Microaggressions, Injustices, and Racial Identity

• DOI: 10.1177/1043986215607253
• Author: Deena Isom
• Date: 01 February 2016
• Published date: 01 February 2016
• Subject Matter: Articles

Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice

2016, Vol. 32(1) 27 –59

© The Author(s) 2015

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DOI: 10.1177/1043986215607253

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Article

Microaggressions, Injustices,

and Racial Identity: An

Empirical Assessment of the

Theory of African American

Offending

Deena Isom1

Abstract

Inspired by the recent theory of African American offending and the lack of race-centered

concepts in criminological literature, I aim to answer four general research questions:

(a) Do criminal justice injustices impact African Americans differently than other forms

of racism? (b) Do different emotional states increase African Americans’ likelihood of

offending? (c) Does having a positive racial identity buffer against the negative effects of

racial discrimination? and (d) Do the effects of racial discrimination and racial identity

vary between African American males and females? Using a subsample of African

American youth and young adults from the Project on Human Development in Chicago

Neighborhoods data, I find microaggressions and criminal justice injustices independently

predict serious and violent offending. Anger and depression likewise serve as independent

predictors, though anger suppresses the effects of depression when considered

simultaneously. Racial identity also moderately buffers the negative effects of overall

discrimination. The present analysis, however, finds no significant gender differences in

the above processes. This study provides a firm empirical foundation for the theory of

African American offending and other race-based approaches to understanding crime.

Implications for future investigations are discussed.

Keywords

racial discrimination, racial identity, negative emotions, gender, crime

At the heart of the problem is the fact that the United States is a racially divided nation

where extreme racial inequalities continue to persist.

—Robert Bullard

1University of South Carolina, Columbia, USA

Corresponding Author:

Deena Isom, Department of Criminology & Criminal Justice, African American Studies Program,

University of South Carolina, 109 Currell College, 1305 Greene Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.

Emails: isom@mailbox.sc.edu

607253CCJXXX10.1177/1043986215607253Journal of Contemporary Criminal JusticeIsom

research-article2015

28 Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice 32(1)

What does it mean to be Black in America? How does race impact one’s daily interac-

tions in a racially stratified society? How does a racial history rooted in slavery,

oppression, injustice, and discrimination influence one’s outlook on the American

social world? Over a century ago, Du Bois (1899) declared that such questions should

guide any understanding of racial disparity in America, including any theory of African

American offending. The race and crime relationship has been debated, studied, and

theorized about since before the emergence of criminology as a discipline (Engel &

Swartz, 2014; Walker, 1990). Scholars continually report the overrepresentation of

African Americans, particularly males, across all forms of crime statistics (e.g.,

Bucerius & Tonry, 2014; Guerino, Harrison, & Sabol, 2012; Peterson, Krivo, & Hagan,

2006; Provine, 2007; Tonry, 2011; Unnever, 2014) and proclaim that these continued

disparities demand explanation (Martin et al., 2010). Extensive lines of research and

theorizing have battled with these issues providing vital insight into the relationship

between race and crime.

From a critical perspective, scholars suggest structural racism exists within public

and crime control policies to maintain the status quo of a racial hierarchy in America

(e.g., Delgado & Stefancic, 2012; Reiman, 2007; Sampson & Wilson, 1995; Tonry,

2004, 2011). Although systemic discrimination within the criminal justice system,

what Alexander (2010) calls the “New Jim Crow,” may explain much of the disparity

in arrest and incarceration data, self-report and victimization data still demonstrate

significant racial differences in offending (e.g., Elliott, Huizinga, & Morse, 1986;

Johnston, O’Malley, Miech, Bachman, & Schulenberg, 2014; Like-Haislip, 2014).

Much attention has been placed on structural and social conditions which may contrib-

ute to understanding this remaining disparity.

