According to Uwujaren and Utt (2015), intersectionality is the connected nature of race, class and gender. These categories apply to any individual or group and are interdependent systems of oppression and discrimination (p.2). By applying an intersectional view to men and women, we can see that race and normative femininity both play large roles in how people are treated when they are victims or offenders of crime. Chann and Chunn (2014) state that racialized men and women are assumed to be more likely to commit crimes and less likely to be viewed as “real victims” compared to white men and women. That being said, the concepts of intersectionality, racialization and normatively femininity are apparent in the media attention to the cases of
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Deliovsky (2008:52) argues that there are normative attributes of femininity that are nowhere near race-neutral. Furthermore, she states that the construction of normative femininity is never shown outside a “process of racial domination and negotiation”. Therefore, normative femininity means there are assigned values to a women’s body based on cultural and racial standards. In the case of Karla Homolka, Chann and Chunn (2014:34) discuss Homolka’s achieved status of “monstrous feminine” that was assigned to her for the participation in the murder of several women. Furthermore, the media constructed Homolka as a princess who married her prince who turned out to be an abusive husband that forced her to rape and murder women. Homolka’s status as “monstrous feminine” demonstrates how she was labeled an “undeserving offender” since she breached the norms of femininity and propriety. Thus, normative femininity plays a large role in the media’s portrayal of her as a victim, rather than an agent in these crimes in order to maintain the notion of the passive, innocent woman who broke the laws of femininity. On the other hand, in the case of …show more content…
Racialization involves attributing race to specific social practices and discourses to give them a special significance. That being said, racialization is the process of categorizing, stigmatizing and marginalizing racialized men and women. Therefore, when it comes to racialization and crime, it is important to note that certain populations are seen as suspects or “pre-criminal” because of their ethno-racial group. Murdocca (2014) examines the ways in which police tend to focus on “usual suspects” of crime. The notion of “usual suspects” is a way of sorting populations and assigning certain attributes to through racialization. Police assign characteristics to lower class, racialized populations as being more dangerous and will try to control and investigate those populations more. That being said, a white, heterosexual, middle class woman like Homolka provoked outrage, interest and revulsion from police and the media because she was considered an unsual suspect for such a horrific crime (Chann and Chunn 2014: 34; Murdocca 2014). Likewise, Pickton was not considered a “usual suspect” because he was a White, successful male and did not fit the predetermined image of criminals. According to Chan and Chunn (2014) family and friends of the missing Aboriginal women from the Pickton case were often left guessing about what is being done to help find their loved one. Furthermore, the
Deliovsky (2008:52) argues that there are normative attributes of femininity that are nowhere near race-neutral. Furthermore, she states that the construction of normative femininity is never shown outside a “process of racial domination and negotiation”. Therefore, normative femininity means there are assigned values to a women’s body based on cultural and racial standards. In the case of Karla Homolka, Chann and Chunn (2014:34) discuss Homolka’s achieved status of “monstrous feminine” that was assigned to her for the participation in the murder of several women. Furthermore, the media constructed Homolka as a princess who married her prince who turned out to be an abusive husband that forced her to rape and murder women. Homolka’s status as “monstrous feminine” demonstrates how she was labeled an “undeserving offender” since she breached the norms of femininity and propriety. Thus, normative femininity plays a large role in the media’s portrayal of her as a victim, rather than an agent in these crimes in order to maintain the notion of the passive, innocent woman who broke the laws of femininity. On the other hand, in the case of …show more content…
Racialization involves attributing race to specific social practices and discourses to give them a special significance. That being said, racialization is the process of categorizing, stigmatizing and marginalizing racialized men and women. Therefore, when it comes to racialization and crime, it is important to note that certain populations are seen as suspects or “pre-criminal” because of their ethno-racial group. Murdocca (2014) examines the ways in which police tend to focus on “usual suspects” of crime. The notion of “usual suspects” is a way of sorting populations and assigning certain attributes to through racialization. Police assign characteristics to lower class, racialized populations as being more dangerous and will try to control and investigate those populations more. That being said, a white, heterosexual, middle class woman like Homolka provoked outrage, interest and revulsion from police and the media because she was considered an unsual suspect for such a horrific crime (Chann and Chunn 2014: 34; Murdocca 2014). Likewise, Pickton was not considered a “usual suspect” because he was a White, successful male and did not fit the predetermined image of criminals. According to Chan and Chunn (2014) family and friends of the missing Aboriginal women from the Pickton case were often left guessing about what is being done to help find their loved one. Furthermore, the