This paper examines the correlation between inequality and the prevalence of crimes evident throughout history. Through analyzing and investigating the link between inequalities and violent crimes around the world, the extent of the connection between them is easily determined. Sociologists analyze inequalities in various countries, including Mexico and Canada, in order to find a common theme to further comprehend the social world. Subsequently, this allows sociologists to be able to find potential solutions for social problems. Although there are numerous forms of inequalities in relation to crimes, sociologists noted a general pattern. They discovered that an individual’s frustration with a discriminatory system prompts an individual to rectify this imbalance, even if they must resort to illicit tactics, such as robbery or even assassination. An individual’s sense of duty to counterbalance the inequality by any means necessary proliferates crime rates. To further develop the claim in which inequality encourages crimes, statistics will be utilized to demonstrate that countries with high-income inequality rates also incorporate high crime rates. Furthermore, this is a pressing matter because of the fact that increased crime rates not only lead to corrupt and unsafe neighborhoods all around the world but also diminish the already declining human population.
Throughout time, the correlation between inequality and crime has been the focus of sociological theories of crimes. A common pattern sociologists discovered is an individual’s frustration with a discriminatory system prompts the individual to rectify this imbalance even if they resort to illicit tactics, such as robbery or even assassination. Social, income, racial, and neighboring block group inequalities are all imbalances existing in our society that are responsible for the skyrocketing crime rates. Through examining these different inequalities in various countries, sociologists are able to recognize that individuals seek to counterbalance the inequality by any means necessary causing proliferated crime rates. Through comprehending this general pattern sociologists are able to understand the social world aiding them in finding potential solutions.
There is a direct relationship between inequalities among social classes and crime rates. “In a recent paper, we look into this issue by studying the case of Mexico in the context of the war against drugs that began in December 2006. Our key finding is that, in fact, municipalities with lower inequality saw lower rates of crime. In other words, while the overall national data reveals an apparent paradox; broken down by smaller geographical regions, the paradox does not hold – less economic disparities do lead to less crime” (Winkler, 2014). The class hierarchy in Mexico is determined on the basis of wealth which is directly proportional to status. As of 2013, 55.3 million individuals out of 120 million were living in destitution meaning they neither had money nor status. Subsequently, this prompted an expansive monetary refinement between the rich and the poor bringing about an imbalance in both status and influence. This disparity has had an immediate association with crime rates as expressed in an examination contemplate in Mexico which infers that lower inequality will prompt lower crime rates. Upon being asked about the relationship between social inequalities and crime rates, theorists agree that individuals seek to take matters into their own hands when it comes to balancing social and income inequality thus leading to criminal activities. “When the poorest citizens have few economic opportunities and there are greater income gaps between rich and poor, the economic benefits of crimes such as robberies or kidnappings – which often end in homicide – tend to be greater. Interestingly…an increase in inequality resulting from the rich getting richer (rather than a growing percentage of poor people) contributed to increasing homicide rates in some municipalities in Mexico” (Kim, 2014). This exhibits the growing crime rates in Mexico are caused by the expansion of income gaps evident between social classes. The rich continue becoming wealthier while the poor remain the same. Individuals at that point decide to rectify this imbalance even if they resort to theft and manslaughter; additionally, developing the conclusion in which inequalities empower crimes.
We look into the issue in which income inequalities encourages crime rates by studying the theories of Gary Becker. “This finding is parallel with the theory on crime by American economist Gary Becker, who pronounces that an increase in income inequality has a big and robust effect of increasing crime rates. Not only that, but a country’s economic growth (GDP rate) has significant impact in lessening incidence of crimes. Since reduction in income inequality gap and a richer economy has an alleviating effect on poverty level, it implies that poverty alleviation has a crime-reducing effect” (Trello, 2013). Gary Becker, an American market analyst speculates that less income disparity will prompt less crime rates. Becker achieves this hypothesis by demonstrating that a higher GDP will prompt a wealthier economy. At the point when a nation has more money the gap between the rich and the poor will decrease which will in this way prompt a lessening in income disparity. Not only will this alleviate poverty but with less income inequality there will be less crime rates. Becker further develops his theory by pointing out that the United States is ranked as the 3rd most income-unjust nation acquiring the largest percentage of its population in prison.
