. . . Minorities and Criminality provides a cameo of valuable information about the relationship between minority status and criminality and the interaction of minorities with the criminal justice system. . . . A key strength of this book is that it provides a great deal of insight into the proclivities of different minority groups to engage in different types of criminal behavior. . . . This book would make an excellent source for persons newly becoming acquainted with the nature, scope, and dynamics of minority crime and victimization.
Criminal Justice Review
Minorities and Criminality examines the relationship between being a racial or ethnic minority member of American society and a victim or perpetrator of crime. The examination focuses specifically on blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, and Asians—minority groups which in one way or another have been most affected by criminality and victimization. This exceptional volume explores historical mistreatment of these minority groups, current trends in victimization, patterns in criminal behavior, arrest and imprisonment among minority group members, theoretical models in criminality, differential enforcement of the law, and future implications in addressing minorities and criminality. Specific topics addressed include present trends in minority member victimization, explanations for crime causation among minority members, and the lack of etiological study on minority groups. Chapters on ethnic criminality address the dynamics and implications of black crime, the relationship between Hispanics and criminality, the high crime rate among Native Americans, and the role of minorities in organized crime, juvenile treatment issues, and topics related to the institutionalization of minority members. The final chapter suggests implications for effecting change in current dilemmas in the involvement of members of minority groups in crime.