Overview
Many of our countryOs children face daily a threat to their personal safety and well-being. As school boards, law enforcement officials, and policymakers continue to look for ways to stop youth violence in urban and suburban schools, not enough attention is paid to eradicating the socioeconomic and cultural conditions that give rise to these acts. In this timely and thought-provoking collection, seasoned educators and cultural theorists emphasize this connection between youth violence and the realities faced by many children—poverty, racism, unequal opportunity, and the mediaOs glorification of violence.
Full Product Details
Author: Stephanie Urso Spina ,
Ricky Lee Allen ,
Stanley Aronowitz ,
Lynn S. Chancer
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Imprint: Rowman & Littlefield
Dimensions:
Width: 15.50cm
, Height: 2.30cm
, Length: 23.50cm
Weight: 0.508kg
ISBN: 9780847695621
ISBN 10: 084769562
Pages: 304
Publication Date: 18 October 2000
Audience:
General/trade
,
Professional and scholarly
,
General
,
Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Out of Print
Availability: Out of stock
Reviews
While policy makers are demanding zero tolerance, metal detectors, high stakes testing, criminalization of and Prozac for youth, all of which serve to sever the ties between youth, schools, and community, the writers in this text commit to a deep, provocative analysis of the thick social context that has produced, and can mediate, youth violence. This book has none of the 'smoke' mentioned in its title; much is revealed and little clouded over. But true to the title, this book reads like a cultural mirror--a terrifying reflection of late capitalist America as a factory for youth alienation and violence. The writers insist that educators, activists, communities, academics, parents, and policy makers attend critically to the ways in which we have contributed to the production of 'youth violence.'--Fine, Michelle
This edited volume is an interesting collection of essays that provides a passionate cultural critique of American democracy and the failure of its social institutions to reduce violence and promote social justice.The articles stretch our definition of violence and its causes, including thought provoking critiques of gender ideology and the destruction of humanity through oppressive social structures. The book is extremely well written. * Contemporary Sociology * Readers will appreaciate the honesty in this book. Smoke and Mirrors challenges us. It asks us to take responsibility for ourselves and to help our children. * Jac * A collection of ten wide-ranging and provocative essays that is assembled as a multi-sited ethnography. * Theory and Psychology * While policy makers are demanding zero tolerance, metal detectors, high stakes testing, criminalization of and Prozac for youth, all of which serve to sever the ties between youth, schools, and community, the writers in this text commit to a deep, provocative analysis of the thick social context that has produced, and can mediate, youth violence. This book has none of the 'smoke' mentioned in its title; much is revealed and little clouded over. But true to the title, this book reads like a cultural mirror-a terrifying reflection of late capitalist America as a factory for youth alienation and violence. The writers insist that educators, activists, communities, academics, parents, and policy makers attend critically to the ways in which we have contributed to the production of 'youth violence.' -- Michelle Fine, The Graduate Center, City University of New York
Author Information
Stephanie Urso Spina is a Ph.D. candidate in social/personality psychology at the Graduate School of the City University of New York. She received her masters of Human Development and Psychology from Harvard University.
