Overcoming the magnetism of street life : crime-engaged youth and the programs that transform them / Trevor B. Milton.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Milton, Trevor, 1976-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Community-based corrections--New York (State).

Community-based corrections.

Juvenile delinquents--New York (State).

Juvenile delinquents.

Juvenile corrections--New York (State).

Juvenile corrections.

Juvenile justice, Administration of--New York (State).

Juvenile justice, Administration of.

New York (State).

Physical Description:

vii, 151 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Lanham, Md. : Lexington Books, [2011]

Summary:

This is a story of crime-engaged youth who have been given a second chance. New York City teens are often faced with conditions that lead to poor education, fewer job opportunities, and a savage cycle of incarceration. But they almost always have a choice. Teens from deprived neighborhoods face an arduous crossroad: Should they walk the glamorous path of street culture whose unlawful codes channel them toward fast money, instant gratification, and respect, or should they make the steep climb through carceral traps, structural deprivation, and sometimes peer ridicule, in order to achieve legitimate success? Overcoming the Magnetism of Street Life is also the story of the nonprofit community organizations that recognize the difficulty of this decision. To the many that are unfamiliar with New York's poorest neighborhoods, living a "crime-free lifestyle" is an obvious and easy choice. According to this thinking, those who violate our legal codes should be punished to the fullest extent of the law, no matter the circumstances that led to their unlawful behavior. Throughout the city, there are a small number of alternative-to-incarceration programs designed to give crime-engaged youth a second chance to walk the path of legitimate success. They attempt to fill the void left behind by a poor opportunity structure. This book is a detailed ethnographic account of a select group of teens in New York City, the conditions they encounter on a daily basis, and the alternative-to-incarceration programs that try to turn their lives around. Author Trevor B. Milton includes the accounts of teens that faced the arduous crossroad and four programs that attempted to teach a "social survival kit"-the skills necessary for a crime-free lifestyle. Book jacket.

Contents:

Prologue: Volatile teens and the social survival kit

Juvenile justice and community responsibility

Juvenile delinquency and diversion programs

ATIs and the deferred sentence

Masculinity and the magnetism of the streets

Community justice and the reconstruction of social capital

Antonio's story : warfare and redemption

Pedagogy of the deprived : program support for structural deficiencies.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780739150832

0739150839

OCLC:

742234348