A crime is considered as any behavior that breaks a law, or the norms defined by the government that citizens must follow. It is an unfortunate part of society that will always happen, no matter how hard we try to change that. Crimes against minorities occur more frequently than most people would like to believe and the prevalence against the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community is more than ever. In fact, the LGBT community is more likely to be targeted for a hate crime than any other minority. There is an abundance of reasons why these crimes are committed and many sociologists have come up multiple theories to explain such actions. The conflict theory, control theory, and labeling theory, explain to a degree why such …show more content…
Control theory suggests that people with weak ties to family or society are more likely to engage in criminal activity oppose to those with a strong family bond or community relation. Furthermore, it states that behavior is affected by what an individual wants the most at any given time. The broken windows theory is also related to the control theory. The broken windows theory states that having an ordered and maintained society will prevent crime from happening. Even small cosmetic changes such as a broken window can change the entire environment. The broken window theory states that the presence of a broken window will encourage crime. Initially, it will start off small, such as littering and vandalism, but it will gradually grow if not stopped earlier. These hate crimes against the LGBT community, frequently occur in areas with a high crime rate. Unfortunately, there are places where it is generally accepted to hate the LGBT group. In such places, it can be extremely difficult to seek support and due to that, the hate crime against them keeps rising. Consequently, prejudice slurs soon become physical acts of