When people perceive problems to occur within society, the solutions that individuals or groups produce are not within a vacuum. Biases or ideologies will factor in as much if not greater than facts and statistics in formulating policy proposals. As such, different scholars of varying beliefs will cite opposing factors that will set the framework for the policies they advocate for. For James Q. Wilson, he articulates that certain individuals lack certain characteristics that prevent them from committing crime. For Elliot Curie, he would argue that societal inequities will pressure certain individuals to commit a crime out of desperation. In this debate, Curie’s position is more comprehensive of the factors that influence crime which leads to more nuance in the crime policies than those factors provided by Wilson. As a result, things like investment in public resources, reduction of inequality, and family-centered …show more content…
Although, this argument is problematic in that it assumes that certain people are well-suited to society’s standards. It implies that certain groups that challenge society’s rules or assumptions in any context to face the danger of being oppressed because of their aesthetics. Considering the racial history of America and the advent of police violence against communities of color in places like Ferguson and Baltimore, it would come off as rhetoric to accompany narratives of white supremacy in Nazism and KKK dogma. If one would further the logic, Wilson would in some respects be an advocate for Progressives ‘initiatives to assimilate the children of immigrants to become American. These programs would mold the children to be models of good character. The end result would be outright compliance of minorities to the establishment in fear of retaliation by those in
He attempts to shock his reader into believing America is falling apart by comparing the diverse cultures that are active in it today. At one point in the essay, Buchanan writes “Our population is down to 67 percent European, and falling; 14.5 percent Hispanic and rising rapidly, 13 percent black and holding, and 4.5 percent Asian and rising” (599). The usage of “Our” in the sense of talking about Americans is a viewpoint that excludes anyone who is not white from being a true American. In addition, Buchanan is segregating the population by the color of their skin and creating an ethnic hierarchy. By only including white people in the definition of an American, Buchanan is showing an ethnocentric trait that Fredrickson analysed in his own essay. Fredrickson describes this changing viewpoint in American society when he examines the acceptance of all white people and the differences between colored people growing “more striking and salient than ever” (567). In general, Buchanan does not recognize the differences between white people, focusing primarily on the differences between white and non-white people. The correlation between the statistics he presents and the color of people’s skin undoubtedly prove Buchanan’s take on skin color and their ability to be American. This trait within Buchanan’s writing, coupled with the non-acceptance of colored people, has a strong presence throughout his essay, ultimately weakening his
Wilson commences his book with a personal encounter with “racism”. Harvard professors are usually accompanied by a respectful status and some prestige. This was not the case for Wilson. He resided in a luxurious condominium where his neighbors could not believe he lived there. When dressed in casual attires people could only interpret him as a menace. There were times where he clarified to his neighbors that he resided in this building as well. This could be seen as an act of “racism”. He then creates this problematic scenario. When walking around the inner-city ghetto part of town also he also because nervous when he sees a group of black males (Wilson, 1-4). The dilemma could be seen as followed; is it racism if you are racist to against own race?
Carmichael views America as a system that refuses to acknowledge the issue of race in an honest fashion. Because the holders of the country’s power, Whites, have no sense of urgency in the matter, it is comfortable taking its time in addressing such “inconvenient” problems. When the current power structure leaves those at the top of it in a particularly comfortable state, the desire to make changes that would only allow for others to have equal chance to take such a seat is unlikely.
Young, J. (1981). Thinking seriously about crime: Some models of criminology. In M. Fitzgerald, G. McLennan, & J. Pawson (Eds.), Crime and society: Readings in history and society (pp. 248-309). London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
For instance, Brooks himself confesses that he has himself in the past gravitated towards places where he believed he could be most comfortable in and where he also felt he could be his true self. He further states, that the majority of his friends are middle-income level Caucasians and conservative Christians. Brooks’ main argument in the essay is that many individuals in the United States often do not even bother to show that they would like to build diverse communities. The essay, Brook says, is about the public discourse on race and is meant to make us ponder about the stereotypes and assumptions we have when we think about diversity or people from other ethnicities. It is also meant to make us look where we fit in the diversity debate? Are we truly for the integration of
Crime is not something unique to one country or culture, it can be found all over the world and has been present for as long as history goes back. There are many theories on why crimes happen ranging from individual responsibility to responsibility of societal influences. However, some countries suffer from much higher crime rate than others and the United States of America happens to be such a country. This paper will look at how societal influences, more specifically, the concept of the American Dream, affect crime rates in the country. It is the idea that the basis of striving towards economic success, seen in the foundational ideas of the American Dream, is the very same factor that allows the nation’s crime rate, such as in white collar
...icit in the cause of white supremacists, and is in fact as personally involved with the subject of his scholarly article as Wright is with his own less academic essay. Phillips’s evidentiary support is subject to a striking caveat, one which puts almost any source to work for his purposes, “When…slavery was attacked it was defended not only as a vested interest, but…as a guarantee of white supremacy and civilization. Its defenders did not always take pains to say that this was what they chiefly meant, but it may nearly always be read between their lines.” This has the effect of providing an assumed motive for all of his sources; Phillips’s reader also begins to ‘read between the lines.’ The most troubling aspect of his article is that, in the guise of a serious historian, he twists historical fact to suit his thesis, rather than suiting his thesis to the facts.
