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System in Black and White: Exploring the Connections Between Race, Crime, and Justice

NCJ Number
183600
Editor(s)
Michael W. Markowitz, Delores D. Jones-Brown
Date Published
2000
Length
299 pages
Annotation
This volume focuses on the nexus between race and crime in the United States; chapters subscribe to the belief that race, as a singular biological factor, does not predispose any group toward certain types of behavior.
Abstract
The volume deals almost exclusively with issues related to blacks and criminal justice. It is divided into four parts, each addressing a compelling area of study and research in the field. The first part deals with the role of theory in defining the problem of crime in racial terms. Chapters discuss the development of criminological theory that recognizes the significance of race as a factor that shapes both individual and society's collective responses to crime and the significance of skin color, even among blacks, as affecting definitions of and reactions to crime. The second part includes six chapters that analyze various aspects of the role in shaping law enforcement responses to crime. Consideration is paid to determinants of black-white arrest differentials, connections between race and police violence, police use of force, police profiles, police attitudes toward blacks, and black-white perceptions of the appropriateness of police conduct. The third part focuses on the court system and the extent to which it is shaped by racial issues. Chapters concern race as a legal construct, the impact of racial demography on jury verdicts, race and ethnic bias in sentencing decisions, and media images and the victimization of black women. The fourth part examines racial dimensions of punishment and delinquency in terms of restitution, diversity in jail work settings, the overrepresentation of minority youth in the juvenile justice system, substance abuse and race, and prisons as "safe havens" for black women. References, tables, and figures