Topic 10: Ethnicity and crime Flashcards
Patterns and trends
Self-report studies use an anonymous questionnaire to ask people what offences they have committed. Graham and Bowling’s study of 14-25 year olds, for the Home Office (1995) found that the self-reported offending rates were more or less the same for the ‘white’, ‘black’ and Asian respondents.
Patterns and trends - senctencing
After arrest, those of African-Caribbean backgrounds are slightly more likely to be held in custody and to be charged with more serious offences than whites. if found guilty, they are more likely to receive harsher sentences - in fact those of African Caribbean backgrounds have a 17% higher chance of imprisonment than ‘whites’. Those of Asian origin are more likely than average to be found guilty, but have an 18% lesser chance of being imprisoned.
Patterns and trends - senctencing - bowling eval
Sociologists are divided as to whether these statistics mean that members of the ethnic minorities are discriminated against. Bowling summarises the ‘patchy’ knowledge of sociologists, by saying that the research indicates both direct and indirect discrimination (advice being given, types of charges laid, access to bail etc.) against members of the ethnic minorities does exist.
Police racism - Reflection of society approach
This approach, often adopted by the police, is that there are some individuals in the police who are racist, and once these ‘bad apples’ are rooted out, the police force will not exhibit racism. This approach was suggested by Lord Scarman (1981) in his inquiry into the inner city ‘riots’ of 1981. According to Scarman, the police reflect the wider society and therefore some racist recruits may join.
Police racism - canteen culture
The ‘canteen culture’ approach argues that police officers have developed working values as a result of their job. The ‘core characteristics’ of the culture, according to Reiner (1992) include a thirst for action, cynicism, conservatism, suspicion, isolation from the public, macho values and racism.
Studies by Smith and Gray, Holdaway and Graef, all demonstrated racist views amongst police officers. They held stereotypical views on the criminality of African-Caribbean origin youths, it led them to stop and search these youths more than any other group.
police racism - Institutional racism
After the racist murder of a black youth, Stephen Lawrence in 1993, and after very considerable pressure from his parents, the Macpherson Inquiry was set up to look at the circumstances of his death and the handling of the situation by the police. Lord Macpherson concluded that the police were characterised by institutional racism. By this he meant that the police have ‘procedures, practices and a culture that tend to exclude or to disadvantage non-white people’.
institutional racism eval
Phillips and Brown’s study of police stations across Britain found that those of African Caribbean origin were more likely to be arrested than their representation in the community. However, they found no evidence that they were treated any differently during the arrest process, with about 60% of both ‘blacks’ and ‘whites’ and about 55% of Asians eventually being charged.
police racism eval
However, a number of writers argue that most crime is performed by young males who come from poorer backgrounds. So there would be an over-representation of offenders from the ethnic minorities, because there is a higher proportion of young males in the ethnic minority population than in the population as a whole and minorities are more likely to have lower incomes and poorer housing conditions. These sociologists would suggest that the arrest rates largely reflect the true patterns of crime.
police racism eval Left realism Lea and Young
Lea and Young accept that there are racist practices by the police. However, they argue that, despite this the statistics do bear out a higher crime rate for street robberies and associated ‘personal’ crimes by youths of African-Caribbean origin. They explain this by suggesting that British society is racist and that young ethnic minority males are economically and socially marginalised, with lesser chances of success than the majority population. Running alongside this is their sense of relative deprivation.
Bourgois: Exclusion and alternative economies 1
Bourgois spent seven years living and researching the street life and economy of ‘El Barrio’, whose inhabitants were overwhelmingly Puerto Ricans, illegal Mexican immigrants and ‘African- Americans. Bourgois argues that the economic exclusion of these ethnic minority groups, combined with negative social attitudes towards them, has forced them to develop an alternative economy. This involves a wide range of illegal activities
Bourgois: Exclusion and alternative economies 2
Running alongside this informal economy is an ‘inner-city street culture’which is has a spontaneous set of rebellious practices that in the long term have emerged as an oppositional style”. This subculture causes great damage because the illegal trade in drugs eventually involves its participants in lifestyles of violence, substance abuse and ‘internalized rage’.
Bourgois: Exclusion and alternative economies eval
This study is based on one case – it is ethnographic. Perhaps this does not reflect patterns in the UK or elsewhere? Box social class
Intro
A recurring theme in media reporting of street crime since the mid-1970s has been the disproportionate involvement of young males of African-Caribbean origin. It has partly been on this crime-race linkage that the police have justified the much greater levels of stop and search of young, black males, than of white males. Images of Asian criminality have, until recently, portrayed the Asian communities as generally more law abiding than the majority population. However after the ‘Rushdie Affair’ and then the September 11th 2001 attack on the World Trade Centre in New York, a new discourse has emerged regarding Muslim youths.
Conclusion
Sentencing - After arrest, those of African-Caribbean backgrounds are slightly more likely to be held in custody and to be charged with more serious offences than whites. if found guilty, they are more likely to receive harsher sentences - in fact those of African Caribbean backgrounds have a 17% higher chance of imprisonment than ‘whites’. Those of Asian origin are more likely than average to be found guilty, but have an 18% lesser chance of being imprisoned.
Alternate point
Cultures of resistance
