Feminist Ethnographies on Crime and Deviance: Contemporary Trends and Contributions to Criminology

This chapter reviews the origins of, and contemporary trends in, feminist ethnographies of crime and deviance to highlight how these works have shaped the broader field of criminology. First, this chapter underlines how the Chicago School, post-World War II, facilitated the growth of ethnographies on crime and deviance. Second, it traces the influence of second-wave feminisms and Black feminisms on criminology that challenged White masculinist modes of knowledge production. Next, contemporary works that examine carceral institutions, their collateral consequences, and stigmatized groups are considered for their potential to advance understandings of crime, deviance, and victimization. The chapter concludes by offering directions for future research and a discussion on the policy implications and radical potential of feminist ethnographies of crime and deviance.