Marie Gottschalk
- Published in print:
- 2021
- Published Online:
- May 2021
- ISBN:
- 9780197266922
- eISBN:
- 9780191938184
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197266922.003.0005
- Subject:
- Law
This chapter examines the limitations of viewing the US carceral state primarily through a racial disparities lens centred on differences in incarceration rates between whites and blacks. It surveys ...
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This chapter examines the limitations of viewing the US carceral state primarily through a racial disparities lens centred on differences in incarceration rates between whites and blacks. It surveys important shifts since the 1970s in who is being incarcerated in the United States, including racial, ethnic, gender, and geographic shifts, most notably between urban and rural areas. It deploys three common frameworks used to help explain the rise of mass incarceration and the hyper-incarceration of African Americans—the culture of control, the culture of poverty, and the war on drugs—to analyse the deepening penetration of the carceral state outside of major urban areas and to examine the opioid crisis.Less
This chapter examines the limitations of viewing the US carceral state primarily through a racial disparities lens centred on differences in incarceration rates between whites and blacks. It surveys important shifts since the 1970s in who is being incarcerated in the United States, including racial, ethnic, gender, and geographic shifts, most notably between urban and rural areas. It deploys three common frameworks used to help explain the rise of mass incarceration and the hyper-incarceration of African Americans—the culture of control, the culture of poverty, and the war on drugs—to analyse the deepening penetration of the carceral state outside of major urban areas and to examine the opioid crisis.
Deborah Stone
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195170665
- eISBN:
- 9780199850204
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195170665.003.0022
- Subject:
- Political Science, American Politics
This chapter focuses on racial disparities in health care. It shows how certain principles of political organization in culture in the United States perpetuate racial disparities. The chapter ...
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This chapter focuses on racial disparities in health care. It shows how certain principles of political organization in culture in the United States perpetuate racial disparities. The chapter suggests that market ideology is the biggest obstacle to health-care equity. The U.S. health-care system is designed to produce disparities, since it allocates medical care primarily by market criteria rather than by medical need. Market principles generate racial and ethnic disparities, and allow racism to continue under cover of economic justifications. The chapter argues that the nation will not be able to ameliorate racial and ethnic disparities until political leaders are willing to face up to the consequences of their devotion to the pluralistic ideals in medicine.Less
This chapter focuses on racial disparities in health care. It shows how certain principles of political organization in culture in the United States perpetuate racial disparities. The chapter suggests that market ideology is the biggest obstacle to health-care equity. The U.S. health-care system is designed to produce disparities, since it allocates medical care primarily by market criteria rather than by medical need. Market principles generate racial and ethnic disparities, and allow racism to continue under cover of economic justifications. The chapter argues that the nation will not be able to ameliorate racial and ethnic disparities until political leaders are willing to face up to the consequences of their devotion to the pluralistic ideals in medicine.
Karolyn Tyson
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- May 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199736447
- eISBN:
- 9780199943951
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199736447.003.0012
- Subject:
- Sociology, Education
This chapter examines the way in which racialized tracking creates racial distinctions among students that lead to the interpretation of academic achievement as acting white. It begins with a short ...
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This chapter examines the way in which racialized tracking creates racial distinctions among students that lead to the interpretation of academic achievement as acting white. It begins with a short discussion of two topics: the meaning and use of the broad concept of acting white among African Americans; and the issue of racial disparities in elementary school gifted programs and race talk among pre-adolescents. The chapter then looks at the experiences of high-achieving black adolescents at nineteen public high schools in North Carolina. Finally, it investigates why some high-achieving black youth are targeted with the acting white slur while many others, including peers at the same school, are not.Less
This chapter examines the way in which racialized tracking creates racial distinctions among students that lead to the interpretation of academic achievement as acting white. It begins with a short discussion of two topics: the meaning and use of the broad concept of acting white among African Americans; and the issue of racial disparities in elementary school gifted programs and race talk among pre-adolescents. The chapter then looks at the experiences of high-achieving black adolescents at nineteen public high schools in North Carolina. Finally, it investigates why some high-achieving black youth are targeted with the acting white slur while many others, including peers at the same school, are not.
