Book Review: Citizens Enforcing the Law

• Author: Lior Gideon
• DOI: 10.1177/1057567714551092
• Date: 01 December 2014
• Published date: 01 December 2014
• Subject Matter: Book Reviews

interesting is Duramy’s argument that females need to be included in Disarmament, Demobilization,

and Reintegration (DDR) programs designed to reintegrate former members of armed groups back

into society. Because females often hold subservient positions in armed groups and are not classified

as combatants, females are denied access to DDR programs. Duramy also offers suggestions for

programs and policies tailored to the needs of women, addresses the need for female involvement

in Haitian politics, and recommends an overhaul of the Haitian criminal justice system.

Although Duramy’s work in Haiti is laudable, it is unlikely that her book will become a classic in

the field of criminology. Duramy’s argument that violence and the victimization of women are

fueled by patriarchal cultural values is neither novel nor notably elaborate. Additionally, Duramy

neglects to address the matter of whether violence against women is more pervasive in Haiti than

in other equally impoverished regions or consider whether patriarchal values in Haiti are in any sig-

nificant manner different from patriarchal values in other cultures. And the reforms she proposes are

rather idealistic. Duramy calls for measures such as new legislation banning the sexual exploitation

of girls, the hiring of female police officers, and judiciary reform, but it is naive to think such mea-

sures can be effectively implemented in a politically unstable nation where roughly 7 of every 10

people exist on less than US$2 a day. Although Duramy argues that violence in Haiti is fueled by

poverty, she offers no substantive suggestions on matters such as economic reform, education

reform, political stability, or infrastructure development. In brief, Gender and Violence in Haiti will

likely be of more interest to women’s rights activists and international lawyers than it is to crimin-

ologists, comparative criminal justice scholars, and developmental sociologists.

Finally,Duramy’s descriptionsof life in Haiti are by no means well rounded.She occasionally makes

mentionof strong communities, but becauseher most detailed accounts of lifein Haiti focus on the per-

petratorsand victims of violence the readeris presented with a portrayalof the Haitian people as incon-

ceivably savage.Duramy depicts the armed groups as inhumanthugs who arbitrarily rape womenwith

the barrels of their guns. Duramy describes fathers being beaten and forced to watch the rape of their

daughters who then, after the rape, shun the girls for dishonoring themselves. She describes Haitian

women as either helplessvictims of unthinkable violenceor egocentric criminals who rejoice at being

selected to join a gangand willingly lure kidnap victims into traps. Duramy discusses Haitian women

who ‘‘force their husbands to organize or participate in kidnapping operations’’ and, if their husbands

refuse, the women ‘‘take over the leadership of the groups and conduct the operations themselves’’

(p. 73).As for government officials,Duramy describesthe Haitian policeas nothing more than deranged

cowards,afraid to face the armed organizations but willingto kidnap and rape virgins.In comparison to

the ampledescriptions of humandepravity, Duramyaffords scant attentionto families that carefor loved

ones who have been victimized, the women’s groups that offer aid to rape victims, or the community-

based organizations struggling to improve life in Haiti. While there is no question that life in Haiti is

harsh, the ongoing joint efforts between internationalaid groups and the Haitian people indicate there

is hope for the future. Somediscussion of this would not have hurt Duramy’s book.

Bosch, A. (2013).

Citizens Enforcing the Law. Portland, OR: Maklu Publishers, x, 170 pp. $57, ISBN 978-90-466-0632-2.

Reviewed by: Lior Gideon, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, New York, NY, USA

DOI: 10.1177/1057567714551092

When the government cannot provide the protection and adequate response to rising crime rates, a

different form of crime reaction evolves to fill such gap—citizens take the law into their own hands

Book Reviews 413