Race Class and Gender Case Study 2022

Race Class and Gender
Student’s Name
University

1. Terms like stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination in the criminal justice system were
introduced to us through your class readings. Using those and our class analysis what has
changed? Has it? (Make sure to define these terms and provide examples) Be specific.
From the class reading, the meaning of the terms has changed since I have realized that
they are used interchangeably without people noticing the difference between them. Stereotypes
are over-generalized beliefs about a category of people which is normally based on the
expectations that have on a particular group in the society. They can be based on race, gender,
age or sexual orientation and can either be positive or negative. For example, Flavin (2010)
suggests that violent crime in America is associated to the black people due to the rate of
incarceration on the population which is high. This means that with stereotypes, generalized
beliefs are made on people which creates the perception on them. Stereotypes are recycled from
subordinate groups that have been assimilated within the society and then reused to describe
newly formed groups. Prejudice entails the beliefs, feelings, attitudes, and thoughts that people
hold on others based on the prejudgment that is the outside experience. According to Flavin
(2010) prejudice in most cases develops by defining one category of people superior which in
turn makes the superior group to look down upon the inferior group. This is seen in the way class
and economic privilege are developed where the rich seem to enjoy higher status which gives
them positive stereotypes while the poor receive negative stereotypes. Discrimination entails the
actions that people have against a group of people who are regarded as not the same as compared
to others. Discrimination occurs in many contexts in the life of people based on the knowledge
and differences that people have.
The relationship between the three terms in the criminal justice system is the fact that
stereotypes exist based on the elements that are used to describe minority groups within society.
Since stereotypes are recycled and used to describe minority groups, then it means that in the
criminal system, minority groups seem to be the most affected since stereotypes are formed
about them. It the stereotypes that have been formed about the minority groups in the society that
lead to the prejudice attitudes that they receive. In the case, the beliefs, feelings, and attitudes
that people have towards these people can be seen in terms of racial prejudice where black
people have been associated with crime as compared to the white citizens. For example, 37%
blacks are incarcerated in the US since they are associated with violent crimes (Flavin, 2010).
This is because stereotypes associated with the black people revolve around crime, drugs,