Robert M. Ortega, Andrew Grogan-Kaylor, Mary Ruffolo, Jenell Clarke, and Rebecca Karb
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195398465
- eISBN:
- 9780199863426
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195398465.003.0009
- Subject:
- Social Work, Children and Families, Health and Mental Health
This chapter considers the issue of racial disparities in child services. Although much attention has been given to racial and ethnic differences in child welfare service receipt, the chapter looks ...
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This chapter considers the issue of racial disparities in child services. Although much attention has been given to racial and ethnic differences in child welfare service receipt, the chapter looks at each major racial and ethnic group separately. In delineating the special cultural characteristics policy makers and practitioners should keep in mind when planning programs or services for U.S. children, the chapter found an otherwise almost completely unexplored research possibility within the culture and race discourse: within-group comparisons. Although the attention to cross-race comparisons is warranted, it can obscure critical variation within groups.Less
This chapter considers the issue of racial disparities in child services. Although much attention has been given to racial and ethnic differences in child welfare service receipt, the chapter looks at each major racial and ethnic group separately. In delineating the special cultural characteristics policy makers and practitioners should keep in mind when planning programs or services for U.S. children, the chapter found an otherwise almost completely unexplored research possibility within the culture and race discourse: within-group comparisons. Although the attention to cross-race comparisons is warranted, it can obscure critical variation within groups.
Carolyn Moxley Rouse
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9781469630359
- eISBN:
- 9781469630373
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469630359.003.0011
- Subject:
- Political Science, Public Policy
The United States Healthy People 2010 initiative, designed to focus nationally funded health research and care on achieving a set of nationwide goals, was directed toward the elimination of racial ...
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The United States Healthy People 2010 initiative, designed to focus nationally funded health research and care on achieving a set of nationwide goals, was directed toward the elimination of racial and ethnic health disparities. While racial and ethnic disparities are complex (with the health of some minority groups surpassing the national average), the health of black Americans continues to fall short of the national average. By focusing on the presumptions embedded in the design of health disparities research, this chapter addresses why Healthy People 2010 largely failed to reduce racial health inequality. Importantly, in thinking about health inequalities, researchers initially failed to consider how race is socially constructed; how data collection is never value-neutral (see King, chapter 8, this volume); and, finally, the limits of randomized control trials (deductive methods) when it comes to making sense of complex behavioral and structural data. The chapter ends by describing how ethnographic insights can help complicate the assumptions and conclusions of health disparities research.Less
The United States Healthy People 2010 initiative, designed to focus nationally funded health research and care on achieving a set of nationwide goals, was directed toward the elimination of racial and ethnic health disparities. While racial and ethnic disparities are complex (with the health of some minority groups surpassing the national average), the health of black Americans continues to fall short of the national average. By focusing on the presumptions embedded in the design of health disparities research, this chapter addresses why Healthy People 2010 largely failed to reduce racial health inequality. Importantly, in thinking about health inequalities, researchers initially failed to consider how race is socially constructed; how data collection is never value-neutral (see King, chapter 8, this volume); and, finally, the limits of randomized control trials (deductive methods) when it comes to making sense of complex behavioral and structural data. The chapter ends by describing how ethnographic insights can help complicate the assumptions and conclusions of health disparities research.
Brian Mustanski, Amy Johnson, and Robert Garofalo
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195314366
- eISBN:
- 9780199865567
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195314366.003.0013
- Subject:
- Social Work, Communities and Organizations, Health and Mental Health
This chapter reviews the HIV/AIDS epidemiology of young African American men who have sex with men (MSM) and the characteristics that affect prevention efforts within the African American MSM ...
