Youth Violence In African American Communities

Poverty is regarded by many as one of the key orchestrators of violence and particularly among African-Americans. Together with racism, these factors are cited

Police brutality against the black youth in America is not uncommon news to us, it dates as far back as 1999 when four police officers shot forty-one bullets at and killed Amadou Diallo, a Guinean immigrant, in the Bronx, NYC. The officers later claimed to have seen Diallo reaching for something that looked like a weapon but actually all he had in his hand was his wallet. However, all four policemen were acquitted if all charges in the case, in fact, one of the killer cops, Kenneth Boss, stayed on the force and was allowed to carry a gun again in 2012.

In the movie "Great Debaters" we are witnessing various forms of violence. First of all there is prevaling idea that Afro-Americans are not equal to Americans with Europaean ancestry. This might be characterised as cultural violence, predominant cultural atrocity that can be equlized with pure racism. There are several good examples of this kind of violence in the movie and most of them are connected with supprisingly rude reactions of white people on any claims of Afro-Americans, claims on their rights to education and equal civil status. Structural violence might originate from the fact that in the United States slavery existed around half of the century ago. Thus the strucure is positioning one part of the society on top and another part

For example, in Orange Country Florida, where black students only make up 27% of the public school’s population, black students represent over 50% of the students getting suspended (Lynch, 2016). This can be the effect of discrimination in the school system as young black males are already viewed as “trouble makers.” This alone can also create violence in black males because they recognize the unfair treatment which leads to resentment and anger. This soon manifests into even bigger problems within the self. "Exposure to aggressive experiences, in school and outside school, can profoundly affect mental health, including adjustment at school,” (Basch, 2011). Also found in this article, a recent study showed more than 42,000 11-17-year old’s that were affected by school violence were associated with having experienced internalizing behaviors such as depression, anxiety, sadness and more. Depression, anxiety, sadness are all ways for a child to cause aggression behavior because that's the only way they know to express themselves. This all stems back to the environment in which these young African American males are subjected to (Farrell et al, 2010) as well as their place in society and how they are viewed. If all they see and experience is negativity in their communities, homes and schools, it is what

In the study presented, the researchers examined previous research performed by found Wolfgang and Ferracuti about the subculture of violence. They found that of all the research conducted on this topic this is the one most talked about but also the one that was least verified which proposed the purpose of their study. They further state that based off of Wolfgang and Ferracuti’s studies they found that violent behaviors are more common among the African American culture make this study significant. Therefore the researchers are looking to examine the beliefs in violence among the black community and test one the theory of Wolfgang and Ferracuti that violent values are high within the black subculture.

With the many conversations about the African-American communities and their issues with gang violence, government assistance, and the lack of jobs in their communities it is clear to say that the American Dream or even a moderate lifestyle was not created for all African Americans and Minorities and since we found a way to be noticed, heard, and felt like they’re rightfully a part of something America wants to now label it “war or Drugs” and “gang Violence” thus creating Gang Injunctions in those predominantly of color communities. Now I am not stating that the violence is not present, innocent lives are not being taken, nor are drugs consuming our communities, but what I am saying is that they act as if there is no other approach that could help clean up the streets, provide piece and harmony among all communities, and solve issues for the betterment of the community. Instead they are removing them from their communities, threatening them from going to their neighborhood, and as a consequence they get jail time, an institution that already houses half if not more than half of our black men. The gang injunction initiative is set up to tear apart the minority communities through driving up the prices and making them move, especially if they have a family member who is under the injunction’s rules. Its ironic how they put them in such enclosed space, while they make suburban home for the economically fit causing them to commute and now they are systematically removing them

The Black youth is over represented at every stage in the United States juvenile justice system. Ten years ago, Black youth were more than two times more likely to have a delinquency case before the juvenile court than white youth. Dr. Shook and Dr. Goodkind examined three possible avenues to prove if black youth, are more likely to be detained than similarly situated white youth. “Three possible avenues have begun to be examined—the first is related to youths’ attitude and character as assessed by justice system personnel, the second is related to judgments about adequate parental supervision and/or school and work involvement, and the third is related to what some have called ‘‘justice by geography.’’ To conclude Dr. Shook’s and Goodkind findings, Black youth are treated

The idea of violence is instilled in everyone’s head in some way or another. From the time we are born we are equipped with the idea that we must react when we are upset. When someone affects us in a negative way, there is an idea in our minds that urges us to fight back or cause harm to that person. This idea of causing harm stays with us from childhood until we take our last breath. Since 2013, there have been 242 school shootings within America. Even worse, there have been over a thousand mass shootings in the country resulting in mass casualties. Most recently, one single man murdered fifty-eight people at a concert in Las Vegas, Nevada and injured over 240 others. Although the motive may have been different between these shootings, one thing remains the same for all of them, the act of violence.

