NCJ Number
202543
Journal
Criminal Justice Volume: 3 Issue: 3 Dated: August 2003 Pages: 287-315
Date Published
August 2003
Length
29 pages
Annotation
This article reflects on the ideas of citizenship, social capital, and community and what they mean for the structure and function of criminal justice and social policy, in general.
Abstract
In 1997, Great Britain’s citizens elected the Labour Govnerment to power, shifting paradigms to one in which ideas of citizenship, social capital, and community have become prominent. The article examines the meaning of citizenship and citizens’ rights, expectations, duties, and responsibilities. The ideas of social capital and communities are discussed and the author asserts that these ideas can be used to support different social values. These social values, taken on through a sense of community and citizen responsibility, tend to focus on the relationship between the state and the individual, with the individual relying less on the interventions of the state. The author then turns to a discussion of Great Britain’s response to crime and how ideas of citizenship, social capital, and community shape criminal justice. The author asserts that feelings of social responsibility expose the limitations of the criminal justice system in providing effective solutions to the problems of crime and other forms of social disorder. Social policy and professional practice are informed by ideas of citizenship, which offer a sense of purpose and lend a degree of legitimacy to a system historically plagued by ineffective policies and practices. The article describes how rising feelings of citizenship in Great Britain have affected policing, the courts, sentencing practices, crime victims, restorative justice, prisons, and probation services. In conclusion, the author maintains that any successful civilized society must cultivate a sense of shared citizenship based on mutual respect and responsibility. Further, it must be recognized that no government can effectively control crime without the involvement of citizens and communities. Notes, references