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This chapter reviews the HIV/AIDS epidemiology of young African American men who have sex with men (MSM) and the characteristics that affect prevention efforts within the African American MSM community. It also reviews the racial disparities in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s Young Men's Survey, as well as findings from another study of young MSM conducted in Chicago (Project Q) which examines the psychosocial and sociodemographic characteristics that underlie racial disparities. Finally, it offers practical policy solutions and implications for social work practice, and suggests areas for future research and advocacy.Less
This chapter reviews the HIV/AIDS epidemiology of young African American men who have sex with men (MSM) and the characteristics that affect prevention efforts within the African American MSM community. It also reviews the racial disparities in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)'s Young Men's Survey, as well as findings from another study of young MSM conducted in Chicago (Project Q) which examines the psychosocial and sociodemographic characteristics that underlie racial disparities. Finally, it offers practical policy solutions and implications for social work practice, and suggests areas for future research and advocacy.
Mica Pollock
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- April 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195327892
- eISBN:
- 9780199301478
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195327892.003.0006
- Subject:
- Psychology, Clinical Child Psychology / School Psychology
This chapter describes the problem of avoidance of race talk, as well as shortcomings of race talk, and potential intervention approaches to improve the ability of educators to talk about race in ...
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This chapter describes the problem of avoidance of race talk, as well as shortcomings of race talk, and potential intervention approaches to improve the ability of educators to talk about race in ways that can help and not harm students of color. Educators all too often avoid discussing race entirely, or discuss it reductively, too quickly, or with insufficient information. Three avenues to address this problem are presented. First, educators can pursue more precise talk about student subpopulations and their needs. Second, educators can pursue more precise talk about the causes of racial disparities. Third, educators can engage in more precise talk about the everyday educator-acts that can assist or harm students of color. Examples of each of these solutions provide direction to educators who wish to improve the capacity of their schools and districts to engage with racial issues productively.Less
This chapter describes the problem of avoidance of race talk, as well as shortcomings of race talk, and potential intervention approaches to improve the ability of educators to talk about race in ways that can help and not harm students of color. Educators all too often avoid discussing race entirely, or discuss it reductively, too quickly, or with insufficient information. Three avenues to address this problem are presented. First, educators can pursue more precise talk about student subpopulations and their needs. Second, educators can pursue more precise talk about the causes of racial disparities. Third, educators can engage in more precise talk about the everyday educator-acts that can assist or harm students of color. Examples of each of these solutions provide direction to educators who wish to improve the capacity of their schools and districts to engage with racial issues productively.
Brian D. Johnson and Rebecca Richardson
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- March 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190689247
- eISBN:
- 9780190689278
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190689247.003.0006
- Subject:
- Psychology, Forensic Psychology
This chapter provides an introductory overview of contemporary theory and research on race and plea bargaining. It reviews theoretical explanations for racial disparities in plea bargaining, ...
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This chapter provides an introductory overview of contemporary theory and research on race and plea bargaining. It reviews theoretical explanations for racial disparities in plea bargaining, summarizes current research on race and guilty pleas, and identifies key limitations in existing scholarship on the topic. The chapter considers how guilty plea processes may contribute to broader patterns of cumulative racial disadvantage. The chapter concludes with an overview of promising new directions for future research in this highly consequential and understudied area of the American court system.Less
This chapter provides an introductory overview of contemporary theory and research on race and plea bargaining. It reviews theoretical explanations for racial disparities in plea bargaining, summarizes current research on race and guilty pleas, and identifies key limitations in existing scholarship on the topic. The chapter considers how guilty plea processes may contribute to broader patterns of cumulative racial disadvantage. The chapter concludes with an overview of promising new directions for future research in this highly consequential and understudied area of the American court system.
J. Scott Carter and Cameron D. Lippard
- Published in print:
- 2020
- Published Online:
- September 2020
- ISBN:
- 9781529201116
- eISBN:
- 9781529201161
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781529201116.003.0003
- Subject:
- Education, Educational Policy and Politics
This chapter provides insights into the state of racial inequality in the US today, with a particular eye on income, wealth, jobs, and education disparities. Do these factors continue to be predicted ...
