In my opinion, Crime and Justice is a very broad topic filled with many grey areas. The majority of the outcomes in these issues is decided not by the law, or even the crime, but by peoples interpretation of it. The issues that I selected to show for this blog showed me how civilians hold people involved in crime and justice (cops, lawyers, judges etc.) to a higher standard then others, whether they know it or not, simply because of what they stand for.
In light of the recent events taking place in the States, it seems to me that things are going backwards and that the amount of disrespect and racism showed towards black people is appalling. It is times like these where Canada should step it up and show people that we cannot let history repeat itself and that we do not condone what is going on. It has become evident to me that throughout my research, the amount of crime in Canada is being overshadowed by other issues that have to do with politics in Canada, or both crime and politics in the States. I am not saying that those issues are not important, but shouldn't the crimes in Canada be recognized too? We are known as a country of opportunity, as a safe haven for people facing persecution in their own countries, but that does not mean that we should paint a false picture for them and make them think that everything is all jolly and good here. We have our own problems, just like the rest of the world. They just aren't as well known, which is both a blessing and a curse.
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The cartoon depicts two men in jail, telling each other about how they ended up in jail. The first man got 3 months for stealing an extreme amount of money on Wall Street, while the second man got 3 years for possessing joints.
This cartoon symbolizes the issues of the legal system and how they can be seen as unfair. The two men are also extremely similar looking. The biggest difference is that the man implied to be from Wall Street is better groomed than the man who is implied to be a junkie. The meaning of this cartoon is to demonstrate how unfair the legal system can be and how the people who are a part of it can favour the more affluent people people, even if they ruin the lives of thousands, while they will come down hard on people who might not have money, a steady job, or an overall good life when their actions are not harming others, only themselves. Although this cartoon is meant to depict the legal system in the States (hence the mention of Wall Street), I think that it can represent Canada to, because I do not believe that there is not a single bias in the legal system in Canada, and while the cases may not be as extreme as they are in the States (or as extreme as they are made to look), I think that the message is still the same. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/police-need-help-to-identify-mississauga-stabbing-suspect-1.2837203
http://www.mississauga.com/news-story/5029947-updated-mississauga-man-stabbed-at-heartland-tim-hortons/ In the articles you can detect bias by word choice and tone. There is bias by names and titles because in the second article the suspect is described as “dark skinned”, while in the first article there is no description of race and in the original there is no suspect description at all. This is a bias because it implies that the suspect is black and that generates suspicion because there are lots of stereotypes and racism that surround black people that make people think that all black people are violent or in gangs. Considering all the issues in the states (Ferguson, Eric Garner) I think that this is biased as well as potentially troublesome for Canada if we become part of this rising issue of racism in the states and all the aftermath of these incidents. Because my theme is Crime and Justice there are a lot of questions or issues that are left unanswered because there are a lot of variables that can affect different crimes and that can influence the work of the police and in the courtroom. In this area there is a lot of dependency on other people because civilians are usually the people who witness crimes. The majority of the work done by police after a crime is committed is based of off the testimonies of the victim (if they are still alive), witnesses (if there are any) and the suspects, whose descriptions usually come from the witnesses. Due to the amount of guesswork and circumstantial evidence, Crime and Justice is a grey area and therefore has a lot of questions and issues that are left unasked and unanswered. This particular issue is reported somewhat fairly. There is some discrepancy with the age of the victim and the suspect which could be due to the eyewitness testimonies of the people who were at the restaurant when the crime occurred. The report was fair enough but the discrepancies question the work of the police. 1. How does a crime or an act of justice affect a person in the long run? What can it do to a person’s mental health?
2. Are courts to too harsh? In what cases are they too harsh? 3. How do leaders around the world deal with crime? Is their way better than Canada’s? 4. When does justice become revenge? 5. What constitutes as justice? posted by the Toronto sun on December 1, 2014The article is about a cold case that was closed 36 years after the first of two murders of two young girls in BC. The article is biased because the headline mentions the fact that the murders occurred in the 1970s and makes it sound like the police are incompetent. The article is important because it shows how that even though the case is old it can still be solved. It affects the families of the girls that were killed because now they finally get closure. Both girls were riding bicycles when they were taken.
QUESTION: How might the fact that the killer got away with it for 36 years affect the family? POSTED BY THE GUARDIAN ON NOVEMBER 26, 2014The article is about a teenage girl from Charlottetown charged with the second degree murder of a 45 year old man. The article is somewhat biased because it implies that this girl is going to be tried as an adult and an example is going to be made of her. This issue is important because it provides a potential example of the perils of a relationship between and older man and a teenager. This issue affects the girl's family because they have to deal with all the media attention and the things that tabloids might say about her. The photo is an example of the courtroom where the girl will have her trial.
QUESTION: What kind of relationship did these people have that resulted in murder? posted by ctv news on November 27,2014The article is about the murder of a young mother from Halifax and the people that are charged with her murder. The article is not very biased but there is also limited information so that may be the reason why. This is important because it showcases how far people are willing to go, such as taking a mother away from her young child. This issue affects the woman’s child and the family of the woman because now they have to live the rest of their lives without her. A picture of the woman that was murdered, who left a child behind.
QUESTION: What kind of effect could a tragedy like this have on the family? What actions could they take? Posted by the Canadian press on November 26, 2014The article is about a fatal fire that took place at a senior home. This article is somewhat biased because it talks about how the firefighters didn't really try to save some people because they didn't look around back. This issue is important because people don't really expect things like this to happen to senior homes because we just consider them safe and no one really thinks that things like a fire can happen to a place where old people can live out the rest of their lives in peace. It affects the people that lived in the senior home because this was an extremely traumatic event that will haunt them for the rest of their lives. The picture shown is similar to the retirement home that burned.
QUESTION: Why didn't the firefighters do a more thorough job and why did they not do more? POSTED BY CBC nEWS ON NOVEMBER 14, 2014The article is about a stabbing that occurred in Mississauga at a Tim Horton's/Wendy’s. The article is not very biased it is informative and neutral. This issue is important because it deals with an assault in a public place that anybody might go to. It affects anybody who goes to fast food restaurants. It also affects the family of the man that was attacked because they are extremely worried about his well being.
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