Course Description
This course will focus on a thorough and critical examination of meanings, history, correlations, and consequences of serious forms of social inequalities and arbitrarily assigned privileges, particularly based on social class and race/ethnicity in the American criminal justice system from a criminological perspective. Implications will be made for inequalities based on gender biases as well. (3 credits)
Prerequisites
- CRJ 215: Criminology
- ENG 101: English Composition 1
- ENG 102: English Composition 2
Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)
Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:
- Analyze meanings, perspectives, forms, and historical background of racial and social class inequalities involved in administering law enforcement and the criminal justice system in the United States, including the importance of ethical behavior by criminal justice stakeholders.
- Interpret various components, positions, and processes involved in the criminal justice work and the crime control enterprise on the bases of diversity as well as futuristic criteria.
- Identify rationalizations and claims made by economic elites and White Americans for claiming privileges and prerogatives in society and the implications these claims have for the criminal justice system.
- Explain consequences of social and economic inequalities for victimization of middle and underclass as well as nonwhite people in the administration of justice in America.
- Examine elements of the unequal enforcement of "the justice for all" principle in criminal prosecution, sentencing and imprisonment.
Course Activities and Grading
| Assignments | Weight |
|---|---|
Discussions (Weeks 1-8) | 30% |
Journal Assignments (Weeks 2, 4, 6 & 8) | 10% |
Midterm Exam (Week 4) | 15% |
Research Paper (Week 7) | 25% |
Final Exam (Week 8) | 20% |
Total | 100% |
Required Textbooks
Available through the Charter Oak State College Bookstore
- Barak, Gregg, Paul Leighton and Jeanne Flavin. Class, Race, Gender, and Crime: The Social Realities of Justice in America. 5th edition. Lanham, Maryland: The Rowman & Littlefield Publications, 2018. ISBN-13: 978-1-4422-6885-2
Additional Required Textbook
Not available through Charter Oak State College's book bundle or bookstore
- Students will be required to watch the movie Crash (2005, starring Sandra Bullock, Karina Arroyave, Dato Bakhtadze). You can rent the movie from your local library, purchase a used DVD for a few dollars online, or rent it from Amazon Video for $4.59. https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B00X5FWYLK/ref=atv_dp_share_cu_r
Course Schedule
Week | SLOs | Readings and Exercises | Assignments |
1 | 1,2,3 | Topics: Introduction, The Crime Control Enterprise and Its Workers Reading:
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2 | 1,2,3 | Topics: Criminology and the Study of Class, Race, Gender and Crime Reading:
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3 | 1,3 | Topics: Understanding Class and Economic Privilege & Understanding Race and White Privilege Reading:
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4 | 1,3 | Topics: Understanding Gender and Male Privilege Reading:
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Midterm Exam | |||
5 | 1,2,3 | Topics: Understanding Privilege and the Intersection of Class, Race and Gender Reading:
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6 | 4,5 | Topics: Victimology, Lawmaking and the Administration of Criminal Law Reading:
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7 | 2,5 | Topics: Law Enforcement and Criminal Prosecution Reading:
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8 | 5 | Topics: Punishment, Sentencing and Imprisonment Reading:
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Final Exam | |||
COSC Accessibility Statement
Charter Oak State College encourages students with disabilities, including non-visible disabilities such as chronic diseases, learning disabilities, head injury, attention deficit/hyperactive disorder, or psychiatric disabilities, to discuss appropriate accommodations with the Office of Accessibility Services at OAS@charteroak.edu.
COSC Policies, Course Policies, Academic Support Services and Resources
Students are responsible for knowing all Charter Oak State College (COSC) institutional policies, course-specific policies, procedures, and available academic support services and resources. Please see COSC Policies for COSC institutional policies, and see also specific policies related to this course. See COSC Resources for information regarding available academic support services and resources.