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This chapter provides insights into the state of racial inequality in the US today, with a particular eye on income, wealth, jobs, and education disparities. Do these factors continue to be predicted by race? If they do not, then there really is no need to consider race when making policy at the national and state levels or in higher education. The discussions over affirmative action and how it should be implemented would be moot. This chapter also provides an examination of the impact of education in general and in particular for minorities. We look at how the elimination of affirmative action at the state level has affected enrollment of minorities in higher education. We then provide a look at the history of affirmative action related to higher education in the courts. As such, we offer a detailed synopsis of past court cases that have set the stage for how affirmative action is viewed and used in higher education today. In this light, we discuss the ever-present and surprisingly controversial notion of diversity and how it shapes the affirmative action landscape. We end the chapter by discussing our methodological and analytical strategies for the remaining portion of the book.Less
This chapter provides insights into the state of racial inequality in the US today, with a particular eye on income, wealth, jobs, and education disparities. Do these factors continue to be predicted by race? If they do not, then there really is no need to consider race when making policy at the national and state levels or in higher education. The discussions over affirmative action and how it should be implemented would be moot. This chapter also provides an examination of the impact of education in general and in particular for minorities. We look at how the elimination of affirmative action at the state level has affected enrollment of minorities in higher education. We then provide a look at the history of affirmative action related to higher education in the courts. As such, we offer a detailed synopsis of past court cases that have set the stage for how affirmative action is viewed and used in higher education today. In this light, we discuss the ever-present and surprisingly controversial notion of diversity and how it shapes the affirmative action landscape. We end the chapter by discussing our methodological and analytical strategies for the remaining portion of the book.
Richard S. Frase, Julian V. Roberts, and Rhys Hester
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- August 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780190254001
- eISBN:
- 9780190254025
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780190254001.003.0008
- Subject:
- Law, Criminal Law and Criminology, Constitutional and Administrative Law
Sentencing enhancements based on the offender’s prior conviction record are a major contributor to racial disproportionalities in prison populations, since racial minorities tend to have more ...
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Sentencing enhancements based on the offender’s prior conviction record are a major contributor to racial disproportionalities in prison populations, since racial minorities tend to have more extensive criminal records. After briefly reviewing the larger problem of disproportionate minority confinement in the United States, and the serious negative consequences of such disparities, this chapter examines data from several states on the ways in which racial differences in prior conviction records and other factors cause disproportionate minority confinement. The chapter focuses on black-to-white disparities, since blacks are the largest nonwhite group in most states and there is more detailed criminal justice data on them than for most other nonwhite groups. But the available data on Hispanics and Native Americans reveals disparities that are sometimes as great as for blacks. The chapter concludes with proposals for revising criminal history enhancement rules that have the largest and least defensible disparate impacts on nonwhite offenders.Less
Sentencing enhancements based on the offender’s prior conviction record are a major contributor to racial disproportionalities in prison populations, since racial minorities tend to have more extensive criminal records. After briefly reviewing the larger problem of disproportionate minority confinement in the United States, and the serious negative consequences of such disparities, this chapter examines data from several states on the ways in which racial differences in prior conviction records and other factors cause disproportionate minority confinement. The chapter focuses on black-to-white disparities, since blacks are the largest nonwhite group in most states and there is more detailed criminal justice data on them than for most other nonwhite groups. But the available data on Hispanics and Native Americans reveals disparities that are sometimes as great as for blacks. The chapter concludes with proposals for revising criminal history enhancement rules that have the largest and least defensible disparate impacts on nonwhite offenders.
Dána-Ain Davis
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- January 2020
- ISBN:
- 9781479812271
- eISBN:
- 9781479805662
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9781479812271.003.0007
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Medical Anthropology
Administrators working within the public health approach to health issues generate information used to mobilize against a particular plight. The March of Dimes, which from its founding has developed ...
