Peace-Making Theory: What´s Radical Criminology?

Radical criminology is an outgrowth of Marxist criminology (Schmalleger, pg. 153), however they both coexisted and influenced each other. The form of criminology holds that the causes of crime can be found in social conditions that empower the wealthy and politically well-organized but disenfranchise those who are less fortunate (Schmalleger, pg. 153). It attributes much of the existing propensity toward criminology to differences in social class especially to those arrangements within society that maintain class differences (Schmalleger, pg. 155). Quinney states “ Classes are an expression of the underlying forces of the capitalist mode of production, all social life, including everything associated with crime, must be understood in terms of the …show more content…
This type of criminology has advanced the notion that social control agencies and the citizens they serve should work together to alleviate social problems and human suffering and that in turn, will reduce crime. Another name of Peacemaking Criminology is compassionate criminology. The notion of this is that “compassion, wisdom, and love are essential for understanding the suffering of which we are all a part and for practicing a criminology of nonviolence” (Schmalleger, pg. 156). Peacemaking Criminology was founded by Harold Pepinsky and Richard Quinney. Peacemaking Criminology draws attention to issues such as: Perpetuating violence though social policies based on current criminological theory, the role of education in peacemaking, “commonsense theories of crime”, crime control as human rights enforcement, and conflict resolution within community settings. This criminology is to try and include those that were convicts and integrate them back into society with-out the view point of “once an ex-con always an ex-con” and this is how peacemaking criminology is trying to impact society (Schmalleger, pg.