NCJ Number
102189
Date Published
1986
Length
200 pages
Annotation
Life histories and interviews with 64 female street hustlers (prostitutes, con artists, and petty thieves) in Milwaukee, Wis., portray today's typical female criminal as a young, poor, minority woman with limited education and skills and several children.
Abstract
Following a description of the research site and sampling methods, the author examines deviant street networks that facilitate hustling as an income-producing activity and that help form pseudofamilies. In Milwaukee, such networks are controlled predominantly by black males in their mid to late twenties and early thirties who have lengthy criminal records. The important role of family networks in recruiting young women to the street hustling lifestyle is explored. Contending that conflict with familial authority also makes young women vulnerable, the author examines running away and drug use as factors in street hustling. A look at the hustling lifestyle focuses on relationships with family, child care arrangements, contacts with the criminal justice system, drug use, fertility, and general health. A review of activities, relationships, and psychological states depicts the day-to-day lives of female street hustlers. The author analyzes the aspirations, role models, and attitudes of these women and challenges current attitudes of these women and challenges current theories linking increases in female criminality to the women's movement. Case studies, tables, approximately 60 references, and index.