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Administrators working within the public health approach to health issues generate information used to mobilize against a particular plight. The March of Dimes, which from its founding has developed public education campaigns to address child-related health issues such as polio and German measles, is no different. This chapter chronicles the organization’s intervention approach to addressing maternal and child health issues. Interviews with key administrators document how the March of Dimes takes up the issues of racial disparity and premature birth. However, as this chapter shows, there is a difference between characterizing racial disparity for the purpose of raising awareness about premature birth rates and addressing medical racism, which are an integral part of the content of Black women’s reproductive experiences.Less
Administrators working within the public health approach to health issues generate information used to mobilize against a particular plight. The March of Dimes, which from its founding has developed public education campaigns to address child-related health issues such as polio and German measles, is no different. This chapter chronicles the organization’s intervention approach to addressing maternal and child health issues. Interviews with key administrators document how the March of Dimes takes up the issues of racial disparity and premature birth. However, as this chapter shows, there is a difference between characterizing racial disparity for the purpose of raising awareness about premature birth rates and addressing medical racism, which are an integral part of the content of Black women’s reproductive experiences.
David R. Williams
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- October 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780300095418
- eISBN:
- 9780300129847
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300095418.003.0017
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
This chapter focuses on the racial disparities in health outcomes. It examines three possible explanations—biological differences, lifestyle, and social structures—and concludes that social ...
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This chapter focuses on the racial disparities in health outcomes. It examines three possible explanations—biological differences, lifestyle, and social structures—and concludes that social disparities is the causal factor of racial variations in health. The chapter then considers the link between socioeconomic status and health, the effects of racism on health, and the impact the massive migration of African Americans from the rural South to the urban North had on their health.Less
This chapter focuses on the racial disparities in health outcomes. It examines three possible explanations—biological differences, lifestyle, and social structures—and concludes that social disparities is the causal factor of racial variations in health. The chapter then considers the link between socioeconomic status and health, the effects of racism on health, and the impact the massive migration of African Americans from the rural South to the urban North had on their health.
Lynn Bye, Michelle E. Alvarez, Janet Haynes, and Cindy E. Sweigart
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195398496
- eISBN:
- 9780199777402
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195398496.003.0004
- Subject:
- Social Work, Children and Families
Truancy negatively impacts students in several ways. Students who are truant are more likely to fall behind academically, drop out of school, use drugs and alcohol, and be involved with the criminal ...
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Truancy negatively impacts students in several ways. Students who are truant are more likely to fall behind academically, drop out of school, use drugs and alcohol, and be involved with the criminal justice system. This chapter begins by examining school discipline in relation to truancy and school dropout. In discussing school discipline, it looks at the unequal application of discipline in schools, and existing racial disparities in school discipline. In addition, it explores the ways truancy impacts individual students, the school system, and society. All three of these levels pay a high price for truancy.Less
Truancy negatively impacts students in several ways. Students who are truant are more likely to fall behind academically, drop out of school, use drugs and alcohol, and be involved with the criminal justice system. This chapter begins by examining school discipline in relation to truancy and school dropout. In discussing school discipline, it looks at the unequal application of discipline in schools, and existing racial disparities in school discipline. In addition, it explores the ways truancy impacts individual students, the school system, and society. All three of these levels pay a high price for truancy.
Amitabh Chandra, Tyler Hoppenfeld, Jonathan Skinner, and David R. Weir
- Published in print:
- 2017
- Published Online:
- September 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780226426679
- eISBN:
- 9780226426709
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226426709.003.0007
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Public and Welfare
Racial and socioeconomic disparities are pervasive in U.S. health care. Recent research on trends in disparities has often shown a reduction in the magnitude of disparities in treatments. In this ...
