Who are the minority groups and what are the challenges have they been facing currently? Why blacks do commits the highest homicide or crime rate, and even kill among themselves despite the abolishment of slavery and segregation systems? These are some of the questions that I am going to handle in this paper. It is a fact that the minority groups in the past have gone through hard times of their life, whereby they were discriminated by the majority and the elite whites. Some were even killed by whites. But at present, blacks continue to indicate the highest rates of homicide or crime rates, despite the abolishment of slavery and segregation systems. The minority groups especially the blacks have even killed among themselves. Note that homicide is regarded by the majority as the most extreme behavior on a continuum of violence (Joseph, 2004).
Despite the abolishment of discrimination and racial segregation systems, the blacks are still left behind or segregated as far as income distribution matters are concerned. Only a few leaders among the blacks are financially stable while the big proportion among the blacks depends upon the larger white population of the state and the U.S at large. The minority groups expected great results after the abolishment of slavery, but those greats were only short lived. The minority had to face the new hazard, which is wealth inequality. This concept of wealth inequality has resulted to many minority groups generating hatred towards the majority especially the whites who own the means of productions. The minority are therefore not happy with the success of the majority since they have not attained financial success. They therefore end up embracing crime and ethnic purification of whites out of their historic cities- Baltimore, Detroit, Philadelphia, Gray Indiana, to name a few). According to functionalist theory, it explains why crime do exists in our today’s society. Clime exists due to society sharing the same American dream (material success), but from the perspective of the minority and especially the black and Hispanics, it is clearly shown that resources are not evenly distributed among these two groups-the white who are the majority and the minority groups. It is very rare to find opportunities and resources fairly distributed in a capitalist economy. Hence, this is no different case since we are dealing with a capitalist economy. This problem of wealth inequality causes a strain between goals or ambitions and ability to achieve them. But, the majority groups who possess the social and economic advantages have done a good work in ensuring that these chances are blocked (Joseph, 2004).
This result of blocking those chances bring along with it anomie which are innovation, compliance, retretism, ritualism, and rebellion. Hence, the minority groups and especially the blacks are left with no other alternative, but to engage into these illegal actions with the objective of achieving material success- financial freedoms. From the above example, we can see that functionalist theory explains crime in terms of material gains or economic matters. That the minority are forced by circumstances to engage into crime and homicides with one set goal-to achieve financial freedom (Donald , 1972).
The minority groups are also known to impact a lot of Pressure among them. This excess pressure causes the minority groups to engage into criminal activities so as to fulfill the requirements of the societies. These minority groups and especially the blacks fail to recognize legitimate methods to achieve their set goals. This mounted pressure portrays Lack of strong social relationships, thereby causing these blacks not to reassess their feeling of frustration and anger and the consequences associated with delinquent behavior. It is also noted that that most of the blacks have developed negative emotions such as, despair, anger, fear, and defeat. They tend to blame their negative conditions and interactions on others and especially the whites that they are what they are because of them tying to mean that they have contributed a lot in their wellbeing. This causes anger towards the whites thereby ending up resulting into activities that a normal person cannot be expected to perform. It is said that anger can lower inhabitations causing a person to act impetuously not thinking of the consequences of the action taken. Both, anger and frustration, makes the minority groups and especially the blacks to give good reason for their felonious behavior –create a desire for reverence. Anger reduces the awareness of costs of crime and energizes the individual to act negatively. The minority groups are exposed to more strains that end up creating a good environment of anger. This creates a higher probability of them resulting to aberrant behavior as a coping method. Many of us have accepted the fact that an increase in strain will eventually lead to an expansion in anger that will finally result to an increase in crime (Joseph, 2004).
The minority groups and especially the blacks continue to face more barriers when it comes to accessing essential facilities that are termed as important to a stable living. They do not have access for higher education and employment opportunities .The environment that they live in make them accept the fact that higher education are less important and also that they are very hard to access them- are just there for the whites. The minority groups are left with no alternatives, but to believe in these ideologies since they lack role models who can proof them otherwise that indeed higher education can lead to a more fulfilling and successful life than engaging into criminal activities. Some blacks may be willing to further their studies, but due to financial incapacities end up engaging into criminal activities. Many minority groups aspires for better jobs for a good life, but these jobs must be earned by presenting good certificates that they may not be having due to lack of higher education. When it comes to job market, many blacks still go through racial discrimination and lack of transportation, but education playing the greatest role of creating a barrier between them and the job market. This leaves the blacks with fewer opportunities to gain goals through socially accepted means, hence the reason why they result to homicide and other criminal activities. When it comes to the provision of opportunities, they also face fewer employment and educational opportunities as compared to the majority groups who take almost all the opportunities (Donald , 1972).
. The minority neighborhood also plays a great role in the life of these inhabitants. The neighborhood t is mostly comprised of felonious peers who end up increasing their criminal opportunities. In addition, the presence of fewer positive role models among the minority groups and especially the blacks also makes them to adopt the belief that financial gains cannot be obtained through genuine methods, but through homicides and engaging to more criminal activities.