Sociologists theorize that racial inequality stirs criminal activity. “The first was the relative deprivation thesis, which hypothesized that increases in economic inequality, particularly race-based inequality, produced increased crime perpetrated by Black citizens” (Stolzenberg, L., Eitle, D., & D’Alessio, S. J., 2006). Messner and Golden theorize that the increased crime rates amongst Black individuals is a result of the ongoing racial discrimination they encounter. In order to further develop their claim, Messner and Golden shared their theories with two other sociologists, Jacobs and Woods. “It is theorized that economic inequality engenders resentment, hostility, frustration, and to be a precipitating factor in the impetus of criminal behavior (J.R. Blau & Blau, 1982) or more recently, as an indicator of the relative disadvantage that Blacks face in competing with Whites for scarce jobs and other resources” (Jacobs & Wood, 1999). Jacobs and Wood explain that the increase in crimes carried about by Black citizens is due to their frustration from having to constantly compete with Whites over resources. Their anger and frustration as a result of racial inequality turns into violence, subsequently, prompting criminal behavior.
Neil Metz and Mariya Burdina, assistant professors of Economics at the University of Central Oklahoma, present another inequality linked with crime rates. Metz and Burdina discuss neighborhood block group inequality which deals with different locations having two ends of individuals partaking various social classes. As neighborhood inequality increases, the gap between the poor neighborhoods and the rich ones increment. Individuals living in those poor neighbors become frustrated and decide there needs to be change. The poor people steal from houses in wealthy neighborhoods, a crime known as property crime. U.S. Centre demonstrates that sociologists reached the conclusion in which reducing income disparities will diminish the gap between the poor neighborhoods and the rich neighborhoods subsequently resulting in lower property crimes. US Centre accumulates data about the block group income and property crime rates in three different U.S. states: Nashville, Portland, and Tucson. The findings complied with Metz’s and Burdina’s discoveries. It demonstrated that poor neighborhood blocks had very little property crime rates in comparison to statistics taken from rich neighborhood blocks. Through more intense researches, it showed that individuals from poor neighborhood blocks were responsible for property crimes in rich neighborhood blocks. It likewise demonstrated that those crimes can be traced back to the inequality in money distribution throughout various neighborhoods.
Smart Justice examines the involvement of trust in regards to income inequality and explains its impact on crime rates. Smart justice explains that higher levels of income inequality are directly associated with less social trust amongst individuals which subsequently increases crime rates. A statistic from Canada demonstrates that while the income of poor individuals continues to drop, the salary of rich people continues to grow. This augments the gap between differing classes resulting in a more extensive gap between neighborhood block groups. This adversely impacts society as a whole since the rich are targeted by the poor and at the same time poor individuals are filled with outrage and frustration that will lead them to commit crimes which results in a massive portion of the population in prisons. Not only that, but homicide rates continue to skyrocket in countries with high income inequalities such as Canada causing the population to diminish.
NBC Chicago discusses that America incorporates one of the greatest income-unjust nations. A penthouse condominium in the Trump Tower costs 9 million dollars. It is evident that the wealthy continue to become wealthier expanding the gap between the wealthy and the poor. To develop this scenario and example is given: in Chicago there are many people at the top (indicating they are rich) and many people on the bottom (indicating they are poor) but not that many individuals in the middle. The relationship between income inequality and crime rates is evident and for further evidence NBC Chicago states that 52% of homicides are the result of income inequality. This demonstrates that upon being asked about the leading cause that led them to murder another individual more than half responded that inequalities is what empowered their crimes. This proves inequalities is a leading cause of crimes committed throughout the world and more should be done to make our society a safe one.
Moreover, ample statistics demonstrate the evident correlation between inequalities individuals face and crimes committed. Social, income, racial, as well as neighborhood block group are a few inequalities related to crime rates. While each inequality targets a different group of individuals, all share a general pattern that is important to sociologists around the world. Understanding the general pattern, in which anger turns to violence and individuals commit crimes, is a step towards understanding the social world which will allow sociologists to aid in coming up with potential solutions. This is a pressing issue since this not only affects the safety of neighborhoods worldwide but also proliferating crimes rates result in the declining of the already diminishing human population. Moreover, inequalities empower crimes and in order to reduce crimes governments should attempt to reduce inequalities.