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Racist Offending, Policing and Community Conflict

Ray, Larry J., Smith, David (2004) Racist Offending, Policing and Community Conflict. Sociology, 38 (4). pp. 681-699. ISSN 0038-0385. (doi:10.1177/0038038504045859) (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:337)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided.
Official URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0038038504045859

Abstract

Since the Stephen Lawrence inquiry several initiatives have transformed the policing of racism, and have entailed significant changes in the criminal justice system. This article reviews these in the light of our research on racist offenders in Greater Manchester between 1998 and 2001. We argue that racist offending is not necessarily consistent with the assumptions underlying some of these initiatives. The conclusions from this work are then discussed in the context of the disturbances in Oldham and elsewhere in the UK during the summer of 2001. We suggest that constructions of racist offending have given excessive weight to individual motives and intentions, while much offending behaviour is grounded in wider cultural and social contexts. We present the background to these conflicts in terms of a vicious spiral of styles of policing, use of reported statistics and the involvement of racist organizations. We conclude that to explain racist violence we need to think in terms of not a single issue but of multiple issues of bias, and of cultures of violence, exclusions and marginalization.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1177/0038038504045859
Uncontrolled keywords: racist offending policing community conflict sociology
Subjects: H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Divisions: Divisions > Division for the Study of Law, Society and Social Justice > School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research
Depositing User: Samantha Osborne
Date Deposited: 19 Dec 2007 18:10 UTC
Last Modified: 16 Nov 2021 09:39 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/337 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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