How do you explain the racial and ethnic disparities in victimization, offending, imprisonment, wrongful convictions, and law enforcement contact?

Discussion Topic Introduction: Criminal justice data (statistics on arrests, convictions, and exonerations, etc.) often point to disparities that are then interpreted as evidence of systematic discrimination. This chapter contains information to support that point of view and an offers an opposing viewpoint, which suggests the idea of discrimination in the criminal justice system is a myth.

Based on the points of evidence presented in this reading, the discussion of the terms disparity and discrimination, and applying the framework of the discrimination-disparity continuum, explain your view point to the following question below

Question for Initial Post: How do you explain the racial and ethnic disparities in victimization, offending, imprisonment, wrongful convictions, and law enforcement contact?

Guidelines for Initial Post: Your initial post should demonstrate thoughtfulness towards the question and include support from the reading, while also interpreting the chapter’s concepts. Keep your discussion concise but ensure that it reflects your stance and critical thinking.

Checklist before you submit your posts:

Did you read and understand the instructions?

Did you incorporate concepts and information from the reading in your answer?

Did you cite and provide the source? Including credible sources to support your thinking and point of view is ALWAYS recommended and beneficial.

Requirements: response should 7-10 sentences

Week 2 Reading Race, Ethnicity, and Crime: America’s Continuing CrisisFrom The Color of Justice: Race, Ethnicity and Crime in America (Walker, Spohn, &Delone., 2018)© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.Learning Objectives•1) Understand how race and ethnicity are central to understanding crime and criminal justice in America.•2) Discuss recent trends in criminal justice, the current crime situation in America, emerging problems in the criminal justice system, and how all of these factors affect race, ethnicity, and justice.•3.) Articulate the difference between race and ethnicity. You will also understand how these categories are used by the U.S. Census Bureau, and by criminal justice agencies.•4.) Understand the quality of commonly used criminal justice data and whether they provide an accurate picture of what actually happens in the justice system.•5.) Discuss the differences between disparities and discrimination with regard to race and ethnicity.•

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.The Present Crisis•“The problem of the twentieth century is theproblem of the color-line, –the relation of the darker to the lighter races of men in Asia andAfrica, in America and the islands of the sea” W.E.B. Du Bois•Race and ethnicity is linked to most criminal justice problems –including arrests, sentencing, corrections, involvement in crime, and public trust and confidence in the criminal justice system.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACE AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE ISSUES•In 2009, incarceration rates for federal and state prisons were: o6.7 times higher for Black males than the rate for whites (2,724 vs. 465, respectively, per 100,000)o2.3 times higherforHispanicmalesthan the rate for whites (1,091 per 100,000). oDisparities also exist for Black females when compared to white females, but not as great as those for males.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACE AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE ISSUES•Native American women victims of rape and sexual assault at higher rates either white or African American women. oResponse is complicated due to jurisdiction and status as sovereign nations. •African Americans and white Americans are deeply divided about the role of race in American criminal justiceo“Blacks are treated less fairly.. In dealing with police…”▪84% of African Americans▪50% of white Americans

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACE AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE ISSUES•The Innocence Project has found that, among prisoners exonerated by DNA evidence, nearly 70% are people of color: 61 percent African American; 7 percent non-Hispanic white; and .5 percent Asian•The shooting of unarmed African American men has led to nationwide media attention and national movements•No way to know HOW overrepresented African American victims are as compared to white victims•The unemployment rate for African Americans is twice that of white Americans (11.3% vs. 5.2%)

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACE AND PERCEPTIONSThe crime issue as an expression of fear•Statistically, crime is intra-racial•African Americans report higher rates of victimization than white Americans and Hispanics •Despite this white Americans report a higher fear of crime •“Crime” is often coding for fear of social change.•As an example, neighborhood organizations were formed based on racial changes happening within Chicago.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACISM IN THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM?•Is the Criminal Justice System Racist? •To some, this is a myth. •MacDonald, Manhattan Institute, is a proponent of this position. •Others point to systematic racism. For example, Mauer, Director of the Sentencing Project•Thedifference comes down to interpretation of data on other points thatMacDonald (and others) overlook.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.CAUSE OF RACIAL DISPARITIESAn overview of their positions: Heath MacDonald:•Disproportionate involvement in crime Marc Mauer:•Disproportionate involvement in crime•Disparities in criminal justice processing•Overlaps of race and class effects•Impact of race neutral policies

