Social Problems, Law, and Society

This collection of articles presents a critical, issue-oriented approach to law and society, emphasizing its important relationship to contemporary social problems. By exploring the interstitial area between the sociology of law, social problems and social movements, the initial chapters trace out a theoretical trajectory which points to the need to move beyond traditional and social constructionist approaches. A variety of empirical studies together explore the contradictory dynamics of class as they relate to race and gender in both a national and global context, illustrating the dialectical interplay between the state and social movements. Employing a wide range of perspectives so as to convey the great diversity found in the contemporary sociology of law and justice studies, these authors collectively share a broad consensus concerning the need to explore how social movements and the larger political economy play a pivotal role in shaping state reactions to the challenges presented by contemporary social problems. With its integrated presentation of theoretical perspectives and empirical studies, this unique anthology will be useful in a variety of sociology, criminology, and justice studies course offerings such Law and Society, Social Problems, Crime and Social Justice, Social Movements, Law and Social Control, Social Change, Law and Public Policy, Introduction to Legal Studies, and others. Undergraduate and graduate students alike will appreciate that these articles, selected for their academic rigor, are highly readable and strongly oriented towards high profile social issues, including those of class, race, and gender inequalities as well as social movement and legal struggles in community, national and global settings.
About the Author: William J. Chambliss is professor of sociology and codirector of the Institute on Crime, Justice, and Corrections at George Washington University. He is a pioneer in the field of critical criminology and former president of the Society for the Study of Social Problems (SSSP) and the American Society of Criminology (ASC). Chambliss has published many well-known articles and books, including Power, Politics and Crime and On the Take. Richard A. Dello Buono is associate professor of sociology at Dominican University and former SSSP vice-president. He was visiting professor of political studies and international relations at the National University of Colombia in Bogota, Fullbright Professor at the University of Panama, and invited Graduate Studies Professor at both the University of Havana, Cuba, and at the Autonomous University of Zacatecas, Mexico. Dello Buono was formerly the editor of Social Problems Forum and is currently an associate editor of Critical Sociology. A. Kathryn Stout is associate professor of sociology and director of criminology at Dominican University. She is active in the Society for the Study of Social Problems, the American Society of Criminology, and various scholar-activist and social justice organizations. Specializing on the intersection of law and social movements, she is author of 'Political Prisoners as an Emergent Contradiction of State Repression' (with R. A. Dello Buono) and Sanctuary in the 1980s: the Dialectics of Law and Social Movement Development.