Black criminology

In 1992, Katheryn Russell (1992) advocated the introduction of a subfield of Black Criminology within the discipline. This chapter outlines the main elements of the proposed subfield as well as more recent developments and then considers its value some 30 years on. In so doing, the chapter critiques the whiteness of criminological theory and the representation of whiteness in the academy. It sets out the importance of decolonizing ideas, particularly with regard to epistemological and methodological approaches to study black (and minority ethnic) experiences of crime and justice. It centres on historical and contemporary racism as an explanatory framework, uses black cultural forms to express lived experiences, and acknowledges the value of scholar-activism to challenge the mainstream criminological narrative about race and crime.