According to Welch “Race has emerged as a powerful predictor of arrest, incarceration, and release among minority youths” (271). Statistics at the community and national level show the cumulative impact of racial disparities through each decision point in the juvenile justice system. The impact of incarceration on the blacks’ youth has a wide-ranging effects of the race to incarcerate on African American communities in particular is a phenomenon that is only beginning to be investigate. What does that mean to a community, for example, to know that four out of ten boys growing up will spend time in prison? The images and values are communicated to young people who see the prisoner as the most prominent pervasive role model in the community;

Q1.The racial/ethnic differences in offending, victimization, and incarceration? Minorities, particularly African Americans, are generally overrepresented in the criminal justice system both as offenders and as victims.  According to the Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) for 2003, African Americans (who were 12.7 percent of the population in 2003) were arrested for 37 percent of violent crimes (murder and nonnegligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery and aggravated assault) and 29 percent of property crime (102:288). African Americans are disproportionately arrested for violent crimes and whites for burglaries and property crimes. Although most crime is committed by males, black women are also disproportionately involved in the criminal justice system. The rate of black women under control of the criminal justice system is growing faster than for any other group, including black men and white men (86:136). Blacks are victims of serious violent crimes at far higher rates than whites. In 2002, blacks were 6 times more likely to be murdered than whites; and although homicide levels have declined for all groups over the past decade, during the 1976 to 2002 period, rates were disproportionately high for African Americans at 47 percent of victims (28

Many don’t realize this, but our life is forever indebted in danger. Our life, as in, minorities. This isn’t a dream nor is it long overdue. It has been time and time again when African Americans are placed on the backburner as we watch the members of our communities and societies whom have less melanin than us take what they want believe is rightfully theirs. No one has ever took the time to seek what we deserve for all the horrible endangerment we’ve been put through for years and years to come. I believe that African Americans whom stand together in regards to the Black Lives Matter protest are fighting because we know of the injustice we have had to endure that dates back to so long ago that we just can’t stand on the sidelines

instances of violence which directly ravage the lives of African American people still arise on an incessant basis. These extremist mistreatments of faultless human beings can undermine the freedom that individuals are entitled to and cause social anxiety and depression. Furthermore, a recent and significant hate crime incident which ensued in the United States was that:

In relation to violent video games, in the Black community, the same violence that’s shown in some games is currently happening in real life. Video game violence can be influenced by violent games and can be the cause of violence happening in most Black communities. Some games show rage and anger which can cause them to act that way in real life. In the article, “Background Of The Issue”, Writers from ProCon, claim that, “Critics of violent video games argue that playing violent games desensitize players to real life violence and is responsible for the increasing rates of bullying”. Gamers who play these games are becoming more and more desensitized by being exposed to what’s shown in violent video games such as, fighting, bullying, disrespecting

Institutional racism and delinquency can be correlated as a cause and effect issue. This is said because the police are more likely to arrest African American youth and the courts are more likely to punish them because of their race. Another way to view racial profiling would be through the use of structural racism. The general theory of structural racism holds that even though there is evidence that suggests racial bias does exist in the Justice System there is enough correspondence between official and self-report data to conclude that racial differences in the crime rates are real. If African American youth are arrested at higher rates for violent crimes it is most likely a result of actual offending rates rather than bias on the behalf of the Criminal Justice System. These different theories explore the various aspects of racism in the juvenile justice system from the courts down to police officers. They give very thoughtful and detailed explanations as to how and why racism has the ability to occur on numerous occasions. They also explain how some numbers are used in an effort to cover up proof of any bias in the juvenile justice system.

Well said, and well written, Brian. Your comment was from the heart, and I felt it. I am happy that you were courageous enough to walk away a nonsensical situation. You did not invest your time in foolishness. You handled that situation divinely. Thank you!!! The young black men look for the opportunity to exercise violence against their own people. It is self-hate at it best. They never think about hurting the people who have enslaved them for almost five hundred years, because they know who have the muscle. If you are going to express anger, express it against the people who have you relegated to poor housing, lack employment, and poor schooling not against someone that look like you. Get out there and fight for some tangible; fight