Essay Sample on Broken Windows: A Theory of Neighborhood Deterioration

Broken Windows Theory was discovered by Kelling and Wilson in 1982, who argued that if a broken window in a building is left unrepaired, the entire parts of the window and other windows in the building also break down (Thompson 44). In the same way, unattended neighborhood problems in a community cause more issues because the unsupervised neighborhood shows that nobody cares about the weakening of the region. Broken windows theory states that neighborhood crimes appear as physical and social disorder. Offenders use physical and social unrest to determine the weak communities that are potential targets to commit crimes. The debate on the effectiveness of broken windows policing is still unsettled. There is no clear evidence of the efficacy of the theory. Criminologist Franklin Zimring concludes that broken windows policing played a critical part in minimizing criminal activities in states like New York (Thompson 45). Professor O'Brien and others criticized the theory stating that it is inaccurate because they found small but substantial connections claiming that locations with the more significant social disorder had more significant criminal activities (Thompson 46). The discussion in this essay provides evidence indicating that Broken Windows Policing is not effective.

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Broken windows policy lacks clear evidence to indicate its effectiveness. Critics state that broken windows theory lacks a direct relationship with crime decline. They argue that even though criminal activities decreased in New York City, the decline occurred in the whole country. Therefore, it cannot be attributed entirely to the implementation of broken windows theory by William Bratton, the New York City police commissioner (Oberman Jonathan and Kendea 1077). Additionally, criminal activities declined in other states that had not applied the broken windows policy. In 2016, the Inspector General for the New York Police Department reported that the department did not have evidence supporting that the decline of offense crime witnessed in the past six years was connected to the quality of life directives (Garcia, Natalie and Edward 5). The frequent stop and frisks by police resulted in a lack of trust by the public, leading to reduced possibility of people accepting to collaborate during investigations of severe crimes like robbery with violence. The departments of police that were following broken windows policy aimed to increase the number of arrests instead of striving to reduce crimes in the neighborhood, which was the intended purpose for the broken windows policy. Regularly, Kelling stated that his idea was habitually misapplied, but his vision for broken windows theory was to build the trust between residents and the police and not vice versa (Garcia, Natalie and Edward 16). The police have associated the theory with aggressiveness while trying to reduce crime.

Broken windows policy leads to problems like separation and division of cities, inequality, and racism along racial lines. Bratton, the police commissioner of New York City, arrested people for small offenses such as possession of marijuana as a means to find probable criminals for more severe crimes (Oberman Jonathan and Kendea 1076). The city experienced a decline in gun violence crimes such as robbery, rape, and homicide at the beginning of the 1990s due to fear of crimes. The act to stop crime led to the increased arrest rate of Hispanic and black individuals residing in poor communities. In 2013, New York Daily News conducted research that demonstrated that NYPD issued eighty-one percent of orders to Hispanic and black people. Among those arrested included 48% blacks, 33% Hispanics, and only 12% of white people who create the leading demographic in NYC (Oberman Jonathan and Kendea 1077). The racial inequalities in NYC's method of policing have become typical behavior of a racial arrest and prosecution throughout the U.S. The practice has additionally degraded and enhanced the marginalization of peoples of color (Oberman Jonathan and Kendea 1080). The arrest of black-Americans and Hispanic people leads to an increased arrest rate of individuals living in poverty. School drop-outs and unemployment rate of Hispanic and black people is approximately twice the number of whites because it is very challenging to find jobs due to racism in the job market (Oberman Jonathan and Kendra 1089). Additionally, arrests and prosecutions lead to added problems as this indicates loss of employment, limited housing accessibility, and inadequate employment opportunities. Also, fines lead to economic burdens to the families related to the arrested person. Accessing public housing for individuals who have a history of misdemeanor convictions is challenging, and the majority of them end up homeless. Additionally, in NYC, the driving licenses of people convicted due to substance abuse are suspended for six months; therefore, it is hard to work without a driving license, especially in the service industry (Oberman Jonathan and Kendea 1090).

