Descriptive Investigation of Criminal Sub-Culture - Coursework Example

A Descriptive Investigation of "Criminal Sub-Culture" about Their Past and Current Life Situation, Experiences of Cultural Difference, Stereotyping and or Discrimination Name: Course: Tutor: Date: A Descriptive Investigation of "Criminal Sub-Culture" about Their Past and Current Life Situation, Experiences of Cultural Difference, Stereotyping and or Discrimination Introduction The purpose of this study is to provide a descriptive investigation of the “criminal sub-culture”. The paper will delve into the past and present life experiences of these individuals, the cultural differences as well as stereotyping and discrimination (Thrasher, 1927). Primarily, it is essential that we define what a subculture is for a better understanding of the concepts and ideas put across. A subculture refers to a sub-section of the dominant culture in any given society. It is worth noting that a number of subcultures that are usually engaged in criminal and deviant acts, which intentionally rise against the common norms and values in a society (WILSON, 1987). This emanates from the conceptualization that sub-cultural values are produced from responses or reactions to situations facing these groups. Merton’s strain theory illustrates the genesis of sub-cultural theories of crime, that is, a number of varied responses to the condition of anomie, or a disconnection between ends such as success in finances as well as the socially accepted methods of obtaining them. According to him, relating to America, an ‘American dream’ was prevalent in the society, prompting people to aim for that form of material success (Wilson, 1987). Because of the inequalities in the society, a number of subcultures could not obtain success through legal means. Consequently, individuals opted to do whatever they could to be successful, regardless of whether it was legitimate or not. It is a clear depiction of the reason as to why there are several cases of drug warfare and gang-gun crimes (Herbert, 1998). According to Cloward and Ohlin, who went further to advance this theory, three subcultures exist beside the major culture. First, there is the criminal subculture through which a community is capable of producing role models and a vocation structure to the extent that crime could be compared to any other career that was legitimately considered. There is also the conflict subculture whereby circumstances such as frustration in the event of failure may cause vehement gang warfare. Finally, there is the retreatist subculture that is related to drug and alcohol addiction, which in many respects obtains a backing from petty crime. On the other hand, Miller gives another theory. According to him, he says that some subcultures are involved in criminal acts because of the extension of the values of the working class subcultures in that the working class had their own subculture. This is dependent on values such as toughness, toleration of violence, agitation, a resignation to fate as well as the desire for liberty. When taken on the extremes, these values lead to detrimental acts of crime. History Given the tough environmental conditions in Australia, its development was in many respects different to that of most developed countries. Just before England, countries like Portugal, Spain, Indonesia and China spotted Australia, but they considered it worthless since most of its inhabitants were nomads. In 1772, however, the British spotted the nation and felt it could be a perfect dumping ground for criminals who could not be ferried to America. The first batches were dumped in Sydney in 1788. This set the trend for the convicts who were sent to this country for the next eighty years. Much as France had much discovery in a number of parts of Australia, it joined the other European countries in rendering Australia as having no valuable thing (Frazier, 1957). As Britain was the only country in Europe to show interest in Australia, there was not much battle for it as there was for America. In addition, since the land was unproductive, there were no pioneers in Australia seeking to build new towns on the riverbanks in a bid to escape ill-treatment or group disagreements (Miller, 1958). Contrary, a large number of Australians stayed stuck within the coastal cities that were built by labour sourced from the convicts. The major struggle in these cities was between the individuals of convict descent and those that were not. Ideally, the colonial conflict has never been countered and hence Australia continues to languish among the individualistic countries that we have today, one that is deficient of group mobilization that allows it to have a cultural fitting (Shaw, 1930). The nation still owns “wardens” who are in a bid to flog the entire nation, its individuals as well as any invention of community pride. At the same time, there are rebellious groups that are against the wardens. This results from the fact that none of the personalities is willing to share a group with another. As a result, efforts to come up with a cultural expression acceptable by all and a sense of family related to a national identity have remained fruitless. Past and Present life situations There has been an agglomeration of issues like urban poverty, social closing off, and circumstances described as being historical in nature (Crow 1997). These have led to the cropping up of unequalled areas that are patronized by the poor and alienated individuals in society (SHORT, 1997). The youths are not left behind in such areas in that their isolation from the society gives them the opportunity to do things that put them above their peers. This is because they are out to seek attention and identity in these so-called staging areas. These places, also known as hangouts by their participants, refer to the public places whereby actions take place while at the same time triggering other activities occurring either immediately before all the congregants or in less conspicuous places in consideration with the situation. It is a