Lecture 3 Flashcards
Hate crime according to Barbara Perry
hate crimes are acts of “violence and intimidation” often “directed toward already stigmatized and marginalized groups”
Perry tries to anchor the
political story of hate crime with the historical account of hate crime
The context Perry wrote in
segregation, anti-black violence that define the US experience for many African Americans
Power structures in 1865
- The power structures that did much of the work of maintaining societal structures did not exist in the same way
- However, these dynamics did not always change in the ways the law imagined
Racial tensions after the civil war
- The number of lynchings increased dramatically (late 1800s to early 1900s)
- Groups rose that aimed to protect white values, women, and dominance
Lynchings had the air of
“doing justice” without a judicial process and on allegations that were either trumped up or insignificant offences
Tulsa race riots
- Mobs of white residents attacked black residents and destroyed homes and businesses
- Resulted in the destruction of 35 blocks of the neighbourhood
Cause of the Tulsa race riots
- Occurred after a 17 year old black man who was a shoe shiner was accused of insulting a white woman
- After rumours spread that he would be lynched, a mob of white men gathered outside of the jail where the man had been held
- The event spiraled out of control and led to the race riot
The legacy of the holocaust
- Systemic acts of mass murder, either by shootings, starvation, poor sanitation, ghettoization
- Became a focal point in many countries to begin thinking about hate crime legislation
Strain theory and class
Because social problems are more acutely experienced by “lower classes” (and this strain is what causes crime), strain theory holds that crime is primarily a lower-class problem.
Perry and strain theory
Perry asks:
- What happens when hate becomes a cultural value?
- Does hate crime represent a disconnect from culture, or an expression of it?
Social control theory: attachment
affective ties with others
Social control theory: commitment
the degree to which an individual pursues conventional goals
Social control theory: involvement
the degree to which an individual is active in conventional activities
Social control theory: belief
degree of belief in conventional values and the legitimacy of the law
According to social control theory, what keeps people from engaging in crime is
the extent to which people are bonded with or connected to society
Perry on social control theory
- While hate crime is a violation of the criminal law, it is not a violation of our cultural beliefs (that some people are worth more than others)
- In these societies, wouldn’t commitment actually lead to hate crime?
Labelling theory
- Focuses on what happens to criminals once their deviant activities commence.
- Argues that everyone engages in minor acts of deviance.
- In most cases the deviance goes unnoticed or rationalized.
- If deviant acts are repetitive and have visibility and if there is a significant social reaction, individuals may start to think of themselves as criminals.
Perry on labelling theory
- Argues that in some instances, sometimes people engage in hateful behavior but the result of the behaviour isn’t condemnation
- There is a kind of acceptance that some acts are okay, or people are praised for these behaviors
Critiques of ideas about hate crime
- Not all hate crime is fuelled by a desire to send a larger message.
- Assumptions of the historical marginalization framework ignores the ordinariness of hate crime
- Hate crime frameworks fail to understand diversity.
- Overlook the context in which some hate crimes are committed.
- Ideas about hate crime emerging from real or perceived lack of resources are not always founded, as those who are suffering the most do not seem to perpetuate the most hate crime
Shifting the framework to one of vulnerability and difference, may
make visible overlooked groups who have been victims of hate crime
