Draw from class discussions, power points, and your own independent research to address one of the following questions/exercises. Please use single space with 12 pt. font. While I don’t have strict standards in terms of length, answers should be thorough and coherent (please do not ramble, get to the point). Make sure you provide a list of any references/sources that you consult. Assignment is due on March 4 by 1 pm (worth a maximum of 25 points).
1). Various politicians have often emphasized that unless we seal our Southern border, undocumented/illegal immigrants will enter and drive up crime rates. Draw from class discussions and your own research to evaluate/assess whether or not this is true. What did you find? Make sure you provide some data to support your answer.
2). Critics often point out that disproportionate rates of violent crime and victimization tend to be higher in African-American communities. Draw from text, class discussions, and your own research to offer three structural factors that might explain this trend (by “structural” reasons we mean reasons outside the individual that might help explain personal motivations to commit crime). How is this related to the Black Lives Matter Movement?
3). Drawing from class discussions and your own research, address the origins of the street gang MS-13 Mara Salvatrucha. Why has this gang become among the best known and most feared of all criminal gangs? What were the social-historical factors the led to the formation of this gang? In what ways did the US government directly or indirectly contribute to the emergence of this gang? Lastly, address at least two ways that the presumed threat of this gang has been used for political purposes in recent years.