common practice to see them solving their arguments and quarrels with violence and occasional fights (Cohen & Short, 1958). These individuals spend most of their time in these places both at night and during the day seeking a form of identity, which they want people to see. They are always attempting to bring to the fore what they undoubtedly are and how they relate to and differ from other people in the society. Given the fierce and consequential nature of competition, boys, girls and a number of grownups can always be seen trying to outdo one another, something they refer to as “looking things over”. They usually have literal meanings for phrases such as “I got your back” among others, considering the fact that people are always on the lookout to violate others (Matza, 1964). Indecent behaviour is often manifested in these settings and hence the question of that is meaner than the others takes predominance. These staging areas can be divided into three broad categories. First, we have a local setting which majors on the immediate surroundings. Such include pubs, liquor stores, among other hanging joints (WILSON, 1987). They may also be in street corners on the outside or in houses where there is no or minimal adult supervision, where alcohol and drugs are always present (Kaminski, 2004). Another case exists where we have business strips where street frequenters who are in the working class and the poor are usually catered for. A scenario where people from all over the city gather in multiplex theatres, sport events also exists. In these places that are always full of activities, several people from a large geographical location are brought together making them more volatile more so when music, alcohol and drugs are present among crude youths who are always out to do what they heard and saw being done by others do, in movies and other places. These individuals from diverse backgrounds purport to represent themselves and their hood. In order for one to represent actively, it is always a requirement that he fights in public a move that is expected to reflect his name or his personal profile and reputation. The individual actively represents by placing his area of the city on the line and comparing with the surroundings of the city. During sport events, the cachet of a school may end up being on the line. This subculture of the street starts and develops at the staging area with an input from the baffling state of these spaces including individuals living around and those expected to offer support. The fearless and daring youths find it inevitable to start a fight and dare others to join in an attempt to obtain respect, though with daring and challenges (Valentine, 1978). The numbers of youths in the staging areas are always considerably adequate in order to provide the audience together with the minimum amount of energy useful in propagating violence on both their peers and other individuals available at the staging areas, in most cases creating flash points of violence. In some of these places, especially the street corners and hanging joints, which are usually characteristic of drug peddlers and corner boys, given the wide range of status symbols with their coding, potential assailants are more concerned with determining the physical orientation of those present, for instance those who can and those who cannot fight and so on. It quite common to realize that the chump is always disrespected and is always bossed, made fun of, tried and in most cases happens to be the victim of robbery and violence without cause, always being used by those who contest to become higher-ranking. It is unusual to find material things taking a leading part when it comes to the establishment of the self- image during representation. Generally, the young people put much significance on eyewear, leather-jackets, costly sneakers as well as a number of other things, which they consider indispensable status symbols (Cohen, 1955). The others in turn try to ‘rescue’ him or her from poverty in order to feel grandiose, and still impress others. Those who are wise in the surroundings know that they would rather not go for the expensive things since they provide an opportunity to be stolen from and robbed. Those who air items of values always have to endeavour to ensure they hold onto them. In essence, the staging areas are both satisfying and risk factors for the members. In addition, at the staging areas we have youths who are always stamping ground in order to get members of the opposite sex. They are often spotted smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol. They harass others with persistent criticism. In case we have enormous gatherings from all over the city, heterogeneous caucuses compete for social placing (Wilson, 1987). Individuals can easily take offence, triggering a fight from extremely minor occurrences, leading too injuries or even worst of all, death. In such cases, the societal order of the groups changes leading to conflicts that are triggered by revenge. As a risky business, individuals may easily feel some discourtesy from those who look at them long enough or just by the mere act of being interrupted in the conceding line. These are at times looked as advances towards one’s girlfriend or boyfriend, something referred to as a ‘statement’ leading to a ‘beef’, which may in turn lead to an enormous confrontation. With the worsening of the situation, it is extremely hard for any of the parties to withdraw, particularly in a case when the audience has a considerable investment in the characters assumed by the parties (Short, 1997). The staging areas are always full of vengeance and it is a requirement that one is prepared for anything, hence individuals always have ‘equalizers’, firearms, and other weapons with them. Because of the conventional security that may be instituted, most of them prefer to abandon their weapons in places where they can access them easily, though when required. Individuals with ‘beef’ that is public knowledge tend to have the feeling that they might need their weapon at any