Social Problems and Crime

¶ … Post Social class status is something that can be projected onto a person based on superficial external characteristics or the situations of one's life including neighborhood characteristics or national identity. From the status that is projected onto the person, an individual may internalize status and behave according to stereotypes, norms, and expectations. A community can contribute to the perpetuation of status attributions and stereotypes via the socialization process.

Several of the readings show how social status, stigma, and socialization combine to influence a person's behavior, and how that behavior can be labeled or identified as being deviant or criminal. One of the most important issues discussed in the readings related to socialization and crime is the article on white collar crime. White collar crime is more than just the specific acts like fraud or embezzlement because reactions to white collar crime reveal the importance of class status and socialization.

White collar crime is crime of privilege: it practically requires high status just to participate in white collar crime, and defendants in white collar crime cases can more easily get away with their crimes due to access to legal counsel that can help locate loopholes in the law or otherwise subvert the justice system. Moreover, the prison sentencing and conditions for white collar criminals is usually less harsh than it would be for a street crime, even a nonviolent street crime.

A white collar criminal is simply perceived differently from a street thug. The other end of the spectrum from white collar crime is street crime, which is illustrated by Anderson in the article "Violence and the Inner City Code." The inner city code refers to the systematic socialization of people into a life of violence.

It is not that street crime is less harmful than white collar crime, but it is important to notice the differences in perception of these types of crimes based on the perceived class status of their respective perpetrators. Intersectionality is an issue too, with white collar crime being carried out mainly by people who have white privilege, and people of color being labeled as potential street criminals.

Street codes of behavior and socialization breed a sort of toughness and type of social interaction that is perceived of as deviant by the dominant/white culture. White collar criminals are often able to get away with their crimes despite the tremendous repercussions, by denying responsibility, whereas street criminals can rarely use structural inequities as a defense that gains sympathy among jurors, let alone the media.

Part of the problem is that America tends to celebrate wealth and power, leading to a perception of white collar crime as being almost admirable. As the author points out, Americans tend to be ambivalent about white collar crimes but have strong feelings about street crimes (p. 323). The War on Drugs also shows how stigma, socialization, and social class status interact to create labels of deviance and criminality. Some types of drugs are deemed acceptable by society no matter what their cost.

Other drugs are deemed destructive even when they are used in moderation. The "war on drugs" is an absolute failure and yet there does not seem to be much movement towards obliterating it, even though using drugs should not be considered a criminal act. Finally, one of the most disturbing readings we encountered is Jones's (2006) article on genocide and how genocide can be systematically denied through.