Free Paper Sample on Criminal Law

Introduction

“Getting Played” by Jody Miller illuminates the sexual victimization of the urban black female adolescents by black men. In the research that Miller conducts, he interviews 75 boys and girls in order to determine the terrifying nature of gender-based violence that African American girls were experiencing (Miller, 2009). He also sought to determine the aspect of structural inequalities that include the creation of extremes, urban poverty, and realizing races that played a role in facilitating cultural adaptations to intensify the violence.

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In the book, Miller suggests that urban disadvantage tends to multiply the risk of the girls getting caught in gendered violence. The argument that Miller drives from his research is that the occurrence of violent behaviors by a group of people is deeply rooted in their gender, race, and also social class around their neighborhood (Miller, 2009). The focus of the research is on violence, issues with dating, neighborhood violence, sexual harassment in schools, and sexual coercion.

Social Problems

In the book, Miller seeks to present the compelling picture of the dire social problem where sexual assault and gang rape are the order of the day hence explores how that affects the poor urban neighborhoods. From the profoundly textured interviews that Miller conducts on the girls and boys, she focuses on the troubling realities of a world that is not safe for the girls because it is infused with violence and danger.

Even more surprising is the way the girls get isolated, ignored, and victimized by the people they consider family and friends, yet they are the ones that should be helping out for them to feel safe (Miller, 2009). The role of community institutions such as police and schools is for protection, but in the case of the interview, such departments turn a blind eye on the girls and leave them to fend for themselves while knowing very well it is not that easy.

The impact of having to deal with the case of violence within the community every other day is that it results in deep and dangerous engrained beliefs concerning gender that teach the youth to take the violence instead of seeing the result of the more massive inequities (Miller, 2009). They take the violence as deserved because they refer to themselves as flawed characters.

An example of a chapter that was quite interesting was that about neighborhood violence. In the chapter, Miller talks about how people get into some communities that have defined the public space and opinions to be meant for males and social ties. The involvement of people in such areas is limited to an isolated group who get to say what should be done and how to do it.

Community Poses Risks

Such a community poses risks to its members because they prefer to isolate themselves for the purposes of safety. Girls do not have the freedom they need to be heard and have a say about how the leaders have to do their job (Miller, 2009). The community does not value protection because it does not have a reliable active intervention for social and criminal justice services.

Miller paints a picture of the threatening condition of such a society to the groups that have no say about how the community is led and run (Miller, 2009). The girls living in such neighborhoods undergo the threats in their day to day life. They persistently experience the issues every day, including the victimization, and do not know what to do because of inadequate social support and opportunities; hence, they struggle to navigate the dangerous terrain where they do not know whether things ahead will change or be better.

Another interesting topic that Miller touches on is that of the victimization of girls while in institutions such as schools. A school is supposed to be the safest place for any person, but it is life-threatening if one has to undergo victimization. The presence of structural inequalities tends to fuel the experiences of girls within the schools (Miller, 2009). The schools are controlled by the males who have a say in all the things they have to do within the area. This way, there are no privileges given to the girls, even when they need to feel prioritized.

What stood out for me as relevant or exciting is the case of urban neglect and gender inequality, as well as how the young women struggle to navigate through the dangerous uncertainties of the society because they lack the support they require. Children undergo quite a hard time if they have to fend for themselves because that is the responsibility of adults.

It is necessary to rethink about juvenile justice by transforming the policies designed to hold the youth accountable. There are serious concerns about the capability of the juvenile justice system to deal with contemporary offenders. In the recent society, I like the fact that there have been policies instituted for crimes of violence, gang rape, and sexual harassment, more so for adolescent girls and boys.

The individuals who are at risk of going to juveniles are the boys since the girls become the victims of such offenses (Miller, 2009). However, there is a need to consider the circumstances under which the boys are forced to engage in acts of dating violence and sexual assault because it is the responsibility of the community to teach them first-hand about the behavior expected.

Contemporary Offenders

There is a debate about how to deal with such contemporary offenders in terms of whether to be tough on them or to retain more treatment like having a rehabilitation-centered approach of the system of traditional juveniles. It is necessary to consider the role of communities in bringing up adolescents and teaching them the way to go, whereby they need to change their ways that involve being violent against their counterpart girls.

It is useless to get increasingly tough on the boys in juveniles when the society that they have left behind is still upholding the same structure of neglect and having the girls at risk. This way, they will only act right because they are in an institution that requires them to do so, but when they get back to the same society, there is absolutely no change and what they do is continue with the same behavior. This way, the girls continue to suffer, and the system does not change according to how it is supposed to be.

In that case, it is vital to educate the communities on the impact they have on both girls and boys, and thus the leaders will see to it that they all follow the rules of ensuring that there is no particular group that gets oppressed. Everybody within the community needs to feel secure and at peace without having to undergo the struggle of crossing the bridge where girls at a certain age are neglected, and they have no say.

Conclusion

In conclusion, violence is no answer to the young women who are trying to get past a stage in life that they need. It is one to live in a poor urban neighborhood, but it is another thing to be caught up in the mix of gender inequality. The society should be in the first line to change the issues revolving around support by offering the most as it is expected of them.

Reference

Miller, J. (2009). Getting played: African American girls, urban inequality, and gendered violence. The Journal of African American History, 94(3), 448-451.