Professor Ho-Won Jeong
George Mason University
Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution
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Barbara Chasin, Inequality and Violence
Chapter 4: Interpersonal Violence, Race, and gender

I. Interpersonal violence is a means to an end.

A. It may be a reactionary attempt to regain control/power when a subordinate group attempts to or succeeds in improving their position.
B. One goal of interpersonal violence is maintaining hierarchy (ex. The class system).
C. Factors such as economic depression, actual or perceived shortages, manipulation by elites, and a socialization process that legitimizes force/violence can add to the problem of interpersonal violence. (77)

II. Domestic Violence

A. "Households are miniature power-systems."

1. In cases of domestic violence, violence can become an expression of and a means of reinforcing or creating unequal household relationships. It is used as a means of controlling the relationship.
2. According to Richard Gelles and Murray Strauss, statistical evidence demonstrates that the risk for domestic violence increases as the inequality within a home (i.e. the concentration of decision-making power into one partner's hands) increases.
3. Interviews wit batterers and their victims reveal that issues of power and control were at the root of the violence.

B. Cultural values-like the belief in individualism, privacy, legitimacy of force, etc.-contribute to the incidence of domestic violence.

1. A belief in individualism can lead people not to seek help. For example, it might prevent a battered woman from calling the police or contacting a shelter. (79)
2. Privacy can result in people not seeking or accepting help and in the reluctance of others to intervene. (80)
3. A social belief in the legitimacy of force validates violence, which can carry over into the "private" domestic sphere. (79)

C. Stress and social isolation also contribute to domestic violence.

1. When combined with social isolation (social isolation means that social standards and sanctions will have less influence over an individual's behavior), stress increases the likelihood for violence.

a. For example, there are few social supports for women attempting to leave an abusive relationship, making it more difficult for them to do so successfully. Similarly, there are few social supports for men attempting to change their behavior. (81-82)

III. Rape and Sexual Assault

A. Rape is more likely in societies where there is high gender inequality.

1. Sexual violence is related to cultural attitudes about male/female power relationships, social and economic status, and the acceptability of violence.
2. Widespread acceptance of violence in other contexts contributes to higher rape levels.
3. Socialization processes that encourage males to be combative and dominant and females to be submissive and unassertive are a factor in higher rape rates.
4. The belief that men are entitled to/need sex or have "uncontrollable sexual impulses" suggests that women are somehow responsible for preventing rape by not provoking men.
5. Rape is often a way of expressing/asserting power and control.

C. Women from lower income brackets are at a greater risk for rape because of economic conditions that force them into unsafe situations, such as using public transportation or walking at night and living in poorly lit/maintained areas.

IV. Socialization for Masculinity and Homophobic Violence

A. Militant heterosexuality
B. Homosexuality violates gender norms.

1. Homosexual behavior is interpreted as a threat to group identity and cohesion. -Coser
2. Gender inequality is a way for males to distance themselves from the "feminine."

a. It is an insult to compare a man to a woman but not the reverse.

V. Racial and Ethnic Interpersonal Violence

A. "Many of the most serious problems in people's lives cannot be solved by their own efforts…Using violence against others, weaker than oneself is, therefore, a low-risk way of feeling a sense of control and a reminder to both assailant and victim of who is more powerful." (89)
B. Bias Crimes, also called hate crimes or ethno violence, occur against individuals identified as a member of a group against which there is some socially approved hostility.

1. These crimes tend to be especially vicious and are more likely to involve four or more assailants.
2. Bias crimes are generally perpetrated by young males who often express the belief that they're protecting their communities and may even be supported in this belief by their communities. (89)

C. Scapegoats are socially approved targets for hostility who are vulnerable to attacks and readily identifiable.

1. Scapegoating is exacerbated by the manipulation of elites and by economic conditions that create fear and insecurity.
2. Scapegoating can be the result of resentment for actual or perceived damages perpetrated by the target group.

D. Organized hate groups act as social support networks for those who feel marginalized by the system. They provide explanations for their members' marginalization and ameliorate their sense of isolation. Hate group's membership tends to increase during economic downturns. (94)
E. Police Violence

1. As individuals, police officers are as likely to hold stereotypes as the general population and have even more power to act on them.
2. Police are put in a frustrating situation; they aren't given the tools and support necessary to really accomplish their goal-reducing crime. This frustration can lead to stress and aggression, which is then directed towards the community.
3. Police violence is fostered by the quasi-militaristic structure and culture of the organization.

a. This encourages officers and departments to have an "us versus them" mentality.
b. It results in a "code of silence," which discourages officers from reporting violations while encouraging them to express unequivocal support for each other against all outsiders.
c. Minorities tend to view the police as instruments of oppression there to suppress not serve or protect them.