Ethnicity and Crime

Unit 4: Crime and Deviance

The facts

• 91% of people in the UK are white

• 9% are non-white

• 5% Asian

• 2% Afro- Caribbean

• 2% mixed and other

Ethnicity & Crime

• Of the 80,000 men in prison approximately 74% are white, 15% Afro-Caribbean, 7% Asian, 3% mixed and 1% Chinese.

• Of the 7,000 women in prison 70% are white, 21% Afro-Caribbean, 5% mixed, 2% Asian and 2% Chinese and other.

• The situation in the USA is very similar – Black Americans make up 13% of the total population and 50% of the prison population.

In 2008, the Ministry of Justice reported that, compared to white people:

• Afro Caribbean's were: more likely to be arrested for robbery; three times more likely to be cautioned by the police; three and a half times more likely to be arrested; if arrested, more likely to be charged and face court proceedings than to receive a caution; more likely, if found guilty, to receive a custodial (prison) sentence; five times more likely to be in prison.

• Asians were: twice as likely to be stopped and searched (mainly for drugs); more likely to be charged and face court proceedings than to receive a caution; more likely to receive a custodial sentence if found guilty; more likely to be arrested for fraud and forgery.

Victims of Crime

• Ethnic minorities are also more likely to be victims of crime disproportionately to their numbers, and this is particularly s for ethnic minority women.

Why do you think this is the case?

Ethnicity And Victimisation

The BCS (British Crime Survey) and victim surveys are the main providers of information about the type and incidence of racially motivated crimes

Most recorded racist incidents are crimes against property and verbal harassment

Most incidents are unreported

Reasons for Criminality

• There are two main strands of thought as to why ethnic minorities are more likely to be seen as criminals and be victims of crime.

• They are:– Structuralist views: They are more criminal– Social Constructionist views: The justice

system is unfair

Reasons for High criminality of Afro-Caribbean (Structural)

• Lea & Young (left realists) – first criminologists to acknowledge that black people were not simply victims of a racist police force and criminal justice system but are actually more likely to be involved with street crime than whites.

Other reasons for higher rates of street crime amongst blacks

Crime among other minorities.

• Don’t underestimate the impact of a declining influence of religion in the lives of some minority groups.

• In addition you could refer to a rise in some forms of fundamentalism (which is linked with terrorism and criminal activity. Linked with globalisation when you refer to countries such a Yemen, Afghanistan etc).

On the other side of the argument ….

• The over-representation of Afro-Caribbean's in crime statistics is a social construct, created as a result of discrimination towards blacks and Asians by the police and other criminal justice agencies. There is considerable evidence of racist views held by police officers.

Unfair Treatment and Racism

• Reiner (2000): Canteen culture amongst the police, including: suspicion, macho values and racism, which encourages racist stereotypes and a mistrust of those from non white backgrounds.

• Bowling and Phillips (2002): Higher levels of robbery among black people could be the product of labelling that arises from the use of regular stop and search procedures, which in turn leads to the self fulfilling prophecy.

Sharp and Budd (2005) • Black offenders were most likely to have contact with the

criminal justice system in their lifetime and were more likely to have been arrested, been to court and convicted. This is despite their lower levels of offending compared to white people generally and white youths in particular.

• Black and Asian offenders are more likely to be charged rather than cautioned, remanded rather than bailed, given prison sentences rather than probation/communitity punishment compared to white people. This suggests that they are treated unfairly by the criminal justice system.

Waddington (2004)

• Published in the British Journal of Criminology argues that the police do stop a proportionately higher number of blacks compared to whites.

• However, he argues that there are more ethnic minority youths out at night in inner cities and that the police simply target those in high risk areas. If the areas is disproportionately represented by young black males they are more likely to be stopped and searched – because of where they are rather than their ethnicity

Test Your Knowledge

• What are the trends linking ethnicity and crime?

• What is black criminality?

• What is the link between the police and institutional racism?

The Political nature of Black Crime (Gilroy)

• A Neo-Marxist who agrees that young blacks are targeted by the media and the police, but argues that black crime is different in that it is a conscious continuation, in a new context, of anti-colonial struggles in the West Indies.

• It is therefore political and potentially revolutionary, a political response to inequality and discrimination.

• Rastafarianism, for example, is not just a religion; it contains a set of revolutionary political ideas about overthrowing white authority (“Babylon”), and tends to bring its followers into confrontation with the police over, for example, marijuana use.

Stephen Lawrence (AO2a)

BBC Report on Stephen Lawrence

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/285553.stm

Evaluation (AO2b)

• It has often been claimed that black crime is no higher than crime by the majority, that the official statistics reflect discriminatory practices by the police and courts. Sometimes questioning this claim can be presented as racist.

• On the other hand, however, and sometimes in the same accounts, it is claimed that high rates of some crimes, especially street crimes, are to be expected, part of the survival strategy of a reserve army of labour which finds itself unwanted, an understandable response to disadvantage and discrimination.

• Like other Marxists studying crime, Gilroy can be seen as reading meanings which may not be there into the behaviour of young blacks; they are unlikely to agree with his explanation of their behaviour.

