1. London South Bank University
Dr. Esmorie Miller
London South Bank University

2. Exploring The Lammy Review —
Locating Racial Discrimination Among the Key Concerns of Contemporary Youth Justice

3. Introduction
Project —
Compares disproportionate incarceration rates among Black youth in England and Canada…
Project locates the current disproportionate incarceration rates within a larger legacy of racial discrimination in youth justice, in England and Canada
Today’s Focus: England
Note: Very little mention of gangs today (though the larger project has a major focus)!
Headline…
Racial discrimination in England and Wales should be counted among the key failings of contemporary youth justice
Thesis: disproportionate incarceration consistent with historic exclusion from Victorian conceptions of youth welfare, and this exclusion remains apparent in contemporary youth justice

4. What is the Lammy Review?
Summary
Key Findings —
Criminal Justice institution: lagging behind in equality & justice
40% of all youth in custody (in England & Wales) are Black
Black Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME) youth incarceration rates are disproportionately high
Gang talk equated with ethnicity —
Wider punitive effect on Black youth: discriminatory & misleading
Sutures Black youth’s identity to gangs and violence, i.e., rap music culture

5. Disproportionate Incarceration: Definition and Implications?
Disproportionate Incarceration rates among Black youth
As a phenomenon whereby individuals associated with a particular group identity (such as youth of African heritage) have a higher representation in custody compared, to their overall percentage within the population
Doob and Webster (2008)
Disproportionality suggests — ‘Something Inappropriate happening with…’
i.e., Ongoing, structural disadvantage which coexists and is fed by racial discrimination

6. Based on Historical Document Research The Fletcher Report (1930)
Project: Method
Based on Historical Document Research
The Fletcher Report (1930)
Author: Muriel Fletcher — A social worker
Conclusion: “These families have a low standard of life, morally and economically, and there appears to be little future for the children,” (Fletcher 1930: 26).
Racialised youth = intractable
Racialised youth = no room for moral re-education
The Doulton Report (1969)
Author: Alfred Doulton — Headmaster of HighGate School
Conclusion: African Caribbean youth are Educational Subnormals (Andrews 2013)
West Indian youth — ‘I.Q.s work out below their English contemporaries…’

7. Some Preliminary Conclusions
Rehabilitation (education) vs. Retribution (punishment)…
Not Strictly about Punishment
But reflects marginalisation from rehabilitative regime prioritising White, working class youth’s developmental potential for future citizenship
Contemporary regime: retributive agenda
Disproportionate Incarceration: agenda reflects marginalisation from education, training, and future employment

8. The End!
Thank You!