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Racial and socioeconomic disparities are pervasive in U.S. health care. Recent research on trends in disparities has often shown a reduction in the magnitude of disparities in treatments. In this paper, we consider trends in racial disparities with a focus on health outcomes for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in the elderly population. We find an overall decline in mortality between 1999 and 2010, but it was not associated with a reduction either in mortality differentials within hospitals, nor did we observe a significant reduction in mortality disparities associated with black AMI patients being admitted to hospitals with disproportionately high risk-adjusted mortality rates for whites. While there was some hint of a reduction in racial disparities between the middle (1999–2005) and late (2006–10) period, the improvement is very modest, and additional years of data would be necessary to discern whether there was a real long-term improvement.Less
Racial and socioeconomic disparities are pervasive in U.S. health care. Recent research on trends in disparities has often shown a reduction in the magnitude of disparities in treatments. In this paper, we consider trends in racial disparities with a focus on health outcomes for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in the elderly population. We find an overall decline in mortality between 1999 and 2010, but it was not associated with a reduction either in mortality differentials within hospitals, nor did we observe a significant reduction in mortality disparities associated with black AMI patients being admitted to hospitals with disproportionately high risk-adjusted mortality rates for whites. While there was some hint of a reduction in racial disparities between the middle (1999–2005) and late (2006–10) period, the improvement is very modest, and additional years of data would be necessary to discern whether there was a real long-term improvement.
Michael T. Risher
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231156974
- eISBN:
- 9780231527699
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231156974.003.0003
- Subject:
- Sociology, Race and Ethnicity
This chapter outlines the development of the use of DNA databanks in the criminal justice system. It examines how various steps in the criminal justice system create and magnify racial disparities, ...
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This chapter outlines the development of the use of DNA databanks in the criminal justice system. It examines how various steps in the criminal justice system create and magnify racial disparities, and explores how the law makes it nearly impossible to address the problem effectively. The chapter concludes with a discussion of how the gathering of DNA samples at various stages may affect the disparities and the factors that cause these disparities. DNA databanks comprise two distinct components: the actual biological samples and the computerized database of the profiles generated by analyzing these samples. The government analyzes both forensic samples and known samples to create DNA profiles, which are then uploaded to the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). However, racial disparities emerge alongside the exponential growth of the use of DNA databanks due to its ability to exaggerate criminal arrests and convictions—especially for felony drug offenses.Less
This chapter outlines the development of the use of DNA databanks in the criminal justice system. It examines how various steps in the criminal justice system create and magnify racial disparities, and explores how the law makes it nearly impossible to address the problem effectively. The chapter concludes with a discussion of how the gathering of DNA samples at various stages may affect the disparities and the factors that cause these disparities. DNA databanks comprise two distinct components: the actual biological samples and the computerized database of the profiles generated by analyzing these samples. The government analyzes both forensic samples and known samples to create DNA profiles, which are then uploaded to the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS). However, racial disparities emerge alongside the exponential growth of the use of DNA databanks due to its ability to exaggerate criminal arrests and convictions—especially for felony drug offenses.
Timothy M. Bary, Lisa L. Sample, and Kimberly Kempf-Leonard
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- March 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780226319889
- eISBN:
- 9780226319919
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226319919.003.0009
- Subject:
- Law, Family Law
Several years ago Abraham Blumberg commented that efforts to understand disparities in case processing and court decisions had focused too narrowly on race, ethnicity, and social class. To better ...
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Several years ago Abraham Blumberg commented that efforts to understand disparities in case processing and court decisions had focused too narrowly on race, ethnicity, and social class. To better understand racial disparity, therefore, it is important to understand what it is about cross-court differences that give rise to that disparity. This chapter examines prior research on cross-court variation to determine how best to proceed with the investigation of justice by geography as it may relate to racial disparities. Most past inquiries have attempted ad hoc theorizing to speculate about statistically significant findings associated with an “urban/rural” variable. In addition, no research on this topic has addressed concerns about the need to pursue multilevel data, although any differential treatment by race would occur within the court environment.Less
Several years ago Abraham Blumberg commented that efforts to understand disparities in case processing and court decisions had focused too narrowly on race, ethnicity, and social class. To better understand racial disparity, therefore, it is important to understand what it is about cross-court differences that give rise to that disparity. This chapter examines prior research on cross-court variation to determine how best to proceed with the investigation of justice by geography as it may relate to racial disparities. Most past inquiries have attempted ad hoc theorizing to speculate about statistically significant findings associated with an “urban/rural” variable. In addition, no research on this topic has addressed concerns about the need to pursue multilevel data, although any differential treatment by race would occur within the court environment.