Broken windows policy lacks a long-term impact on the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) (Fritsch 768). The ineffectiveness of broken windows policing is caused by the complexity of securities controls and a considerable quantity of resources needed to implement the policy. The securities controls are too complicated because active citizens ought to be engaged in efforts enforcement. Also, broken windows policing can have less influence on the entire agreement with securities guidelines due to the non-existence of a resilient connection between small infractions. SEC's target to minor violations might enhance compliance under control, although, a crackdown on the small violations can fail to deter serious offenses (Fritsch 790). For instance, firms that fail to file deadlines or oblige harsh liability offenses are not likely to commit more severe destructions. Many individuals commit small crimes like littering and speeding but do not undertake severe criminal activities like rape and robbery with violence. Therefore, the idea of using broken windows theory in the securities context to indicate that smaller violations lead to significant infractions is weak. Additionally, serious crime offenders can be more cautious to evade minor offenses and prevent the detection of significant crimes. SEC lacks enough funds under the broken windows policy, thereby continuously leading to less exposure to significant crimes (Fritsch 792). It is vital to focus on primary offenses rather than concentrating and using all resources on minor violations. Broken windows policing is not effective for SEC because it ends up ignoring severe criminal activities, which leads to a lack of respect for the law.

Broken windows policy leads to racial disparity in the criminal justice system, stimulation of mass incarceration, a threat to public safety due to increased cases of substance addiction, and mentally ill and homeless individuals. Beckett argues that many studies indicate that there is little explanation on the methods used by police organizations to efficiently govern discretion (79). However, there are significant policies that police organizations are trying to direct police discretion in specific ways. According to Beckett, the NYPD adopted the broken windows policy after media stories linked the reduced crime rate in NYC to the use of broken windows policy (81). The use of broken windows policing resulted in more arrests and mass incarcerations of substance law abusers. The United States has the highest rate of mass incarceration internationally (Beckett 79). Policy guided measures that motivate a more forceful response to violations with fewer threats to public safety are the major causes of mass incarceration in the United States. The enormous growth of the penal coordination has experienced critical implications. For instance, mass incarceration has incomparable demographic consequences that modify the societies in which vital parts of the populations are impacted over their life course. Furthermore, the growth of penal systems and communities has experienced profound impacts on our knowledge of social disparity. Beckett indicates that the United States criminal justice system is associated with increased inequality due to various reasons, including unemployment to people with past convictions and the increasing number of individuals affected by the offenses, especially the poor. Also, other reasons include severe impacts of confinement on convicts' physical and mental health and instability effects on inmates' families due to incarceration.

The consequences of broken window policy are costly and a burden to the people affected. Howell believes that although William Bratton changed NYC using broken windows theory, the city has been using zero-tolerance police (1060). The zero-tolerance policy has specifically been confined to vulnerable individuals and people of color. If New York City took the broken window seriously, the government could have implemented measures like the replacement of broken bulbs, improvement of schools and parks, and the creation of supportive programs to weak populations (Howell 1061). The meaning behind broken windows theory is making the public areas safe so that individuals abiding by the law can feel protected when spending time in such locations. Nonetheless, the zero-tolerance policy makes the public areas very unsafe for Latino and black people, mentally ill persons, homeless people, and individuals recovering from substance use. Many people living in communities heavily guarded by police feel afraid every moment they leave their homes. Pointless policing in zero-tolerance leads to severe consequences such as death. Many people die due to minor offenses like selling loose cigarettes, prostitution, graffiti writing, panhandling, tossing a ball in the street, loitering, public urination, and failing to walk on the sidewalk (Howell 1071). Those people who die leave their families suffering because they have no one to provide for them.

Additionally, broken windows theory is not effective due to society's incapability to self-govern. Both crime and disorder are functions of collective efficiency or the local neighborhoods' capability to implement local social behaviors (O'Brien, Daniel, and Richard 361). Collective efficacy is a tool that helps to maintain low rates of delinquency and aggression in children and young teenagers by explaining the connection between social norms and physical disorders. The importance of collective efficacy in shaping the social norms of local teenagers can also prolong to prosocial improvement. Psychologists argue that children are socialized by both their guardians, peers, and the adults who commonly relate with the children (O'Brien, Daniel and Richard 364). The children are also socialized in the community, during the additional curriculum activities, and in the school. Prosocial growth is resilient if these factors offer supportive connections and positive discipline. Teenagers with more resilient associations with the people around them report high levels of pro-sociality. Communities with greater social cohesion have higher pro-sociality. Pro-sociality becomes a successful behavior if dependable prosocial people surround an individual. However, the disorder occurs in a society that lacks people with pro-sociality. Prosocial improvement in the community is more sensitive to collective effectiveness that the occurrence of the disorder. Impacts of disorder on fear of engaging in criminal activities are transmitted by a personal opinion about the neighborhood (O'Brien, Daniel and Richard 367). Collective efficacy is the foundation of social associations in a region, and a person's level of interaction with the community can independently contribute to a teenager's way of socializing. A co...