Race And Crime Essay

In 2015, African-Americans accounted for 26.6% of violent crime in the United States. Both African-American men and women are more likely to engage in violent crime than other races (UCR). Furthermore, black females are more likely than white males to engage in homicide, aggravated assault, and robbery (Simpson, 1991; Sommers and Baskin, 1992). Thus, highlighting how race places an important mitigating factor in violent crime, both across racial and gender barriers. These differences are explained by systems of inequality, using examples of things such as structures of power in society. Much of the research suggest that poverty and geographical location play a part in criminal involvement, specifically be race. Furthermore, areas that are below the poverty level are more likely to be crime ridden areas. Many African-Americans are living in poverty, thus, makes them more likely to engage in this criminal activity (cite). To explain further, with higher

This term “accounts for how one navigates though multiple oppressions to achieve his or her desired goals” (Bernard, 2013). As the likelihood of violence is higher in African- American communities, the more likely individuals in those communities are going to act according to this identity of violence and engage in violent crime to achieve their goals and means. In addition, doing identity is when an individual acts in-accordance with violence through ones’ own culture, social constructs of how specific identities should act (cite. This also place barriers on why one commits a violent offense. Furthermore, Bernard suggest that doing identity is the process of becoming self-defined, while navigating through these different barriers (2013). Furthermore, these identities play out in crime, such as where and how to commit a crime and what type of crime to commit to achieve ones’ crime, which could account for some of the differences in race and