Something interesting from the appendix was that Rios said a lot of the boys didn't care if their names got published in the book, even if it exposed them to more harassment by police or on the street. This was disheartening to read as it seemed many of the boys couldn't care less about being exposed, despite it's potential to put them in danger. It's giving me a sense that they're either giving up or are oblivious to the fact that exposure could worsen their situations even more. #so345
@GSMD05
- 1 Followers
- 0 Following
- 52 Posts
@scoot051116 This is a great point. With zero tolerance policies, people are given no room for error as one mistake can get them kicked out immediately. We all make mistakes and do things we shouldn't, but I imagine that most of us had these acts tolerated and worked to improve ourselves because of them. With zero tolerance, you can't learn from your mistakes and this puts people at an immediate disadvantage. It's definitely a kind of policy that has no reason to be in a school. #so345
@DSC28TC Going further with this, when they have the identity of "diamond in the rough", they get treated harshly by the other delinquent boys. They want to avoid being harassed by police, but in doing so get harassed by their peers. Even when they do this, they can still get harassed by police because they get associated with the delinquent boys like you said. If they conform to the rules, they get harassed by their peers, if they don't conform, they get harassed by the police. #so345
When reading about how the boys would "act lawful" to avoid punishment, it reminded of the article we read a while ago on becoming "Copwise". In both the book and this article, they talked about how people exposed to a large amount of punitive social control began to learn how to avoid police interaction and punishment. This all debunks the belief by police that punishment and over-presence will deter crime, as people can learn how to avoid police and if they want, commit crimes. #so345
@hbren This is something more officers need to be aware of. They clearly don't realize that by arresting one of the boys for the smallest of offenses or classifying them as a criminal/delinquent, that gets put onto their criminal history, something employers look at straight away. Because no employers want to accept kids with "criminal" backgrounds, the boys can't get jobs, thus not allowing them to achieve the "manhood" the officers want them to have. There is simply no winning for them. #so345
It was interesting to read how people like police, teachers, or probation officers would constantly push the boys to be "real men" and how this backfires so easily. Those in power may tell the boys that a punishment is a way of learning to be a man, but it instead only harms them. They claim that getting a hard working job is "being a man", and yet all the punishment and harassment the boys receive just decreases their chances of actually achieving this as we've seen in previous chapters. #so345
The whole idea of misrecognition only demonstrates how the criminalization of these boys is not the answer to solving crime. When criminalized, the boys are stripped of the opportunity to learn many social norms and values, which can lead them to act in a way that they think is right but could be interpreted badly by others. It creates an endless loop, where the boys are criminalized, behave in ways that they think is right but really isn't, and are criminalized again for this behavior. #so345
@akr804 I agree. "Going dumb" allows the boys to achieve some sort of power over the system going against them, however their label can cause this to backfire. If probation officers, teachers or police see the boys going dumb, they'll believe that is is just solidifying their negative beliefs about the boys. While it can help the boys mentally, it can negatively affect them in the future depending on how authority figures interpret the behavior. #so345
@DSC28TC The worst part of this is that the police who do this fail to realize what effects this has on the kids. They most likely think that classifying kids as gang members will prevent them from committing crimes in the future, as the label would allow them to be watched more and punished harsher. But, like you said, this label just leads to limited opportunities in life because many people will not want to help or recruit someone with that label, something police need to realize. #so345
The whole section on the aftermath of Spider's stabbing really emphasizes the power a label can have. The officer labeling Spider as a gang member gives the police more power to control him and other boys whom they also label as gang members and allows them to employ harsher punishments. Not only that, this label carries into their education as teachers will treat supposed gang members worse than other students. It's insane how Spider's stabbing completely changed his life going forward. #so345