Punished: Policing The Lives Of Black And Latino Boys By Victor Rios

According to the book Punished: Policing The Lives Of Black And Latino Boys by Victor Rios, he explores hyper criminalization of Latino and African American young men in Oakland. He was a former gang member and juvenile delinquent. He earned a degree in sociology. He explains and describes how the working class youth of color who lived in Oakland are harassed, disciplined, watched and profiled at a young age by the authorities even if they have not committed any crimes. Moreover, his research are based on forty Latino and African American young men in Oakland. He studied this issue for about three years. According to this book, it gives details about how the culture of punishment works and explores the harmful effects on the young men in the

Moreover, the young men desire to get education and pursue their interests. However, they do not have many options for their educations because they come from poor families. They face mass incarceration. Some young men parents were sent to jail. These young men are forced to handle with stigma and damage associated with drug problems and family members’ incarceration. Moreover, they have to deal with acts of ethnic discrimination against people of color. Rios mentions that “many of the delinquent boys gave their peers “love” for making in school, getting good grades, and graduating”

He mentions that some young men sell drugs because they have no choice and nothing to lose in society. He acknowledge that choice is immoral. However, the resources available to the young men are limited. He states that “the creative social and cultural capital that the boys developed in response to being prevented from acquiring capital to succeed in mainstream institutions” (Rios:98). Moreover, he argues that the punishments meted out by the criminal justice system usually fail to support rehabilitation and social reintegration. Once the young men of color enter the criminal justice system, they have “negative credentials” that lead to further stigmatization and criminalization in schools, in the community, and other institutions which severely restrict their educational and employment opportunities. Moreover, he criticizes the excessive punishment of petty acts of defiance such as violating a school rule. Rios mentions that “access resources that allowed them to move from negative credential status to positive credential status”