TY - JOUR
T1 - Living on the boundaries in america
T2 - An exploration of marginalized youths’ national and legal consciousness
AU - Smith, Brian J.
PY - 2005/9/15
Y1 - 2005/9/15
N2 - In this article I examine marginalized youths' ideas about the United States, the law, and police. My interpretive analysis is based upon in-depth, unstructured interviews with juvenile parolees living in poverty in a large southwestern city. In general, these parolees could be described as uneducated, unemployed, non-white, youth gang members. Through an examination of the youths' narratives and stories about America and its legal authorities, I attempt to illustrate how their ideas can be understood as evolving from their structurally based interactions. I present the general themes of the marginalized youths' legal and political consciousness and attempt to show how this consciousness flows from their hostile interactions with legal and conventional authorities. Ultimately, I suggest that the contrast between the youths' social justice ideals and the reality of their lives on the margins influences how they think about America, law, and the police.
AB - In this article I examine marginalized youths' ideas about the United States, the law, and police. My interpretive analysis is based upon in-depth, unstructured interviews with juvenile parolees living in poverty in a large southwestern city. In general, these parolees could be described as uneducated, unemployed, non-white, youth gang members. Through an examination of the youths' narratives and stories about America and its legal authorities, I attempt to illustrate how their ideas can be understood as evolving from their structurally based interactions. I present the general themes of the marginalized youths' legal and political consciousness and attempt to show how this consciousness flows from their hostile interactions with legal and conventional authorities. Ultimately, I suggest that the contrast between the youths' social justice ideals and the reality of their lives on the margins influences how they think about America, law, and the police.
KW - America
KW - Consciousness
KW - Delinquency
KW - Law
KW - Marginalized
KW - Police
KW - Youth
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=34247663079&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1300/J222v03n03_06
DO - 10.1300/J222v03n03_06
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:34247663079
VL - 3
SP - 87
EP - 107
JO - Journal of Ethnicity in Criminal Justice
JF - Journal of Ethnicity in Criminal Justice
SN - 1537-7938
IS - 3
ER -