ACADEMIC VIEWPOINT
The London Riots: Could It Happen Here? T
his past August, large-scale rioting took place in London and other United Kingdom cities. Looting of stores, setting fires, and major acts of civil disobedience were all precipitated by the shooting of a black man named Mark Duggan by the London police. On August 6th, during a peaceful march protesting the Duggan shooting, a heavy-handed police response to the march triggered serious arson, thefts, and aggravated shoplifting. Rioting with arson soon spread to various London boroughs and then other English cities. The most severe disturbances outside London occurred in Bristol and cities in the Midlands and the northwest of England. Related outbreaks also occurred in many smaller towns and cities in England. The participants were most commonly unemployed minority youths who wore black hoodies, scarves, and ski masks to hide their identities from the police and authorities. By August 15th about 3,100 people had been arrested, of whom more than 1,000 were formally charged. Five people died and at least sixteen others were injured as a direct result of related violent acts. An estimated £200 million worth of property damage was incurred, and local economic activity was significantly compromised. Police action was blamed for the initial riot, and the subsequent police reaction was heavily criticized as being neither appropriate nor sufficiently effective. In England and elsewhere these riots have generated significant ongoing debate among political, social, and academic figures about the causes for and context in which they happened.
by Richard C. Hollinger, Ph.D. Dr. Hollinger is a professor in the Department of Criminology, Law, and Society at the University of Florida, Gainesville. He is also director of the Security Research Project, which annually conducts the National Retail Security Survey (www.crim.ufl.edu/srp/srp.htm). Dr. Hollinger can be reached at rhollin@ufl.edu or 352-392-0265 x230. © 2011 Richard C. Hollinger
While the first of these statements is hopefully correct, the second statement is clearly wrong. America is sitting on a powder keg of inequity that could, under the right conditions, explode into the type of serious rioting, looting, and arson seen in London. Here are some relevant social and economic facts to consider. Currently in the United States, our levels of poverty, unemployment, and incarceration, especially among youth and people of color, are at unprecedented numbers. Recent data has shown that the economic downturn in our society is hurting minorities at a much greater level than the largely white middle and upper classes. The unemployment rate for African Americans has always been higher than the national average. Unfortunately, the problem has gotten worse.
Encouraging people to again feel that a better future lies ahead should be our nation’s and industry’s primary goal. Preventing losses to our stores will no doubt be a corollary benefit.
Conditions in America
While we in America watched the large-scale devastation of this major world city from afar, it produced a number of different reactions. First, one would hope that our police forces would have responded faster and in greater numbers, so this situation never would have expanded to the level seen in London and various other large U.K. cities. Second, many believe that the social conditions in the U.S. are not as bad as in the U.K. and, therefore, are not conducive to generating this level or scope of civil disobedience. I would like to argue that.
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In June 2011 CBS News correspondent Michelle Miller reported that black unemployment now is at Depression-era levels. The most recent figures show African-American joblessness at 16.2 percent. For black males, it’s 17.5 percent, and for black teens, it’s nearly 41 percent. Moreover, tensions between the police and the poor, especially among racial minorities, in most cities continue to be a significant problem. While “to serve and protect” is the typical police department motto, many people living
September - October 2011
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