SOC440

Most sociologists focus on problems related to crime at the individual, local, or regional level, yet another type of illicit activity has become a major concern, global crime. International crimes are violations of international criminal law, while transnational crimes refer to violations of the laws of more than one country. Although this course touches on the former, it focuses primarily on transnational crime and addresses causation, victimization, and control in an era of increased globalization. This class examines transnational crime as a social problem rooted in global inequality and disparate levels of development, not simply as a security or crime problem. We will discuss various types of illicit markets throughout the semester; however, five substantive areas will be the main focus of the course: 1) globalization and global inequality, 2) human trafficking and smuggling, 3) the criminalization of migration and immigration-crime link fallacy, 4) the \"war on drugs\", drug trafficking, and drug war, and 5) terrorism/insurgencies. We will also examine the rise in transnational policing and increased securitization, and discuss the possible consequences of these approaches. While several regions of the world will be examined throughout the semester, the US-Mexico border will be the primary \"case\" examined in this course.

CE - CL (Cross Listed), WE - WEC (Writing Emphasis Course)