Theresa Glennon
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814721377
- eISBN:
- 9780814721384
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814721377.003.0005
- Subject:
- Law, Family Law
This chapter considers how education can be used as part of early intervention to keep children out of the existing juvenile justice system, especially African American boys. It outlines three ...
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This chapter considers how education can be used as part of early intervention to keep children out of the existing juvenile justice system, especially African American boys. It outlines three approaches to addressing the racial disparities in school discipline and high-stakes testing and examines the federal government's role in public education as well as its effect on African American boys. It explains how federal policies applicable to all students, zero tolerance and No Child Left Behind, have led to excessively high rates of school exclusions that have especially adverse effects on African American boys. It also explores how the federal government has addressed the issue of racism and argues that it needs to take the lead in redefining educational policy to be child-centered and in accordance with child development theory. Finally, the chapter offers suggestions for crafting policy geared toward creating an “architecture of inclusion” as the hallmark of education.Less
This chapter considers how education can be used as part of early intervention to keep children out of the existing juvenile justice system, especially African American boys. It outlines three approaches to addressing the racial disparities in school discipline and high-stakes testing and examines the federal government's role in public education as well as its effect on African American boys. It explains how federal policies applicable to all students, zero tolerance and No Child Left Behind, have led to excessively high rates of school exclusions that have especially adverse effects on African American boys. It also explores how the federal government has addressed the issue of racism and argues that it needs to take the lead in redefining educational policy to be child-centered and in accordance with child development theory. Finally, the chapter offers suggestions for crafting policy geared toward creating an “architecture of inclusion” as the hallmark of education.
Richard S. Frase
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199757862
- eISBN:
- 9780199979547
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199757862.001.0001
- Subject:
- Law, Criminal Law and Criminology
This book presents a hybrid sentencing model integrating theory and practice. The theory is an expanded version of limiting retributivism that accommodates crime control and other nonretributive ...
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This book presents a hybrid sentencing model integrating theory and practice. The theory is an expanded version of limiting retributivism that accommodates crime control and other nonretributive purposes of punishment, including utilitarian proportionality and minimizing racial disparity. The model’s procedures are inspired by the best American state guidelines systems and the revised Model Penal Code. A hybrid sentencing theory is normatively superior and practically necessary. It is unreasonable to propose a purely retributive or purely crime-control model that ignores competing values, and any one-dimensional model would not succeed in practice or even be adopted (all modern sentencing systems recognize both retributive and crime-control goals). Sentencing procedures must likewise achieve an acceptable balance, especially between two strongly competing procedural ideals—rule versus discretion—each of which has important advantages. Rules promote consistency and predictability; discretion promotes flexibility and efficiency (parsimony). Procedures must also strike a workable balance in the use of custodial and noncustodial sentencing options, and in the powers of systemic and case-level decision makers (the legislature, sentencing commission, judges, attorneys, and correctional officials). Sentencing guidelines are usually seen as reflecting strong preferences for rules over discretion, and for system-wide over case-level policymaking, but that is not how the best state guidelines systems actually work. Like the proposed model, these systems structure sentencing discretion but leave judges and other officials with a substantial degree of discretion to tailor the form and severity of sanctions to the facts of particular cases so as to achieve justice, effective crime control, and efficiency.Less
This book presents a hybrid sentencing model integrating theory and practice. The theory is an expanded version of limiting retributivism that accommodates crime control and other nonretributive purposes of punishment, including utilitarian proportionality and minimizing racial disparity. The model’s procedures are inspired by the best American state guidelines systems and the revised Model Penal Code. A hybrid sentencing theory is normatively superior and practically necessary. It is unreasonable to propose a purely retributive or purely crime-control model that ignores competing values, and any one-dimensional model would not succeed in practice or even be adopted (all modern sentencing systems recognize both retributive and crime-control goals). Sentencing procedures must likewise achieve an acceptable balance, especially between two strongly competing procedural ideals—rule versus discretion—each of which has important advantages. Rules promote consistency and predictability; discretion promotes flexibility and efficiency (parsimony). Procedures must also strike a workable balance in the use of custodial and noncustodial sentencing options, and in the powers of systemic and case-level decision makers (the legislature, sentencing commission, judges, attorneys, and correctional officials). Sentencing guidelines are usually seen as reflecting strong preferences for rules over discretion, and for system-wide over case-level policymaking, but that is not how the best state guidelines systems actually work. Like the proposed model, these systems structure sentencing discretion but leave judges and other officials with a substantial degree of discretion to tailor the form and severity of sanctions to the facts of particular cases so as to achieve justice, effective crime control, and efficiency.
