Broken Windows Theory Controversy

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Once again, an innocent man was brutally killed by the police, for supposedly selling “loosies” or cigarettes illegally. It may have been against the law but it certainly did not warrant the chokehold that killed him. The wrongful death of Eric Garner witnessed mass demonstrations in New York City as people protested police brutality. It sparked a fresh round of controversy for the Broken Windows Theory on late night talk shows. With so much negative media coverage and false information floating around, it was easy to see why many people voiced disapproval and sought its de implementation. Even though the overall decline in crime nationwide cannot be solely attributed to the Broken Windows Theory, it should not be eliminated because quality…show more content…
A consensus should be reached as to which quality of life crimes should be enforced. In Brooklyn, New York, from 2008 to 2011, Park Slope, a predominantly white neighborhood, averaged 8 bike on sidewalk citations a year; whereas Ocean Hill-Brownsville and Bedford-Stuyvesant, both predominantly black neighborhoods averaged 1062 and 2050 citations a year (Williams). Not only was it harsh to give citations to bicyclists, but also the disparity in summons issued screamed racism. Rep. Jeffries echoed these sentiments by stating, “Conceptually, to the extent broken windows is an enforcement strategy that is applied equally in every community throughout America, there is no constitutional problem. But what we see in practice is that the broken windows strategy is largely deployed in black and Latino communities” (Sneed). The broken windows theory gave rise to the controversial “Stop and Frisk” policy. Of the 4.4 million people stopped between 2004 and 2012, 10% were white and 84% were black; 6% were arrested, another 6% were issued a summons, and the remaining 88% of people stopped were innocent and later dismissed

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