time. Their lives are not necessarily endangered immediately (Short, 1997). The staging areas lead to the development of beefs and fights from the same. Stereotype and Discrimination It is always the nature of society never to give a second chance even to individuals involved in giving felonies or misdemeanour even if they are reformed. This causes a sense of unacceptable among the victims. For some it reaches a point when they cannot stand it any longer, and opt to seek acceptance elsewhere. Just to mention, but where do they gain more acceptance than where they ‘belong’. The same case also occurs with individuals participating in these criminal subcultures (Wilson, 1987). A number of them will just never get a fitting in the society due to the stereotype associated with them and hence they choose to save themselves the hassle of seeking acceptance, which they can already get elsewhere. It is no doubt that people continue to engage in criminal activities out there despite the negative publicity associated with it. If the society were a bit lenient in giving such individuals another chance to prove that they are capable of reforming, it would be much easier for them to be integrated in the wider society (Cohen, 1972). Their energy, which in most cases goes to waste, can be harnessed for constructive activities to everyone. It is also essential that the government put into consideration the needs of members of this subculture especially with regard to the allocation of resources and the making of government policies. This is because it has been noted with concern that these individuals have been totally discriminated against by the government. This will help them understand that they are appreciated and in the end create an avenue of reducing irresponsible behaviour portrayed by individuals in this subculture. Impact on Tourism and Hospitality industry In the recent past, both the media and governments on the issue of crime and tourism have addressed much concern. For instance, in the United Kingdom, the abduction of McCann and the killing of Meredith Kercher raised global concerns regarding crime on tourists. Consequently, issues like drugs tourism, sex tourism and alcohol linked crime among tourists do not paint providential pictures. Less action has been taken on these issues of concern, which is a grave issue that puts the safety of the entire nation at stake. The government, therefore, has the responsibility of ensuring that this issue is addressed to reduce the negative effect that this subculture has on the citizens (Shover, 1996). The major concern for any nation is safeguarding the safety of its citizens especially when they visit other countries. Consequently, most nations give advisory services to their citizens to avoid those tourist destinations that may jeopardize their lives. Therefore, any nation that has failed to combat criminal activities within their borders may have its tourism sector adversely affected by these travel advisories. Moreover, the hospitality industry would definitely be negatively affected by a decline in the number of tourist at any given time. There has been a great tendency of youths, who especially can’t secure reasonable employment in this tourist attraction branding themselves as tourist guides working on behalf of a given hotel or hospitality firm. These youths especially engage themselves in drug abuse and are quite combative. Trusting such groups with the tourists is risky as they are bound to tarnish the image of the tourism and hospitality sector of the nation. Conclusion From the discussion, the criminal subculture is just but one of the many other subcultures present in society today. One comes about with a group of individuals seeking identity. It is in this setting in their staging areas that such acts of violence emanate, which in the end have adverse effects to the society around them. However, it is worth noting that this group can be tamed, if only their needs are addressed and that they are given a form of acceptance by the society in which they live. Therefore, the government and other bodies concerned must act expeditiously to curtail the formation of these criminal sub-groupings in its early stages. Otherwise, if left to go on (with little concern especially from security agencies), the future of the nation and its global image would be adversely (Herbett, 1998). On this regard, legislature should be adopted that monitor the various groupings and ensure that all their activities are in line with the laws of the country. References Cohen, A. &. Short, J. (1958). Research in Delinquent Subcultures. Journal of Social Issues, 20-37. Cohen, A. K. (1955). Delinquent Boys: The Culture of the Gang. New York: Free Press. Cohen, P. (1972). Sub-cultural Conflict and Working Class Community. Working Papers in Cultural Studies. Birmingham: University of Birmingham. Crow, T. (1997). Substance over style - artist Phil Cohen's Rethinking the Youth Question. ArtForum XXXVI, 15-16. Frazier, E. F. (1957). Race and Culture Contacts in the Modern World. New York: Alfred Knopf. Herbert, S. (1998). Police Subculture Reconsidered. Criminology(36), 343-369. Kaminski, M. M. (2004). Games Prisoners Play. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Matza, David. (1964). Delinquency and Drift. Reprint edition: 1990.Transaction Press Miller, W. (1958). Lower Class Culture as a Generating Milieu of Gang Delinquency. Journal of Social Issues(14), 5-20. Shaw, C. (1930). The Jackroller: A Delinquent Boy's Own Story. Chicago: Chicago University Press. Short, J. F. (1997). Poverty, Ethnicity, and Violent Crime. Boulder, Colo: Westview. Shover, N. (1996). Great Pretenders: Pursuits and Careers of Persistent Thieves. Boulder, Colo: Westview. Thrasher, F. (1927). The Gang. Chicago: Chicago University Press. Valentine, B. (1978). Hustling and Other Hard Work: Life Styles in the Ghetto. New York: Free Press. Wilson, W. J. (1987). The Truly Disadvantaged: The Inner City, the Underclass, and Public Policy. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. Read More