Conclusion• Institutional Racism

• Structural factors

• Ethnicity may just be one element in a complex web of courses.

• Should never neglect power relations.

• Should consider which social groups have the most power in creating and enforcing the law.

Ethnicity and Ethnicity and crimecrime

Key factsKey facts

Official statistics say black Official statistics say black people are:people are:

7 times more likely to 7 times more likely to be stopped and be stopped and searched.searched.

3 ½ times more likely to 3 ½ times more likely to be arrested.be arrested.

5 times more likely to 5 times more likely to be in prison than their be in prison than their white counterparts. white counterparts.

Victim studies say black Victim studies say black people are more likely people are more likely to be identified as to be identified as offenders & most crime offenders & most crime is is intra –ethnicintra –ethnic meaning it takes place meaning it takes place among rather than among rather than between ethnic groups.between ethnic groups.

Self-report studies Self-report studies conclude that black conclude that black people have similar people have similar rates of offending to rates of offending to whites if not lower. whites if not lower.

Ethnicity and the Ethnicity and the criminal justice systemcriminal justice system

2.2.Stop and searchStop and search

Lots of stop an search is Lots of stop an search is perhaps due to racism perhaps due to racism and the targeting of and the targeting of ethnic minorities.ethnic minorities.

1. Policing1. Policing

Many allegations of Many allegations of oppressive policing oppressive policing from minority ethnic from minority ethnic communities are communities are made.made.

3. Arrests and 3. Arrests and cautionscautions

More likely to be More likely to be arrested and arrested and cautioned perhaps cautioned perhaps due to a mistrust of due to a mistrust of police and not police and not admitting to the admitting to the offence.offence.

4. Prosecution & 4. Prosecution & convictionconviction

Crown prosecution Crown prosecution Service more likely to Service more likely to drop cases against drop cases against ethnic minorities. Black ethnic minorities. Black and Asian defendants and Asian defendants are less likely to be are less likely to be found guilty. found guilty.

5. Sentencing and 5. Sentencing and PrisonPrison

Custodial sentences Custodial sentences more likely to be given more likely to be given to black offenders. to black offenders. Blacks and Asians over-Blacks and Asians over-represented in prisons represented in prisons and more likely to be and more likely to be given longer sentences.given longer sentences.

Ethnicity and Ethnicity and crimecrime

Explaining differences Explaining differences in offendingin offending

Left realismLeft realism

Ethnic minorities commit Ethnic minorities commit more crime because racism more crime because racism in wider has caused them to in wider has caused them to be be marginalisedmarginalised, coupled , coupled with with economic exclusioneconomic exclusion such as high unemployment such as high unemployment and poor housing. Left and poor housing. Left realists don’t believe that realists don’t believe that racism in the police can racism in the police can account for higher crime account for higher crime because black people have because black people have a higher offending rate than a higher offending rate than Asians. Asians.

Neo-Marxist - Paul GilroyNeo-Marxist - Paul Gilroy

Black people commit more Black people commit more crime because they resent crime because they resent the the cultural experience of cultural experience of colonialismcolonialism i.e. being i.e. being taken over and having taken over and having black slaves sent to Britain black slaves sent to Britain to work. This experience to work. This experience causes resentment in causes resentment in young black males which young black males which makes them commit crime. makes them commit crime.

Neo-Marxist - Stuart Neo-Marxist - Stuart Hall et al (Policing Hall et al (Policing the crisis)the crisis)

Combines Marxism Combines Marxism and Labelling theory.and Labelling theory.

Economic conditions Economic conditions in the 1990’s were in the 1990’s were bad, government look bad, government look for a scapegoat.for a scapegoat.

Young black Young black muggers are labelled muggers are labelled and a moral panic is and a moral panic is created about their created about their behaviour in the behaviour in the media.media.

Young black males Young black males commit no more crime commit no more crime than any other group than any other group but labelling and the but labelling and the economy makes it economy makes it seem like they do.seem like they do.

VictimisationVictimisation

Police recorded 61,000 Police recorded 61,000 racists incidents while the racists incidents while the BCS reports 184,000 BCS reports 184,000 many go unreported. many go unreported. People from mixed ethnic People from mixed ethnic backgrounds were more backgrounds were more likely to be victims of likely to be victims of crimes. crimes.

Stephen LawrenceStephen Lawrence

The death of Stephen The death of Stephen Lawrence in 1993 by a white Lawrence in 1993 by a white gang caused outcry as gang caused outcry as police botched the police botched the investigation. The inquiry investigation. The inquiry called the called the Macpherson Macpherson reportreport declared institutional declared institutional racism in the police. racism in the police.

Homework

• ‘Poverty is the major cause of ethnic minority crime.’ Discuss. (12 marks)

Plenary

• In pairs you have a set of concepts and sociologists on cards.

• One of you has the card and has to describe the concept on the card. You cant say the name. The other person has to try and guess what you are talking about.

• Keep swapping roles – so you both get turns at describing and guessing.