User:Decaudinc/New Sandbox

Queer Criminology
Queer criminology is a field of study that focuses on LGBT individuals and their interactions with the criminal justice system. The goals of this field of study are as follows:
 * To better understand the history of LGBT individuals and the laws put against the community
 * Why LGBT citizens are incarcerated and if or why they are arrested at higher rates than heterosexual and cisgender individuals
 * How queer activists have fought against oppressive laws that criminalized LGBT individuals
 * To conduct research and use it as a form of activism through education

Legitimacy
The value of pursuing criminology from a queer theorist perspective is contested; some believe that it is not worth researching and not relevant to the field as a whole, and as a result is a subject that lacks a wide berth of research available. On the other hand, it could be argued that this subject is highly valuable in highlighting how LGBT individuals are affected by the criminal justice system. This research also has the opportunity to “queer” the curriculum of criminology in educational institutions by shifting the focus from controlling and monitoring LGBT communities to liberating and protecting them.