Invisible Crimes and Social Harms / Critical Criminological Perspectives (PDF)

Avi Brisman, Eastern Kentucky University, USA
Alexandra Hall, Northumbria University and Teesside University, UK
Matthew Hall, University of Lincoln, UK
Mary Laing, Northumbria University, UK
Michael Levi, Cardiff University, UK
Wayne Morrison, Queen Mary, University of London, UK
Reece Walters, Queensland University of Technology, Australia
Hayley Watson, Trilateral Research and Consultancy Group, UK

"The idea that, if we are to properly understand crime, we have to be prepared to look well beyond official statutes, penal codes and conventional definitions belongs to what is perhaps the most stimulating tradition in criminological analysis. Edwin Sutherland, conflict theorists and abolitionists are outstanding representatives of this tradition, which finds energetic and innovative following in this remarkable collection. A wide range of conducts is addressed, from sexual crimes to environmental damage, from elder abuse to bio-piracy, from health and safety violations to fraud: all invisible crimes causing very visible social harm." - Vincenzo Ruggiero, Middlesex University, UK

'In a world characterized for decades by a relentless harshness toward many kinds of crime, some of the most harmful and destructive actions by corporations, governments, and individuals have largely escaped punishment or even recognition as crimes. Why this should be so, and the consequences of this neglect and 'invisibility' for human well-being and social justice, is the subject of this thoughtful, wide-ranging, and stimulating collection. Invisible Crimes and Social Harms makes a compelling case for moving beyond criminology's conventional boundaries to redefine both what we study and how we study it.' Elliott Curry Professor of Criminology, Law and Society at University of California, Irvine.

'Cogently argued and expertly researched, presented and written Invisible Crimes and Social Harms is a timely and trenchant reminder that a plethora of deleterious yet "relatively invisible" illegalities and harms continue to persist. Nevertheless they exist beyond the investigatory scope of much criminological scholarship. Accordingly, the book's contribution towards illuminating the contours of invisibility by facilitating the advancement of new and progressive research capable of challenging popular conceptualizations of crime and harm is indeed a salient one. [...] Quite