A criminology of catastrophe: a critical analysis of imperialistic state crime and the Haiti earthquake

Despite the devastation caused by environmental catastrophes, these phenomena have yet to garner significant attention as a subject of criminological inquiry. This thesis is framed by the following question: How can we problematize the notion of “natural” disaster to arrive at a criminological understanding of human culpability in the production of harm? I argue that the degree of human suffering caused by natural disasters is aggravated by imperialistic state crimes, which predispose populations to conditions of vulnerability and dependency. I substantiate this argument with an analysis of Haiti and demonstrate how its history of imperialistic exploitation by the US amounted to a pattern of state crime victimization that marginalized Haitians and, consequently, shaped their suffering from the 2010 earthquake. The story of Haiti exemplifies the relationship between the contemporary hardships of a natural disaster and the historical injustices of state crime, thus illuminating the relevance of a criminology of catastrophe.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts (MA)

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Criminology

Grantor

University of Ontario Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2011

Author dc:creator

• San Antonio, Jaclyn Tricia

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Perry, Barbara
• Ammar, Nawal
• Alvi, Shahid

• Natural disaster
• State crime
• Imperialism
• Haiti

Language dc:language.iso

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10155/170

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:ontariotechu.scholaris.ca:10155/170