NCJ Number
138041
Journal
Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice Volume: 8 Issue: 2 Dated: (1992) Pages: 89-99
Date Published
1992
Length
11 pages
Annotation
Drawing from Sartre's and Foucault's concepts of the civilizing eye, this article discusses a paradox that involves race relations and criminal justice, using the Willie Horton ad campaign of the 1988 presidential election as an illustration.
Abstract
Sartre viewed bigotry as the projection of self-hate upon an identifiable group of "others" as a means of maintaining a small degree of self-respect that wards off the onslaught of self-hate upon the ego. Foucault views the dynamic of race relations as stemming from the political and social need of groups to maintain surveillance of other groups to ensure that they do not pose a threat to an ordered, predictable society that serves the self-interest of the group doing the surveillance. The paradox that these views pose in the criminal justice arena stems from the concept of "blind" justice. This paradox is illustrated in the Willie Horton ad campaign. The Republican ad campaign was designed to both target and exploit white society's fear of the "other," by portraying Willie Horton as the dangerous "other" and the Democratic presidential candidate as the one who failed to protect society from the "other." Thus, the criminal justice system was portrayed, not as a system that renders "blind" justice, but as a system that should protect dominant groups from the "other." 27 references