NCJ Number
216900
Date Published
2006
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This chapter examines the processes of urban regenerations, exploring the relationships, connections, and tensions between regeneration, crime reduction, social inclusion, and social control.
Abstract
The growing expressions of intolerance towards young people and other marginalized groups are deeply rooted in the social divisions and inequalities which flow from economic restructuring. These conditions replicate but always sustain the cultural injustices that have been perpetrated against the urban poor since the emergence of the modern city in the 19th century. The unstable nature of renewal in cities suggests a sustained focus on the threat of marginalized groups, especially young people. Emphasis must be place on the moral communitarianism behind urban renewal and crime and disorder reduction policies. It is claimed that many British cities are now experiencing an urban renaissance because of regenerative strategies and the strength of national and regional economies, generally. At the neighborhood level, a range of initiatives have been introduced by New Labour governments since 1997 to regenerate localities experiencing deprivation. Reducing antisocial behavior and crime, and securing the involvement of communities, are seen as being pivotal to the regenerative task. This chapter attempts to empty out the taken-for-granted assumptions in the urban regeneration, youth crime, and disorder reduction relation and to open them up to critical scrutiny. It is argued that regeneration strategies, as currently conceived, are reconfiguring patterns and experiences of social exclusion, and the consequences for youth crime and criminalization are considered within this context. It contends that current policies are ideologically driven rather than the product of evidence-based policymaking. References