Miss Christal: March 2007

Depictions in the media of murder and of crimes by youths and minorities are way out of whack with reality, giving a scary and untrue image of crime in America. Blacks are overrepresented in the media as criminals and underrepresented as victims. Stories in Newsweek and in magazines find that the term young black males had became synonymous with the word criminal. The criminal justice system is a key stakeholder and plays a vital role in achieving the adhering fidelity to the protections provided by all citizens under the constitution.

Viewpoints of Intolerant Beings
Hatred and violence now infuse virtually every aspect of our culture. Both are examples of crime. From the movies, to games, music, and even the newscast provide us with daily exposure to levels of unthinkable graphic violence. Many critics blame the sheer saturation of violent images for the reality of violence in American life. The problem is far more subtle. Violence per se is merely a symptom of a more fundamental issue. Violence does not arise spontaneously. Violence results from hatred, and while publicly profess to despise hatred, behavior as a society gives the lie to claims of tolerance. From fascination with hate groups and serial killers to casual reliance on the thought and language structures that enable hatred and violence. Tolerate not only intolerance in others but also the seeds of intolerance in ourselves.

A lone gunman rushes the door of a Jewish community center, opening fire on any person in his path. A group of kindergarten-aged students are the first to encounter him. He does not discriminate, his bullets rip through three of the children, a teenage helper, and an adult employee of the center. While fleeing, he shoots and kills a postal worker.
The first report is of a black man shot down in front of his children. Soon after, word crosses the airwaves that a group of Orthodox Jews has been targeted by a drive-by shooter. Almost immediately reporters announce that a car driven by Asian teens also has been hit. One day later a Korean student is killed outside his church. It comes to show that no matter where or what a person of any race might do, they are still a target.

Student Conflicts Leading to Violence
Everyone saw bullies picking on kids in the schoolyard while growing up. This behavior has contributed to many acts of school violence, yet no one in the United States really paid much attention to it until recently. Though mobbing and bullying in schools have been going on for many years, children were not bringing weapons to school and mass-murdering each other. It is amazing that we have been in such denial that we have to be told the obvious out loud before anyone would take action. In this case, someone had to die and a finger had to be directly pointed at this type of behavior before anyone would pay real attention to the issue.

Two young men wearing long black trench coats enter a suburban high school. It is their high school, filled with their classmates and teachers. They take their time. More than two hours pass before they kill themselves. In those two hours, they kill thirteen others. The response to potential violence is often more reactive than proactive. Instead of creating awareness and promoting dignity and respect for all people, schools install security systems and surveillance cameras. Stiffer gun control laws are suggested. The plain truth is that many people are walking around with a deep anger inside of them, yet no one knows so nothing can be done.

Since the early 1970s the concerns and rights of crime victims have gained increased attention by the American public. Victim witness programs and Victim advocate groups have sprung up across the country. These groups have urged criminal justice officials and politicians to accord the same concerns and rights to victims of crime as they give to criminal defendants. Fear of crime is only one barrier that inhibits minority persons from being actively involved with victim rights. Other barriers include all overall distrust of the system, a belief that society places greater importance on the rights of the offender than on the victim, communication problems, and financial problems.

The lack of minority involvement is rooted in the historical relationship between minority persons and the criminal justice system . African Americans, Hispanics and Southeast Asians have traditionally distrusted agents of the criminal justice system, especially the police. The distrust by African Americans can be traced hack to slavery and Reconstruction when criminal justice agents were used to support the slavery system and to continue slavery long after its abolition. Hispanics have often viewed the police as oppressors who use immigration laws to harass them. Many Southeast Asians who have experienced life under a political system where the police have little or no regard for human rights also tend to view the police in a negative light.

Minority crime victims and minority persons wanting to be advocates for victims of crimes can overcome the barriers that stand in their way. Minority persons must first decide to be an active part of the system and make it respond to those special needs of minority crime victims.

References
1. Jody M. Roy, Love to Hate: America’s Obsession with Hatred and Violence, (2002).
2. National Criminal Justice Association, (2005).

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Book Report 1- Crime

Wednesday, March 7, 2007

Human Rights

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