Neo-Marxist views of crime

What is neo Marxism influenced by?

Marxism (inequality of law enforcement/creation, capitalism is criminogenic, conflict theory) Interactionism (labelling, micro perspective, moral panic and deviance amplification)

What is neo Marxism also known as?

Radical, critical or new criminology

What does Taylor et al “The new criminology” say you need to do to understand crime simplified?

You must look at: individual motivations and obvious influences, capitalist organisation of society, interaction between victim, offender, media and CJS in response to criminal act

Taylor et al six aspects of crime

1. Wider origins of deviant act

2. Immediate origins of deviant act

3. Act itself and its meaning for the individual

4. Immediate origins of social reaction

5. Wider programs of social reaction

6. The effects of labelling on the deviants future actions

Stuart Hall - policing crisis

Apples Taylor et al’s theory to ‘mugging’ moral panic in the 1970s controlled by capitalists and used young black men as scapegoats to maintain authoritarian state and ignore financial issues.

Paul Gilroy (1982) - myth of black criminality

Police statistics reflect prejudice and police racism and stereotypes of young black men as criminal, influenced by the negative cycle of media, education and politics.

What are the strengths of neomarxism?

Uses social class and race to analyse crimes referencing law enforcement, prosecution and discrimination. It also has influence on left realist criminology

What are the weaknesses of Neo Marxism

Calls for revolution but doesn’t discuss how, views criminals as ‘robin hoods’ when most crime is against same class, contradict why groups commit or don’t commit crime, most oppressed groups are elderly and women but they benefit most from capitalism, ignores MC crime