The Study Of Crime In The Philadelphia Negro By W. E. B.

Undoubtedly, the study of crime and understanding the underlying cause of it has been around for centuries. From Edwin Sutherland’s differential association, criminal behavior is learned through peers, or Travis Hirschi’s social control theory states that if one has strong relationships- crimes are less likely to be committed and vice versa. Yet, those theories focus more on communication/bonds than W.E.B. DuBois- whose belief was that crime was happening due to racial/power dynamics within communities that have harsh environments. Indeed, DuBois stated that “crime is a difficult subject to study, more difficult to analyze into its sociological elements, and most difficult to cure or suppress. It is a phenomenon that stands not alone, but rather

Residing in poverty or lack of a community can increase the possibility of an individual being incarcerated just because of where they live or because of weak bonds. Now, social conditions can include inequality, lack of neighborhood support/supervision, and no true sense of leadership, all due to racial/power dynamics. Notably, research was conducted by DuBois, and he wrote “The Philadelphia Negro” which included history and statistics about the daily lives of African Americans living in those said neighborhoods that were short of the typical needs. Set between 1896 and 1897, Dubois studied in a specific Philadelphia neighborhood since the African American population was at an all-time high- along with crime and poverty due to the environment. It seemed odd that racial/power dynamics were still an issue after the Civil Rights era- with African Americans being freed and living independently. Although it was “the old world questions of ignorance, poverty, crime, and the dislike of the stranger.” Those old-world questions and viewpoints of racial/ethnic groups not being capable of their talents cause the delicate nature of communities to be firm and house

The social disorganization theory is how the inexplicit presumption of social disorganization is that neighborhoods characterized by economic disadvantage, high residential mobility, ethnic diversity, and more are socially disorganized. Thus, inhabiting a hardship environment causes those individuals to fall under the stereotype of “criminal” since that’s all the socially disorganized environment offers them. Of course, when it comes to racial/power dynamics and social disorganization theory, it can heavily affect communities because if the distribution of influence isn’t correct, decisions and conflicts are difficult to resolve—referring back to many eras in history where the racial/power dynamics between whites and blacks, or immigrants, were always at an all-time high. Racial/ethnic neighborhoods were on the rise with crime due to the social conditions- since there was a scarcity of trust and equality. Even more so, the communities with high disadvantages, such as unemployment, homelessness, etc., had higher corruption