[TheBlueMarvel]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JCarterVA

In the 'Burbs we have some kids that were breaking into cars to steal radios. They were caught by an off duty MP. Judge threw them in jail for 30 days. Rich white kids that thought it was fun. There have been some porch pirates that have been caught that also did it for fun.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thor Laserpunch

The ole equality gap ah reckon.

Sometimes I forget that conversations here, like many places on the internet, are binary in nature. Either the light is on, or it is off. The muscle's firing, or it isn't. However, in reality, things are usually far more nuanced than that.

I see now that there are at least a couple of misreads going on here. Why people commit crimes can be incredibly complex and there are a variety of reasons and conditions that researchers postulate as causation for the behavior. As I mentioned, years ago I worked for an ALTERNATIVE-sentencing program designed to interrupt the school to prison pipeline for teens involved with family court within the 5 boroughs of NYC. This program kept kids in their homes avoiding a formal introduction to juvenile detention/remand by offering intensive in-home counselling and therapy (that was me) to the children and their parents with the goal of ameliorating many of the hurdles challenging these communities (MY community). The program was developed and based on empirical research of a progressive think-tank focused on juvenile justice and eliminating recidivism (reoffend, AKA "career crime") in the state. The success of the program I worked for, along with a slew of other similarly successful programs has made New York a model for the country in approaching these dilemmas.

Research has proven that when the "vectors" I mentioned (lack of work preparedness/education/training, lack access to jobs/experience/resources, alleviation of the conditions of impoverishment) are addressed interaction with law enforcement and rates of incarceration decrease. That's the efficacy of approaching these societal problems form a perspective of proactive/preemptive engagement rather than punitively via incarceration.

About the anecdotal instances you mention, JCater, sure, I'm not suggesting those things don't happen. Nor am I suggesting that white people don't commit crimes. That thinking would be absurd because whites are the largest demographic in America (for now) and FBI crime statistics list them as out pacing other cultures by a wide margin (see - again - "largest demographic in America"). And that's even when you factor in the reality that law enforcement and the judicial system are categorically and systemically more lenient when dealing with this demographic. However, there is something I want to clear up about what I perceive as a misconception based on what you wrote: even in the "burbs," there exists poverty and, by extension, there are a plethora of impoverished whites just as susceptible to the aforementioned "vectors" as are people in the cities (otherwise considered to be overwhelmingly POC). Please note that I didn't introduce race/ethnicity into this dialogue, I merely responded to it...

As the current zeitgeist bandies about this concept of being superficially and/or commercially "woke" (awareness isn't about a T-shirt or a monolithic stance IMO - it's a comprehensive living breathing phenomenon that extends throughout the lifespan), it's important to realize who your potential allies are. It's also important be careful of reading into things what you want to read and realize that not all conundrums in life are black and white ones (and I'm not referencing race in that last bit...lol...it's meant metaphorically).

Be easy