Assess the usefulness of subcultural theories in explaining ‘subcultural crime and deviance’ in society today. The term subcultural crime and deviance is another way of describing the violation of laws or social norms by various groups within society. These groups have been explored in depth by many sociologists and they have attempted to explain subcultural crime and deviance through the existence of deviant subcultures. Originally, the work of Merton surrounding strain theory claimed that when there was a strain between the goals of society and the means of obtaining the goals then people would turn to crime. However subcultural theorists developed this idea claiming that people experiencing strain seek different forms of success.
The intoxication model suggests that individuals will not use rational thought while intoxicated which leads to the addiction model which states that crimes are committed so the addict can support the habit (WSSAC,2009) The systemic model states that crime occurs when the participant of the drug trade sales the drug. For instance, the use of drugs influences criminal behavior while the distribution of illegal products is a crime. Last is legal model. In this model the individual choices to either abide by the laws that have been enacted to address drug use, possession, and distribution or the person can choice the path that breaks these laws. The war on drugs has become top priority for justice members.
Summary of “The Missing Piece to the Gang – Violence Debate” by Dan Gardner Are there several reasons for gang related violence? There is an overabundance of ideas that politicians argue; including fatherless families, weak immigration rules, lenient criminal justice system, racism, poverty, and too many guns. Dan Gardner claims “these previously mentioned points are important and worthy of discussion, but there is something missing”.1 The cause he claims often is unanalyzed and scarcely made a reason, is the illicit drug trade industry. In his article, Gardner suggests illicit drug trade and the black market are primary causes of gang related violence, and most often, these causes are shunned. He cites Mexico’s strategy of rigid law enforcement to eradicate gang violence has a negative impact; suggesting that higher enforcement is associated with higher homicide rates and argues that markets are self-correcting mechanisms.
How is the issue of violence represented in the lives of individuals in your core text and in one other related text? Violence is presented in Blackrock and Harry Brown through the issues of, the negative influence of peers, the influence of drugs, and powerlessness. These can be seen in various scenes in both texts where youths are creating harmful situations for themselves and others around them. These issues can be examined in the scene where Ricko and Jared fight which causes the relationship between them to melt. In Harry Brown, night raids turn into a large scale riot which is a powerful example of the negative influence of peers.
Dominique Ramirez 2/8/2013 Period 2nd Crash Essay “You embarrass me, you embarrass yourself.” Cameron Thayer commented to Anthony after Anthony try to hijack him for his truck and got him pulled over by the cops and embarrassed him. What Cameron Thayer means by the quote is that Anthony actions make people look at African Americans as criminals and gangbangers and he can change that by making good decisions. . Anthony illegal activities cause people to judge the entire black race especially black men. Cameron is trying to get through to Anthony that his actions reflects on what people think of him and he can change that by making the right decisions.
Drug Trafficking in the United States from Mexico Drug trafficking in the United States and Mexico is a huge problem for the United States because it has a negative impact on other areas in society such as crime rates. The government needs to find a solution to better control drug trafficking because it claims lives and destroys families. Research shows Marijuana and Cocaine are the top two most illegally abused drugs in the United States. James Gray (2001) points out: Not only is this drug-money corruption problem of enormous concern in its own right, but additional lawless behavior often is derived from it as well. For example, the entire southern California area was shocked in September 1999 when a former officer of the Rampart Division
Cartels are the suppliers of drugs to gangs in and out of prison. If our government doesn’t want crime in the streets, then “stop the cartels”. Horrifying things have happened to people who have stood in the way of the cartels. Murder, slaughter, and torture are mainly it. I am against the murdering of innocent people.
It was the fact that the homeless addicts weren’t just sitting around getting high and injecting heroin, but were actually trying to go out and get jobs and homes once again. Most think that these people chose this way of life and that all they care about is their drugs. “Righteous Dopefiend” enlightens us, showing how many of these people became homeless because they were forced onto the streets because they didn’t have the education to get a good job, which to me is very disheartening. This ethnography showed me how protected and sheltered we are from some the things going on in, not just the United States, but around the world. Before reading this book, I believed ethnographies such as these to not be too important.
Criminal Acts and Choices Sandra Garcia Criminal Justice CJA/204 September 14, 2011 Leroy Hendrix, MS Criminals are often categorized or labeled as the bad seeds of society or the rejects and failures. Those are the individuals that make the choice of disobeying the law and decide to live the life of a felon. Those criminal behaviors later on result to becoming habitual and progressive towards severe crimes being committed. However, for every action there is a reason to better understand the mind of a criminal certain theories have been introduced to the criminal justice system to gain knowledge in why people commit crime and what can be done to prevent it from occurring. In this paper choice theories will be identified and how they
Further, because most hate-crime legislation puts added effort into prosecuting crimes against certain individuals or groups, what about the same crimes committed against someone who doesn't fit into one of those groups? Will the crime be prosecuted to the same extent? If not, you're making things worse for the majority, who are likely to feel underprotected. If the problem is that too many people (of any group) are being mugged, or assaulted, or their belongings vandalized, you should put more effort into prosecuting muggings, assaults, or vandalism. Not to protect any one group, but to protect all