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.THE COLORS OF AMERICA2000 Census Data:•82.2% White•12.8% African American•0.9% Native American•4.1% Asian/Pacific Islander•11.8% Hispanic*(*Self-identified within other 4 categories)

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.THE COLORS OF AMERICA2014 Census Data•62.2% White•13.2% African American•1% Native American•6% Asian/Pacific Islander•17.4% Hispanic*(*Self-identified within other 4 categories)

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACIAL & ETHNIC CATEGORIESRace & ethnicity are controversial topics•Historically,racerefersto“major biological divisions of mankind” distinguished by appearance. •This approach identified three major races: Caucasian, Negroid, Mongoloid. •HOWEVER: Not meaningfuldifferencesinbehavior, intelligence, andother capabilities are not found.•Grounds for race as a biologicaldifferenceand uniform logic does not exist.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACIAL & ETHNIC CATEGORIES •In today’s time, race is a social construct, based in artificial interpretations; not science.oOfficial forms are inconsistentoProblem classifying those of mixed ancestryRacial connection to CJ?•Non-uniform categorization leads to notions of group superiority or inferiority.•Categorizations (according to OMB) are social-political and not based on anthropology or science•To many scholars, these categories are not logical

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACIAL & ETHNIC CATEGORIESWhat is Ethnicity?•EthnicityandraceareNOTthesame.•Ethnicity refers to differences between groups of people based on cultural customs, such as language, religion, foodways, music, family, patterns, and othercharacteristics. •Yingeruses a three-part definition of ethnicity: o(1) The group is perceived by others to be different with respect to such factors as language, religion, race, ancestral homeland, and other cultural elementso(2) The group perceives itself to be different with respect to these factorso(3) Members of the group ‘‘participate in shared activities built around their (real or mythical) common origin and culture.’’•Ethnicity is extremely complex•Hispanics vs. Latinos, Arab-Americans

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACE VS ETHNICITYRace•A social construct•Often applied by a politically / cultural dominant group to less powerful group•In American History:•“Drop of Blood”•“Nonwhite”Ethnicity•Difference in groups based on cultural customs•Group is perceived by others to be different in respect to culture•Group perceives itself to be different in respect to culture•Members participate in shared activities around culture

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACIAL & ETHNIC CATEGORIESDifferent Census Categories of Race & Ethnicity •Historically the census offered 6 categories •AmericanIndian or Alaska Native •Asian•Black or African American•HispanicorLatino•Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander•white –anyone having origins from any of the original peoples of Europe, the middle East, or North Africa. •Apersoncompleting the Census self identifies their race or ethnicity.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACIAL & ETHNIC CATEGORIESProblems with Categories •MultiracialAmericansdo not fit into one category. •Multiple Identities of Americans •Hispanic as white, •Hispanic as Native Born or Foreign Born•Hispanic is recognized as anethnicity, but there are differences based on country of origin. •Middle Eastern or Arab Americans include Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, and other countries in North Africa and southwestern Asia.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.RACIAL & ETHNIC CATEGORIESProblems with Categories •The uses of data using these categories is often used to assess issues that. •Preferred labels vary greatly within groups.•Preferredlabels do not demonstrate diversity within racial and ethnic groups.•The politics of racial and ethnic labels –not just about the label, but who chooses thelabel.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.YOU DECIDE•Consider the following person•Paternal Grandmother -Native American•Paternal Grandfather –Mexican•Maternal Grandmother and Grandfather -WelshCategoryCheck a boxAmerican Indian/Alaskan NativeBlack/African AmericanHispanic/LatinoNative Hawaiian/Pacific IslanderAsianWhite