Ecological theorists suggest African Americans disproportionately reside in disad-

vantaged areas marked by residential mobility, economic deprivation, family disrup-

tion, and low collective efficacy (Sampson, 2013; Sampson & Wilson, 1995). Such

spatial segregation reinforces racial stratification as it impacts school quality, political

representation, government services, and employment opportunities (Peterson, 2012).

In other words, racial inequality in the United States pushes lower income African

Americans into living situations where they have little connection with mainstream

institutions and must navigate communities where violence thrives. Residency in such

areas leads to the internalization of the code of the street, which condones the use of

violence as a means for respect, according to subcultural theorists (Anderson, 1999).

Leading micro-level theories of crime also provide insight into the relationship

between race and offending. Control theorists suggest African American youth have

weaker bonds to conventional others and institutions, such as parents, teachers, and

school. In addition, they argue African American youth are under less direct control

from parents and neighbors, freeing them to commit crime. Furthermore, the lack of

monitoring and consistent sanctioning lead to lower levels of self-control for African

American youth (e.g., Hagan, Shedd, & Payne, 2005; Unnever, Cullen, Mathers,

McClure, & Allison, 2009). Social learning theorists proclaim African Americans dis-

proportionately live in underprivileged areas increasing their likelihood of associating

with deviant others and internalizing deviant beliefs (Akers, 2009; Burgess & Akers,

Isom 29

1966). And finally, general strain theory suggests African Americans are more likely

to suffer certain criminogenic strains than other racial groups. For instance, a dispro-

portionate number of African Americans live in poverty, which increases the likeli-

hood of residing in disadvantaged communities with high levels of violence and a lack

of cohesion, as well as experiencing family tensions and disruptions. Furthermore,

African Americans exceedingly encounter discrimination, prejudice, and victimiza-

tion. Such strains are likely to be perceived as unjust increasing the likelihood of

responding with anger and crime (Agnew, 2006; Kaufman, Rebellon, Thaxton, &

Agnew, 2008). Thus, African Americans’ position in America’s stratified society limits

legitimate opportunity, lowers control, supports beliefs conducive to crime, and

increases strain in turn increasing their likelihood of offending.

While much is known from such inquires, the majority of African Americans—

including those residing in economically disadvantaged areas and who frequently face

a variety of strains—do not offend. The extant literature fails to account for the com-

plexity of race, particularly African Americans’ unique history, social position, and

resulting worldview in their understanding of variations in African American offend-

ing. Recently, Unnever and Gabbidon (2011) answered the call of Du Bois and aimed

to fill this gap in the literature with their theory of African American offending

(TAAO).

The present article draws from this theoretical framework to investigate certain

conditions and processes that distinctly impact African Americans and their likelihood

of offending. Specifically, I aim to address four general research questions: (a) Do

criminal justice injustices impact African Americans differently than other forms of

racism? (b) Do different emotional states increase African Americans’ likelihood of

offending? (c) Does having a positive racial identity buffer against the negative effects

of racial discrimination? and (d) Do the effects of racial discrimination and racial

identity vary between African American males and females? This is the first known

article to empirically distinguish between personal discrimination encounters and

those experienced from the police as well as incorporate racial identity into a model of

offending. Below I briefly outline TAAO (Unnever & Gabbidon, 2011) as well as

present my central concepts and their predicted contributions to understanding the

within-group differences in African American offending. I then empirically test my

hypotheses using an African American sample from the Project on Human Development

in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN) data (Earls, Brooks-Gunn, Raudenbush, &

Sampson, 1997, 2002c).

Theory of African American Offending

The TAAO focuses on the unique factors affecting African American individuals’ like-

lihood to offend. Unnever and Gabbidon (2011) argue African Americans share a

unique racial lens that guides their beliefs and behavior. This shared worldview encom-

passes an awareness of race and racism, particularly in relation to how it bears on daily

life. Furthermore, African Americans uniquely experience racial discrimination and

criminal justice injustices, which induce a range of negative emotions, including anger