Problem
Based on the fictional scenario provided above, answer the following three questions:
Using social disorganization theory and strain theory, explain why both violent and property crime remained high in Wortopolis after the economic recession ended and why loitering, prostitution and drug-related arrests actually increased.
Scenario
Wortropolis is a large city with a population of approximately one million people. Between 1960 and 1990 the city thrived. It had a strong economy based on large-scale manufacturing. During this period the unemployment rate was only 3% and the majority of residents owned their home. However, in 1990 the City was hit by a series of corporate frauds and illegal investment practices that caused the banking sector to collapse. As a result, many factories closed their doors and moved operations overseas. The unemployment rate subsequently rose from 3% in 1990 to 20% by 2000. Many residents lost their homes through foreclosure. Furthermore, as a result of the economic recession, the city was hit with problems of increased poverty and social inequality, decreased spending on recreational programs, increased divorce, increased high school drop-out rates and a rise in unwed, teenage pregnancy. Furthermore, due to an increased demand for social welfare programs and public housing, the local government had to dramatically reduce the size of its police force from 3,000 officers in 1990 to only 2,000 officers by 2000.
Between 1990 and 2010 the city's violent crime rate jumped from 5 per 100,000 to 50 per 100,000. Similarly, the property crime rate increased from 100 per 100,000 to 400 per 100,000. As a result of this increase in crime, the number of inmates in local prisons tripled. Fortunately, in 2005, a big computer software developer decided to establish its global headquarters in Wortropolis. As a result, many well-educated people from across the country moved to the city to take up high paying jobs in the technology sector. Furthermore, in 2008, a major developer decided to build an amusement park in the city and many new jobs were created in the tourism industry. The creation of jobs in both the computer and tourism industries also led to the construction of several new hotels, restaurants, nightclubs, retail stores and a casino -- which revitalized the downtown core. As employment and the tax base increased, the City was able to hire more police officers (3,500 by 2010).
It should be noted however, that not all Metropolis residents benefited from this new economic prosperity. Many of the highest paying jobs went to newcomers to the City who had been lured by the recently established businesses. Many of the permanent residents simply did not have the education needed to establish high-paying careers within the new economy. As a result, although the unemployment rate dropped to 10% by 2015, it was still three times higher than before the recession hit. Furthermore, most of the permanent residents of Wortropolis could only find low-paying, part-time jobs in the service sector. It should also be noted that the city's Black and Indigenous residents did not benefit from the economic recovery to the same extent as its White residents. As a result, both social and racial inequality in the city actually increased between 2005 and 2020.
By 2020, the violent crime rate dropped slightly to 40 violent offences per 100,000. However, property crime did not decline at all and there was an explosion of arrests for loitering, prostitution, drug possession, and drug-trafficking between 2010 and 2020. By 2015 the police had also established a special task force to deal with the growing problems with guns and gangs in the City's poorest neighbourhoods. However, aggressive policing tactics within poor communities produced allegations of racial profiling, police brutality and racially biased policing. Trust in the police is now extremely low among the racial minority residents of Wortropolis and the city has experienced multiple demonstrations and incidents of public unrest. Racial minority residents of Metropolis are three times more likely to be arrested and incarcerated than their White counterparts.
Interestingly, throughout this 60-year period (from 1960 to 2020), the number of arrests for white-collar and corporate crimes remained very low (only 1 white collar crime per 100,000 throughout the study period). Furthermore, those responsible for the financial crisis that plunged Wortropolis into economic recession were never investigated, apprehended or prosecuted for their crimes.