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.QUALITY OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE DATA•Accurate data pertaining to race and ethnicity are not always reliable. oData has not always been reported on many important topics. oMuch of the available data only captures that pertaining to African American and neglects other groups. oUniformity is an issue-not all agencies capture the same racial and ethnic groups. oSome count those who are Hispanic as white.oSome categorize as white and non-white, masking other differences. oNative American complexitiesoMultiple jurisdictions (native and nonnative)oUnderreporting to tribal authoritiesoUnderreporting to federal authorities•Data on race/ethnicity varies nationally

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.QUALITY OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE DATA Problems with criminal justice data:•Some criminal justice is based is self reported; some isn’t. •Hispanics sometimes counted as “white”•Native American complexitiesoMultiple jurisdictions (native and nonnative)oUnderreporting to tribal authoritiesoUnderreporting to federal authorities•Data on race/ethnicity varies nationally

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.SOURCES OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE DATASources of criminal justice data:•Uniform Crime Report (UCR)•National Crime Victims Survey (NCVS)•Police-Public Contact Survey•National Prisoner Statistics (NPS)

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.CRIME AND IMMIGRATION CONTROVERSY•“With few exceptions, immigrants are less crime prone than natives or have no effect on crime rates”.•Ouseyand Kurbinfound thatimmigration negatively affected crimeincitieswith populations greater than 100,000 between between1980 and 2000. •Wadworthfound that cities with largest increases in immigration experienced larges decreases in homicide and robbery during the same time, between 1999 and 2000.

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.PROBLEMS WITH IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT•Immigration is federal law •Usually enforced by federal government•Can be enforced by local agencies through complicated process•Being undocumented is not a crime; it is a civil offense

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.PROBLEMS WITH IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT•Problems with local police enforcement of immigration:•“Invites discrimination” by police•Damages police-community relationships •44% of Hispanics less likely to contact police when they are victims in fear of being asked about immigration status•45% of Hispanics less likely to give police information about other crimes in fear of being asked about immigration status•70% of undocumented immigrants said they were less likely to contact police if they were victims of a crime•28% of U.S. born Hispanics were less likely to contact police if they were the victim of a crime in fear of being asked about immigration status•Strains local police resources

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATIONUneven racial & ethnic distribution in the U.S.•CJ officials might be poorly trained or have racial or ethnic biases.•Federal government administration of CJ•Small role•State government administration of CJ•Large role•City government administration of CJ•Large role

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.GEOGRAPHY OF RACIAL AND ETHNIC JUSTICE•Uneven distribution of racial and ethnic groups•California: 28% Hispanic•Iowa: 5%Hispanic•Maine: 1% Hispanic•National: 13% Hispanic•Important for crime and criminal justice•Criminal justice is a state and local responsibility•Large populations of these groups in one area gives them power

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.DISPARITY V DISCRIMINATIONDisparity•Difference not always about discriminationDiscrimination•Differential treatment not based on behavior or qualifications

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.DISCRIMINATION-DISPARITY CONTINUUMDiscrimination-disparity continuum•Systematic discrimination indicates discrimination within entire CJ system•Institutionalized discrimination indicates disparities based on established policies•Contextual Discrimination indicates discrimination in certain situations•Individual discrimination indicates discrimination by specific justice officials•Pure justice indicates no discrimination

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVESConflict Theory•Asserts law maintains status quo with power base controlled by dominant group•Racial disparities in CJ are directly connected with all societal inequalities•Explains overrepresentation of minorities in CJ system•Cannot always account for individual situations

© 2018 Cengage. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.CONCLUSION•Race & ethnicity are complex and often misunderstood concepts•CJ data are problematic•Disparities & discrimination persist•Historical, economic, political realities are connected to CJ administration

Collepals.com Plagiarism Free Papers

Are you looking for custom essay writing service or even dissertation writing services? Just request for our write my paper service, and we'll match you with the best essay writer in your subject! With an exceptional team of professional academic experts in a wide range of subjects, we can guarantee you an unrivaled quality of custom-written papers.

Get ZERO PLAGIARISM, HUMAN WRITTEN ESSAYS

Why Hire Collepals.com writers to do your paper?

Quality- We are experienced and have access to ample research materials.

We write plagiarism Free Content

Confidential- We never share or sell your personal information to third parties.

Support-Chat with us today! We are always waiting to answer all your questions.