workers of an organization, despite these actions being disapproved by the organization that they work for
- PHILLIPS AND BOWLING - many officers hold negative stereotypes about ethnic minority groups
- this leads to more s&s of ethnic minorities
10
Q
ethnic factors relating to stop and search
A
- ethnic minority groups are overrepresented in the groups that are most likely to be searched
- however, young, male, unemployed city dwellers are more likely to be s&s regardless of their ethnicity
11
Q
ethnic differences which cause arrest rates and cautions
A
- the arrest rate for black people is 3 times higher than for white people
- ethnic minorities are less likely to receive a caution
- one reason is they are more likely to deny the offence and ask for legal advice
- not admitting the offence means you then can’t receive a caution - end up getting charged
12
Q
ethnicity and prisons
A
- black people are 4x more likely than white people to be in prison
- black/asian people are also more likely to have longer sentences
- ethnic groups are more likely to be on remand - less likely to be given bail
- similar patterns exist in the USA
13
Q
explaining the rise of offences
A
- post war migration from the caribbean
- 1972 report suggested black people were more law abiding than the general population
- little evidence of racial attacks
- 10 years on and a bad relationship between police and black people had formed
- the scarman report: the brixton riots caused by anger
14
Q
asian people and crime
A
- 1970s seen as very law abiding
- 1990s began to be seen as a problem
- clashes between police and asian youths in towns/cities in the north
- 9/11 and 7/11 meant muslims were seen as a threat to national security
- 2015 paris attacks
- manchester arena bombing 2017
- increase in islamophobia
- negative stereotyping of muslims
- more recently asian grooming gangs
15
Q
LEA AND YOUNG: left realism on ethnic differences in crime
A
- accept the differences in statistics as real differences
- crime is a product of relative deprivation, subcultures and marginalisation
- racism has led to the marginalisation and economic exclusion of ethnic minorities - this leads to higher levels of utilitarian crime (monetary gain)
- marginalisation leads to status frustration so can produce high levels of non-utilitarian crime (violence and rioting)
- media emphasis on consumerism also promotes relative deprivation - materialistic goals that ethnic minorities can’t achieve by legitimate means
16
Q
GILROY: neo-marxism on ethnic differences in crime
A
- reject the view that ethnic minority groups commit more crime - found in crime statistics
- statistics are a social construct based on racial stereotypes
- GILROY sees black criminality as a myth - these groups are no more criminal than any other groups
- he sees black crime as a form of political resistance against a racist society which dates back from imperialism
17
Q
criticisms of GILROY
(LEA AND YOUNG)
A
LEA AND YOUNG argue:
- first gen immigrants were law abiding
- most crime is intra-ethnic, so not about racism or colonial struggles
- L&Y also recognise that racism from the police often leads to the criminalisation of EMGs, however they argue this cannot account for the high levels of ethnic crime in the statistics
- 90% of crime is reported by the public - not detected by police
- black people also have higher rates than asian people, so police would have to be selective in their racism
- they see relative deprivation and marginalisation as the real cause
18
Q
HALL ET ALL: moral panic (neo marxism)
A
- stereotype of the ‘black mugger’ and the moral panic this created
- moral panic about a new crime mugging - new name for street robbery with violence
- afro-caribbean males were made into a scapegoat and blamed for societies problems
- blaming afro-caribbean males for societies problems took the blame away from the government and capitalism
- the economy was in trouble-problems in northern ireland
- by presenting the black youth as a problem the moral panic served to divide the WC on racial grounds
- also win popular support for more authoritarian rule that could suppress opposition
- EVALUATION: HALL ET ALL don’t show how the crisis led to a moral panic, or how the public were blaming crime on black people
19
Q
FITZGERALD ET AL: neighborhood factors
A
- found that street robberies were highest in very poor neighborhoods where people had contact with affluent groups
- young black people were more likely to be poor and live in these areas - this was the same for white people as well so ethnicity is not the cause
20
Q
SHARP AND BUDD: getting caught
A
- black youths were more likely to be arrested
- more likely to commit crimes such as robbery where victims could identify them
- black youths were more likely to have been excluded from schools or associate with known criminals - factors that increase their visibility
21
Q
ETHNICITY AND VICTIMISATION: stephen lawrence / mcpherson enquiry 1999
A
- highlighted professional incompetence, institutional racism, failure of leadership of senior officers and deeply ingrained racist attitudes and beliefs among individual offices
- created the approach of looking at ethnic minority groups as victims of crime who are targeted because of their ethnicity
22
Q
police statistics and CSEW
A
- covers two areas
- RACIAL INCIDENTS: incidents perceived to be racist by the victim
- RACIALLY/RELIGIOUSLY aggravated offences: wounding, assaults, criminal damage motivated by hostility for groups
- 2014/2015 police recorded 54,000 racist incidents
- most go unreported - CSEW (victim survey) reported 89,000 incidents in the same period
- 8600 people were prosecuted for these offences
23
Q
ETHNICITY AND VICTIMISATION: victims of hate crimes
A
- muslim females are the most common victims of hate crimes - racial abuse
- CSEW shows ethnic minorities have a higher victim risk:
1. mixed ethnicity
2. black people
3. asian people
5. white people - other factors that increase victim risk:
1. young
2. male
3. unemployed - ethnic groups have higher levels of all of those mentioned above
24
Q
ETHNICITY AND VICTIMISATION: responses to victimisation
A
- ethnic minority communities have played an active role in prevention
- fireproof doors
- self-defense classes
- CCTV outside buildings such as mosques
- in the past police have been accused of ignoring the racial dimension of vicitimisation - failure to carry out investigations
- macpherson inquiry 1999
- hate crimes now a priority