Robin S. Engel, Charles F. Klahm IV, and Rob Tillyer
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814776155
- eISBN:
- 9780814777480
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814776155.003.0012
- Subject:
- Sociology, Law, Crime and Deviance
This chapter explores the post-stop arrest decision in traffic stops conducted by Cleveland police officers to determine why racial disparities might exist. The study pays close attention to citizen ...
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This chapter explores the post-stop arrest decision in traffic stops conducted by Cleveland police officers to determine why racial disparities might exist. The study pays close attention to citizen demeanor by examining more than forty-two thousand traffic stops by Cleveland police; as part of their study, officers were also asked to rate citizen demeanor on a scale with values ranging from civil to physically resistant. Multivariate analysis shows that race/ethnicity is no longer a significant predictor of arrest when controlling for other legal and extra-legal variables, including citizen demeanor. Demeanor is a predictor of arrest and failure to account for this influential extra-legal variable represents a serious limitation in prior traffic stop studies.Less
This chapter explores the post-stop arrest decision in traffic stops conducted by Cleveland police officers to determine why racial disparities might exist. The study pays close attention to citizen demeanor by examining more than forty-two thousand traffic stops by Cleveland police; as part of their study, officers were also asked to rate citizen demeanor on a scale with values ranging from civil to physically resistant. Multivariate analysis shows that race/ethnicity is no longer a significant predictor of arrest when controlling for other legal and extra-legal variables, including citizen demeanor. Demeanor is a predictor of arrest and failure to account for this influential extra-legal variable represents a serious limitation in prior traffic stop studies.
Kristin Henning
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781479898800
- eISBN:
- 9781479800308
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9781479898800.003.0011
- Subject:
- Law, Family Law
This chapter focuses on the pervasive racial disparities in the existing juvenile justice system. Notwithstanding the growing body of developmental research demonstrating that much of juvenile crime ...
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This chapter focuses on the pervasive racial disparities in the existing juvenile justice system. Notwithstanding the growing body of developmental research demonstrating that much of juvenile crime and delinquency is the product of normal adolescent development, contemporary narratives portraying youth of color as dangerous and irredeemable lead police, probation officers, and prosecutors to reject age as an excuse or mitigation for these youth. Aggressive institutional approaches toward adolescent offending, motivated by explicit or implicit racial bias, thus lead to the disproportionate arrest and prosecution of black and Hispanic youth. The chapter considers reform in prosecutorial decision making at the intake stage as a viable strategy to reduce disproportionate minority contact in the juvenile justice system.Less
This chapter focuses on the pervasive racial disparities in the existing juvenile justice system. Notwithstanding the growing body of developmental research demonstrating that much of juvenile crime and delinquency is the product of normal adolescent development, contemporary narratives portraying youth of color as dangerous and irredeemable lead police, probation officers, and prosecutors to reject age as an excuse or mitigation for these youth. Aggressive institutional approaches toward adolescent offending, motivated by explicit or implicit racial bias, thus lead to the disproportionate arrest and prosecution of black and Hispanic youth. The chapter considers reform in prosecutorial decision making at the intake stage as a viable strategy to reduce disproportionate minority contact in the juvenile justice system.
