The article is a discourse on criminal justice, assessing the role of the bourgeois intellectuals who have in time over assigned contradicting explanations to criminal justice and prescribed prejudiced proposals on the role and extent of punishment of petty offenders. The paper covers the role of the political economy in influencing the views of these intellectuals, and the interplay between politics and the world view of these realists. It also looks at the investment made in criminal justice and the role of law enforcement in protecting the middle class from crimes and victimization resulting from such inter-class prejudice.
According to Platt and Takagi, “ Unemployment and inflation are part of the general fiscal crisis of monopoly capitalismThe burden of the crisis is being carried primarily by the working class, especially national minorities” (Platt and Takagi 198). This therefore means that these minorities are the victims of a biased criminology assessment by intellectuals who have failed to holistically assess the prevailing circumstances.
I was surprised that in a field as sensitive as criminal justice, intellectuals would fail to examine issues objectively, being frequently influenced by the own or societal prejudice. I learned about the interplay between politics, economy and criminal justice and how such discussions have shaped how criminal are treated, sometimes resulting in victimization. I wondered about how the discourse can be changed to influence programs that can change the course in criminal justice. The article resonates well with pop-culture that has often portrayed the minority groups as criminals, which has in turn influenced perceptions and furthered their victimization.
Works Cited
Platt, Tony and Paul Takagi. "Intellectuals For Law And Order: A Critique Of The New "Realists"". Social Justic 40.1/2 (2014): 192. Print.
