Welcome to Applied Victimology Week 6 Left and Right Realism h.clarke@derby.ac.uk This week Understanding right & left politics Exploring right realism Using right realism to understand victimhood Politics and victims of crime Left-realism The Islington Crime Survey What are Left and Right Politics? RIGHT A belief in capitalism & free markets A belief in economic freedom, property rights & free trades Preserving institutions, traditions & the social order Preserving the family LEFT A belief in distributing wealth & privilege Support for changing traditional social orders The nationalisation of the economy & central planning The welfare state Trade unions Right Realism Difficult to define & put together a body of thought Focused on individual responsibility rather than social problems An absolute denial of the notion of a struggle of an oppressed class against an unjust society Right Realism The rise of the welfare state in 1950s saw an improvement in social & economic conditions And yet the crime rates continued to rise! Right realism came to the fore during the 1970s and 1980s Saw a rise in right wing politics & the beginnings of a moral crusades James Q. Wilson Was scornful of arguments from the 'liberal' left that denied the existence of crime as a real problem Little interest in exploring concepts of power & structures in society Crime is not caused by the absence of jobs but in the absence of penalties James Q. Wilson Instead of looking for causes, which are difficult to discern and which in any case we may not be able to alter, Wilson advocated action to increase the 'costs' of offending The benefits of leading an honest and considerate existence seem more attractive to those who would otherwise take the wrong path Who Commits Crime & Why? “Wicked people exist. Nothing avails except to set them apart from innocent people. And many people, neither wicked nor innocent, but watchful, dissembling, and calculating of their opportunities, ponder our reaction to wickedness as a cue to what they might profitably do”. (Wilson, 1975: 235-6) Right Realism The right realist approach stresses the importance of upholding public order and public morality to assist with the fight against crime The crime hardened criminals and the crime hardened areas are beyond help and should be subjected to ‘vigorous’ policing Routine Activity Approach Cohen & Felson (1979) – crime is a product of three factors coming together in particular times and places A motivated offender A potential victim An absence of a capable guardian Criminals make rational decisions about routine opportunities However, there is little explanation of the above! Routine Activity Approach Hindelang (1978: 250) The prime actors must have occasion to interact A source of dispute or claim must take place The victim must be perceived by the offender as an appropriate object of victimisation The offender must threaten or be willing to use force The circumstances must make it advantageous for the for the offender to commit the crime Wilson & Crime and Communities Used the BCS Crime is a burden on the lives of the poor & the inhabitants of disadvantaged communities Crime destroys the community spirit, social ties and results in the individualisation of society Wilson & Neighbourhood Policing People fear violent crime They also fear ‘disorderly’ and ‘disreputable’ people (ASB) Police do not put enough energy into policing this sort of behaviour Should focus on where ‘public order is deteriorating but not unreclaimable’ (1985: 88) Situational Crime Prevention theorists Much crime is committed by ordinary people who spend most of their lives engaged in lawful activity Much crime, according to Clarke (1980), takes place simply because an opportunity presents itself: such crime will be lessened by opportunity reduction Situational Crime Prevention theorists Situational practitioners, like conservative theorists, have largely abandoned the search for the 'root causes' of crime Instead, they focus on the management of crime (and the management of immediate environments) Focuses on increasing risks & difficulty (and reducing rewards) Recapping Politics and Victims of Crime Right wing politics: crime is a rational choice! The need to uphold public order & public morality Most crime takes place because of the opportunity – reducing these opportunities will reduce crime We all need to take responsibility for reducing these opportunities Break After the break: Left realism Politics and Victims of Crime Left wing politics: Crime occurs because of social inequalities Poverty Policing Government policies Racism Poor schooling Shrinking communities AND THEIR INTERACTION… Left Realism Crime occurs amongst the working class as a result of poverty The criminal seeks to redress the balance of wealth and power No need to further explain working class crime The real crime is the response of the police, corporations & state agencies! Islington Crime Survey Neighbourhood study Fear of crime among local residents shapes much of their lives Crime is both socially & geographically focused ICS: 1/3 of households had experienced serious crime & only ½ of all crimes were reported Islington Crime Survey Sexual assault 14 times the national average Non sexual assault: women were 40% more likely to be attacked than men 20% of women knew someone who had been sexually assaulted in the last 12 months 50% of women had experienced sexual harassment Islington Crime Survey Women took considerably greater precautions against crime than men: Five times more likely never to go out after dark Three times more likely to avoid certain streets or certain people Six times more likely to go out with someone else rather than on their own The Focus of Crime: Putting it All Together Crime is focused in certain geographical areas and social groups The victim = age, class, ethnicity & gender (AND importantly their combination) The (realistic?) fear of crime The moral panic paradox The Myth of the Equal Victim 1. 2. By discussing the impact of crime in terms of risk rates, we develop a false assessment of impact: Compounding: people who are victims of crime tend to be victims of others Differential vulnerability: people may differ greatly in their ability to withstand crime Violence as a Relationship Violence is a social relationship – it is rarely random Violence has particular social meanings It occurs within hierarchies of power Therefore: the impact of the offence depends on the relationship between victim & offender Women & the Fear of Crime The impact of crime relies on risk, compounding, vulnerability, & relationship: 1. Concealment: the invisible victim Compounding: additional circumstances Vulnerability: economic, social & physical Relationships 2. 3. 4. ICS Summary Because the BCS is a national survey, it under represents the levels of victimisation for some people in some areas There is a high degree of repeat victimisation for some women in certain areas High levels of fear can be related to high risks of experiencing crime Break After the break: Applying left and right realism in your assessment Understanding Victimhood and Left & Right Realism Due to childcare responsibilities, Daniel is late for an important job interview. He parks in the town centre but, in his haste, forgets to lock the car door. When he returns, he finds that his car has been stolen. How would left and right realism approach Daniel’s case? Understanding Victimhood and Left & Right Realism Samantha is an asylum seeker from Sudan. She chooses to wear the full niqab. Walking home from the shops early one evening, she is attacked by a gang of young people and is subject to racist abuse. How would left and right realism approach Samantha’s case? Next Week We’ve now explored victimology theories Next week: the geography of crime References 1 Wilson, J. Q. The Atlantic Monthly; September 1983; Thinking About Crime; Volume 252, Number 3; pages 72-88. Wolhuter, L; Olley, N. & Denham, D. (2009). Victimology: Victimisation and Victims’ Rights. London: Routledge Williams, B. (2005). Victims of crime and community justice. London: Jessica Kingsley. Maguire, M. & Pointing, J. (Eds.), Victims of Crime: A New Deal? Open University Press, 1988 References: 2 Treadwell, J. (2006). Criminology. London: Sage. Left and Right Realism pp 121 – 125. (available as an e-book). Walklate, S. (2007). Understanding Criminology: Current Theoretical Debates 3rd Edition. Chapter 3: Understanding Right Realism pp 38 – 52. References: 3 Goodey, J. (2005). Victims and victimology: Research, policy and practice. Harlow: Pearson Williams, B. (2005). Victims of crime and community justice. London: Jessica Kingsley Young, J. (1980) Thinking Seriously About Crime. In: Fitzgerald, M., McLennan, G. & Pawson, J. (Eds.) Crime and Society: Readings in History And Theory. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Young, J. (1988) Radical Criminology in Britain: The Emergence of a Competing Paradigm, The British Journal of Criminology, 28: 159-183