A case-study in the racialization of crime: Conceptualizations of Indo-Canadian gangs

In the lower-mainland, British Columbia, Indo-Canadian gangs are a major topic of popular interest and crime policy. Generally, it is viewed that "defects" in Indo-Canadian culture cause gang activity. This conceptualization is laden with racial overtones as Indo- Canadians are labeled deviant and subjected to surveillance in the name of public safety. This thesis is a case-study of this racialization process; examining the views of professionals who serve as the gang-response structure of one British Columbian city. This study employs a "studying-up" methodology using one-to-one interviews as a primary method. The interviews were assessed through a critical race lens to situate participants' views within their wider social and ideological contexts. The study resulted in four main findings: (1) Indo-Canadian gangs are seen as unsophisticated; (2) They are caused by "bad cultural values" and bad parenting; (3) Solutions focus on retraining parents to impart "good cultural values"; (4) Indo-Canadians often "confess" their "cultural flaws" to be effectively corrected.