Examples Of Broken Window Theory

The broken windows theory states that if society or a neighborhood allows people with in the community to commit small crimes then that area will be effected by serious crime in the future. The idea being that the small crimes create an environment that suggests that no one care’s or looks after that community. Making the neighborhood an ideal place to push the limits of the law. In areas of the United States that are exposed to poverty and have a high presence of minorities are associated with high crime rates. These areas are prime examples of how the broken window theory evolves from the social disorganization that exists within their community. These areas are often left uncared for due to the financial inability to properly maintain …show more content…
However, the application of the broken window theory to deter and regain the social control of the community was ineffective with increasing poverty rate, which pushed the community into further social disorganization. People were further disconnected from their community. The Ferguson riots were a result of how the social disorganization intertwined with the broken window theory to escalate a possibly influential cause to a violent, rage filled riot. The riots were a result of the rage and hostility that was created by the application of the broken window theory. The hostility towards the police because of the isolation of the impoverished black community resulted in the destruction of their own community. The same theory was applied to a similar community in Washington D.C. and which it was also ineffective, the results of application were drastically different. Unlike the tarnished relationship of citizen’s and law enforcement that occurred in Ferguson, the community in D.C. experienced a healthy and secure relationship. The result of patrolling the neighborhood made people in the community feel safer but they were not any safer than before. The feeling of security came from the order that was provided by the police and trusted them to maintain the rules and expectations of …show more content…
The crime would be stop in the beginning phases when a few people are committing small crimes, even by addressing small crimes with punishment the implications are far less than that of continued and escalated crime. For example a person with a drunk and disorderly is still able to maintain a career and have an active social influence, where if it escalates to drunk driving they may not be able to maintain that career and will no longer be able to contribute to the community. In turn this elimination of small crime betters the community not just giving the façade of being safe because of a healthy relationship with law enforcement and be able to decrease the crime rate. This type of community would be able to regain a social control in the neighborhood established through the interaction and influences over the youth. However, as seen in Washington D.C. and Ferguson the application of the broken window theory has not be able to deliver both results of a secure feeling and a decrease in crime