NCJ Number
213642
Date Published
2006
Length
17 pages
Annotation
This chapter discusses the backgrounds and psychological profiles of racist probationers, particularly those whose crimes had a racist motivation.
Abstract
Working with racist offenders in particular localities requires a study of where racist incidents occur and what triggers race-related violent behavior. This facilitates linking changes in attitudes and feelings to a constructive handling of volatile situations that are likely to recur in the offender's interactions with members of ethnic minorities in the community. Working with racist probationers involves helping them to deal with the feelings and self-perceptions underlying their racist attitudes. Typically, racist offenders feel powerless, dispossessed, and unhappy. It will not be easy to enter and explore this world of emotions and self-concepts, because these feelings have been suppressed by the empowering feelings of hostility and resentment toward ethnic minorities deemed inferior and threatening. Helping racist probationers to tap into their negative feelings about themselves is a first step in helping them to address the roots of their racist hostilities and resentments. The next stage is to guide them in examining situations in which racist emotions erupt into violent behavior. These situations are usually related to the offenders feeling ignored, criticized or treated with contempt by a member of an ethnic minority group. 42 references