'Beyond the loot' : social disorder and urban unrest

PLATTS-FOWLER, Deborah (2013). 'Beyond the loot' : social disorder and urban unrest. Papers from the British Criminology Conference, 13, 17-32.

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Abstract

The article looks at current explanations for the 2011 English riots. It critiques one dominant view that, beyond the micro-political protest in Tottenham, people primarily participated to loot lifestyle items they could not afford to buy. Empirical data is used to challenge the extent and nature of the looting in 2011, concluding that the proportion of riot events that were not focused on looting, directly contradicts the argument that criminal acquisition and consumerism were primary drivers of the unrest. Social disorder is more likely to manifest as looting in commercial areas, but it does not naturally follow that participants originally set out to loot, and economics may not be their primary motive. The article moves on to explore the role the police may have played in promoting ‘contagion’ and to reflect on the role of policing in preventing and limiting unrest, even where foregrounded by other precipitating factors.

Item Type: Article
Research Institute, Centre or Group - Does NOT include content added after October 2018: Law Research Group
Page Range: 17-32
Depositing User: Deborah Platts-Fowler
Date Deposited: 28 Jul 2016 11:02
Last Modified: 18 Mar 2021 15:50
URI: https://shura.shu.ac.uk/id/eprint/12747

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