dc.contributor.author
Vegh Weis, Valeria
dc.contributor.author
Magnin, Brittany
dc.date.accessioned
2021-06-21T13:50:21Z
dc.date.available
2021-06-21T13:50:21Z
dc.identifier.uri
https://refubium.fu-berlin.de/handle/fub188/30767
dc.identifier.uri
http://dx.doi.org/10.17169/refubium-30506
dc.description.abstract
The phrases, “essential businesses” and “essential jobs,” emerged at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, raising questions about and reflecting concerns over which goods, services, and workers were necessary to prevent societal collapse. In an attempt to continue to probe “essentiality,” this article coins the term “essential crimes” to refer to those socially injurious acts and omissions that are part and parcel of a global neoliberal capitalist order, and that are, therefore, vital to keep the socioeconomic system running. In other words, if keeping humans alive in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic required supermarkets and hospitals to remain open (“essential business and jobs”), maintaining the existing socioeconomic system and ensuring that the powerful remained powerful required harmful acts and omissions by states and corporations—what we refer to as “essential crimes.” This article sheds light on how the COVID-19 pandemic has helped illuminate just how essential these crimes and harms are to the perpetuation of the status quo by the powerful. In addition, this article encourages us to consider which punishments, if any, are vital to a well-ordered society, and it demands that we rethink whether prison is an “essential punishment” for ensuring public safety.
en
dc.format.extent
16 Seiten
dc.rights.uri
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.subject
harmful acts
en
dc.subject
harmful omissions
en
dc.subject.ddc
300 Sozialwissenschaften::340 Recht::345 Strafrecht
dc.title
Essential Crimes? Essential Punishments? Rethinking Essentiality in the Midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic
dc.type
Wissenschaftlicher Artikel
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.doi
10.1007/s10612-021-09564-2
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.journaltitle
Critical Criminology
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.number
2
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.pagestart
273
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.pageend
288
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.volume
29
dcterms.bibliographicCitation.url
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10612-021-09564-2
refubium.affiliation
Rechtswissenschaft
refubium.funding
Springer Nature DEAL
refubium.note.author
Die Publikation wurde aus Open Access Publikationsgeldern der Freien Universität Berlin gefördert.
refubium.resourceType.isindependentpub
no
dcterms.accessRights.openaire
open access
dcterms.isPartOf.issn
1205-8629
dcterms.isPartOf.eissn
1572-9877
refubium.resourceType.provider
WoS-Alert