Feminist Criminology by Claire M. Renzetti

Author:Claire M. Renzetti [Renzetti, Claire M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, Criminology, Feminism & Feminist Theory, Women's Studies
ISBN: 9781134178254
Google: VIeEgnTXzCAC
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2013-06-07T04:10:23+00:00

Black women remain in abusive relationships more so out of fear of being without companionship, being without a father or father figure for minor children, and being stigmatized as yet another single black mother than fear of further and more perilous battering incidents or of financial independence.

She sees these fears as direct outgrowths of African American women's unique experiences in U.S. society as well as within the African American community.11 Moreover, she identifies the image or ideal of the “Strong Black Woman,” which has developed out of African American women's need to confront various types of domination and discrimination in their everyday lives, as playing a critical role in influencing their responses to intimate partner violence. More specifically, as “Strong Black Women,” African American women are more likely than other women to fight back against their abusive partners (Potter, 2008; see also Garfield, 2005; Gillum, 2002; Richie, 1996, 2012).12

It may be argued, however, that it is in research on criminal justice processing, particularly sentencing, that one can see the greatest influence of black and multiracial feminism. Consider, for instance, recent feminist criminological analyses of sentencing disparity, which occurs when offenders charged with the same or a similar crime are given different punishments. Looking at the data in Table 4.1, we see that racial and ethnic minorities, both male and female, are disproportionately represented among state and federal prison populations. While black men make up 13.2 percent of the U.S. male population, they are 38.8 percent of the U.S. male prison population. Similarly, Hispanic men are 16.5 percent of the U.S. male population, but 22.6 percent of the U.S. male prison population. The disparities are less dramatic for women, but are present nonetheless: Black women are 14.0 percent and Hispanic women 15.0 percent of the U.S. female population, respectively, but they are 25.4 percent and 17.9 percent of the U.S. female prison population, respectively (Guerino et al., 2012). Women, though, regardless of race, make up a very small percentage of the prison population in the United States (less than 7 percent), although the number of women incarcerated in state and federal prisons has increased dramatically since 2000 and at a rate higher than that of men (ibid.). Are these differences

Table 4.1 Estimated number of sentenced prisoners under State and federal jurisdiction, by sex and race, 2010 Race Sex

Male Female

White 451,600 48,000

Black 561,400 26,600

Hispanic 327,200 18,700

Total 1,446,000 104,600

Source: Guerino et al., (2012: 26).

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