Criminalized and Surveilled Behaviors: Open Call Paper Session

Session Submission Type: Paper Session (90 minute)

Description

This open session sponsored by the Crime, Law, and Deviance section explores research and theorizing on crime by exploring criminalized and surveilled behaviors, especially those intensified during times of social upheaval.

Crime as an important social problem remains relevant, but what is deemed a “crime problem” can vary widely. Crimes committed by certain people are prioritized as a pressing issue, while crimes committed by others are downplayed and crimes that disproportionately impact or target certain groups are often routinely ignored. Various forms of violence are supported by the state, whether committed by its agents or by private actors. And, in some countries’ increasingly polarized political climates, everyday behaviors ostensibly protected by free speech or other basic civil rights—such as protesting or speaking out—have become acts targeted for censorship, persecution, or punishment. In what ways are “crimes” a reflection of mechanisms that uphold oppressive structures and facilitate inequality? Under what conditions do surveilled behaviors effectively become crimes? What practical solutions could be implemented to interrupt and improve “crime problems”—and how do they vary according to the nature of the issue?

Consistent with the ASA 2026 theme, CLD seeks submissions that explicitly disrupt the status quo in the sociological study of crime. This includes work that challenges the typical priorities and assumptions of sociological criminology. CLD encourages submissions from sociologists working not only in academia, but also those in advocacy, policy, and community organizing to share their insights. Submissions may be empirical, methodological, or conceptual/theoretical.

Sub Unit

• Crime, Law, and Deviance Section / Criminalized and Surveilled Behaviors: Open Call Paper Session

Presider

• Vanessa R. Panfil, Old Dominion University

Individual Presentations

• The Digitally Defended Neighborhood: Suburban Racial Threat, Criminalization, and Participatory Surveillance - Max Lubell, University of Texas-Austin

• Examining Black Gun Owners' Legal Consciousness Across Distinct Regulatory Contexts: Evidence from FL and NJ - Kimberly Cecilia Burke, Rutgers University; Jennifer Paruk, Rutgers University, NJ Gun Violence Research Center

• Escaping and Scaping Roosevelt Avenue: Informality and Paradox - Miguel Diaz Cervantes, The New School

• Insider Authority: Formerly Incarcerated Ambassadors and the Transformation of Street-Level Governance in Violence Intervention Programs - Marisol Zarate, Stanford University

• How States of Emergency Impact Urban Violence: Lessons from El Salvador and Honduras - Anjuli Fahlberg, Tufts University

Session Organizer

• Vanessa R. Panfil, Old Dominion University