Among the blacks, social ties and bonds across the entire life course are reflected as unstable. This makes the blacks to have a hard time in acquiring the knowledge on what is expected of them thereby making norms and rules ineffective to them. Most the blacks’ individuals strive independently for their home, possessions, transportation, employments, and possessions. The nature of the black family is seen as structurally weak, a cause of continuing poverty and a variety of other problems. They reflect high rates of divorce, division illegitimacy, and abandonment among blacks’ families. These families were more likely to be headed by a feminine than were for whites families. It is reported that over 40% of black households are female headed, which is nearly 3 times the rate of white households (Donald, 1972).
Research has it that individuals with more social bonds have more to lose than individuals who have not developed strong social relations. Strong social relationships cause an individual to reassess his feeling s of anger and frustration and consider consequences of felonious behavior. The minority groups also don’t have culturally accepted values and norms and this lack causes them to have increased amounts of strain. The levels of homicide issue revolve around environments linked with poverty and low quality of education. It is very rare to hear of homicide in the upper middle to upper class havens.
Many believe that blacks kill each other mostly because they live in the same neighborhood and this could be a fact. But, most crimes conducted by the blacks are a result of hate where they develop hatred against a victim on his race, religion, handicap, national origin, or sexual orientation. It’s hard to unravel this from the stew of hyper-segregation often as a result of purposeful policies, nonexistent economic opportunities, and well-established poverty that characterizes a substantial number of black communities. This sociological theory grounds that the individual aspects of social relationships and the social areas in which they live and work assist in explaining the commission of unexpected acts. It has been noted that sociological theories plays a great role in understanding the roots of social problems such as; homicide, crime, and mental illness. They also come up with ways that when applied can help in alleviating these problems. According to deviance sociological theory, sociologists have been able to come up with methods of examining why some individuals do not conform to the expectations and social rules, while others does . By specifying the causes of deviance, the theories suggest how changes aspects of the social environment influence the behavior of individuals and groups. This theory specifies that a particular set of factors causes deviant behavior, then it also implies that eliminating or altering those factors in the environment will change levels of deviance.
Mertons strain theory tries to explain why people commit crime. Hence, this approach involves looking at how people accept, reject, or redefine our cultural in accepting these goals. Goals according to them are simply the methods adopted in accepting those goals. For example, success is the goal, the appropriately accepted way to achieve success in America is through the belief that had work pays, but many people work hard and end up not being successful in their life. This makes those unsuccessful lots (minority groups) to adjust their mode of thinking that hard work pays and end up adopting other crooked ways in order to be successful. The blacks develops these strains that is accumulated pressure on disadvantaged minority groups and the lower urban populous to take advantage of any effective available means to income and success that they can find even if these means are illegal. For example, there is a pressure on the poor-blacks- to commit a deviant act such as crime and homicide so as to ensure survival because the society does not give their needs (Joseph, 2004).
Human capital theory is quite consistent with traditional American culture and values. Success according to this theory is seen as an individual phenomenon, a reward for handwork, good character, and sustained efforts. It assumes that success is equally available to all which is not the case. The minority groups are not equally table as the majority groups. The poor blacks have been increasingly concentrated in narrowly delaminated urban areas referred to many as ghetto. Where the blight of poverty has been compounded and reinforced by a host of other problems, including joblessness, high dropout rates from school, crime, drug use, teenage pregnancy, and the welfare dependency.
Many of the blue-collar jobs have been shifted from the cities to where labor is cheaper, unions have less power, and fewer taxes are lower. This act of movement from the C.B.D, where most minority groups lives, to the suburbs has been devastating for the inner city and especially for the blacks living in the ghettos. Since they creates a reserve from opportunities for jobs and economic improvements resulting to these blacks living in confined inner city to be alienated from the access to opportunities since of them cannot afford automobiles (Donald , 1972).
Sociologist named Rogelio Saenz recently analyzed the situation of black in the 15 prevalent metropolitan areas in the nation and found out that they are much more likely than whites to be living in highly improvised neighborhoods where they are cut off from the access of economic opportunities, services, and institutions that are crucial for a successful family. He also alleged that blacks were as much as 3 times more likely to not have a car making the task of going to job outside center city areas convoluted. In the past, blacks were isolated in rural areas, but today they are isolated in the urban areas. These are some of the reasons that make the blacks and other minority groups such as the Hispanics to engage in homicides and other criminal acts (Joseph, 2004).
The blacks and the Latino lead as far as poverty is concerned.
Works cited
Healey, F., Race, ethnicity, and gender: selected readings. Thousand Oaks, : Pine Forge Press,
2004. Print.
Joseph, H,. Diversity and society: race, ethnicity, and gender. Rev. ed. of: Race, ethnicity,
gender, and class,3rd.ed.Thousand Oaks: Pine Forge Press,2004.Print.
Pachai, Bridglal. Blacks. Tanntallon, N.S.: Four East Publications, 1987. Print.
Reviews, Cram101 Textbooks. Study guide for diversity and society: race, ethnicity, and gender
Rude, Donald. Alienation: minority groups. New York: Wiley, 1972. Print.
