User:Ho An Spring 2008

Soc 101

The economy of todays world in the United States has caused people to live below the poverty line. Being in Athens, Ohio you see an area that has been affected by the poverty. Many people in Athens do not have the extra things like the people of Columbus or such areas. In many other poverty stricken places around the world, you hear a lot about how there are always robberies and all. It is a way for the people to get the things they need even though it is illegal. When I first drove around Athens and saw some of the living conditions, I could not believe it. Houses were old and falling apart. Yards were full of weeds and trash. Cars were broken down everywhere but the people looked happy. During that drive around town, my buddy said that we better make sure our doors are locked because there are probably a lot of break-ins. I asked him why he thought that and he said because we have much nicer things then they do and they will try and steal stuff. I thought about what he said and agreed because that was how it was where I grew up. When we talked about crime and deviance during class I thought about Athens. You would think being in a college city and the rest of the city being poverty stricken, crimes would be very high. After doing a lot of research, I found some numbers that were eye opening. In 2006, Athens had 1,165 crime incidents. Now with this city being mostly full of college students, the number was not very high compared to Urbana, which is another small college town. They had over 3,000 crime incidents. Crime Number Total 1,165 Murder 0 Rape 10 Robbery 8 Aggravated Assault 34 Burglary 142 Larceny - theft 938 Motor vehicle thefts 30 That is a chart of the crime breakdown of Athens, Ohio. After looking at the numbers, the two things that stand out are the murders and theft. The theft was almost 75% of the crime for the year. Even though Athens has a low crime rate, the crimes that are committed can be connected to poverty stricken houses.

Reference http://www.fedstats.gov/mapstats/crime/county/39009.html