Crime is an extremely prominent part of American society. Recorded activity within the US saw 10,329,135 (1,246,248 violent crimes and 9,082,887 property crimes) crimes perpetrated with 62.5% of all violent crimes pertained to aggravated assault and 68.2% of all property crimes were considered larceny-theft in 2010. (FBI.2011) Despite the large number of crimes the United States also has the largest number of incarcerated citizens per capita in the world with nearly a quarter of the world’s prisoners coming from the United States’ 5% of the world population. This is due to much harder punishments in the US than those that are given a shorter longer period of incarceration or merely fined in other countries.(Liptak 2008) Due to the prevalence of crime in the US, economists have used models to explain the behavior and ramifications of government actions and the motivations behind crime and its effect on society that psychologists and sociologists are usually unable to address.
Shelden, R.G., Brown, W.B., Miller, K.S., & Fritzler, R.B. (2008). Crime and criminal justice in american society. Long Grove, Illinosis: Waveland Press, INC.
Wilson, James and Herrnstein, Richard. "Crime & Human Nature: The Definitive Study of the Causes of Crime" New York: Free Press, 1998.
North America is, and always has been, an ethnically diverse society. Yet this cultural diversity along religious, ethnic and national lines had been tolerated only in a limited degree, end even only on the dominant Anglo-Saxon elite?s terms.? (Eisen and Wiggins, 1994, p. xii). History books repeatedly show this in their pages. A person can not pick up a history book and read through the pages with out finding something on how a particular athlete or group of athletes were persecuted because of their race. Part of the American dream that is taught to our youth of is freedom, equality and the ability to move ahead in life if a person is motivated to do so. It is unfortunate that this isn?t the case; that is unless the person fits into the right sociological group.
Criminals come from all walks of life. Some are wealthy business owners while others are poverty-stricken and homeless. Some are 60 years old while others are 16. What makes people decide to become a criminal? Why does one person who gets arrested and faces punishment learn from the mistake and does nothing illegal again while others become prison regulars? Criminological theory seeks to answer these questions in an effort to mold societal influence and implement programs to deter people from committing crimes. One such theory is the classical theory. Even though some believe that crime is based mainly on social influencers like in the differential association theory, the classical theory is more accurate because it suggests that each person makes the choice to commit a crime based on risk versus reward and because most intentional criminal acts pay some sort of benefit, rarely are they seen as not profitable.
This quote is symbolic of the expressed opinions and ideology of the founding fathers of America. History, especially the history of the American educational system, paints a contradictory portrait. Idealistic visions of equity and cultural integration are constantly bantered about; however, they are rarely implemented and materialized. All men are indeed created equal, but not all men are treated equally. For years, educators and society as a whole have performed a great disservice to minorities in the public school sector. If each student is of equal value, worth, and merit, then each student should have equal access and exposure to culturally reflective learning opportunities. In the past, minorities have had a muted voice because of the attitude of the majority. Maxine Greene summarizes a scene from E.L. Doctorow’s Ragtime, after which she poses questions that many minorities have no doubt asked silently or loud. “Why is he unseen? Why were there no Negroes, no immigrants? More than likely because of the condition of the minds of those in power, minds that bestowed upon many others the same invisibility that Ellison’s narrator encounters” (Greene,1995, p. 159). Multicultural education is needed because it seeks to eradicate “invisibility” and give voice, power, and validation to the contributions and achievements of people with varied hues, backgrounds, and experiences.
In this questionnaire, researchers try to compare societies in the past and and present. When dealing with crime sociologist might ask “Why are the crimes rates higher now than what they were 50 years ago?” In this study to help focus sociological imagination, we might try to gain insight to explain why the crime rates have risen. To see the world in a more sociological perspective we are then required to look at the the difference in crime between past and present society. Researchers might consider that there is more deviance now than before, which could result in a higher crime rate. The society in the present could’ve developed subcultural groups who adopted norms, that encouraged or rewarded criminal-like behavior. This is one way a sociologist can look at this situation as a developmental
I now know that criminology prefer to highlight the correlations between crimes’ social climates and criminals’ psychological states of mind. While some argues that criminal behavior is a result of individuals’ association with criminal peers, other claims that crime is a reflection of an individual’s genetic disadvantages. I have come to learn that there are no universally agreed formulas on decoding crimes and criminal behaviors. What we have, however, is a manual full of academic opinions and subjective views that have emerged alongside of the development of criminology. At the same time, the volume of conflicting perspectives that I have stumble upon in studying criminology reminded me again that the success of our current assessment models has yet to be determined. Thus, the study of criminology is an appropriate practice that will further prepare me to conduct meaningful research on legal studies and to provide accurate and in-depth findings in the near