Tensions have peaked as the public awaits the final presidential debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The debates thus far have covered, and uncovered, multiple issues that must be addressed before choosing a new Commander and Chief. One topic that was lightly touched upon in the first debate was Hillary Clinton's use of the term "superpredator" in the late 90s.
The issue with the term superpredator goes back to escalating rates of violent crimes which spawned moral panics about youth in the 70s and 80s; the term was popularized in the early 90s by John J. Dilulio, but was subsequently retired in the late 90s when the idea of the superpredator never came into fruition. Though the term has fallen out of favor with politicians and criminologists, its effects are still evident when examining juveniles within contemporary politics. To examine this larger issue, it is necessary to see how this ideology has led to the inappropriate labeling of juvenile subgroups as "deviant" and "criminal."
The ideology of increased violence has been applied to different youth subgroups, such as straight edge. Straight edge stems from 80s punk/hardcore movements emphasizing abstention from drugs, alcohol, and sex as a new form of rebellion. This description provides a foundation for the understanding of this group, but is limited by its superficial qualities and does not fully address the group's countercultural goals of rebelling against a system plagued with substance abuse and excessive alcohol abuse. Abstaining from drugs and alcohol might be seen as beneficial, but the group is also judged by increased acts of violence promoted by its hyper-masculine atmosphere; the group's inappropriate label of "deviant" has transitioned into a "criminal" label due to violence within the group. Rather than exploring the group as a counterculture, deviant and criminal labels are progressed and reinforced.
The topic of straight edge received increased attention in the late 90s as it increased in popularity; it was perceived as one of the most rapid growing trends in American youth. A large portion of contemporary articles that addressed straight edge were dedicated to developing members as participants of "gangs" rather than a counterculture. Wolfgang and Ferracuti's research in A Subculture of Violence and Anderson's research in The Code of the Streets addressed youth gangs and how they were prone to violence in order to gain respect; these ideas became prominent when discussing juvenile delinquency, perpetuating the idea that juveniles were becoming more violent.
The article, The Twisted World of a "Straight Edge" Gang, published by the Los Angeles Times in 1998, is an example of how straight edge has been addressed in the past. During the 90s, writers vilified juvenile "crews" and "gangs" in order to perpetuate a narrative of increased violence from youth. The author, Louis Sahagun, provided a rudimentary insight to the foundation of straight edge, but also limited his evaluation by not addressing fundamental axioms within the group. Alternative social movements from the 70s and 80s promoted the idea of rebelling through sex, drugs, and rock n' roll; these values were seen as sentiments of rebellion for past generations, but for contemporary groups such as straight edge, these are staples of the status quo.
Sahagun's article's primary example of the increased violence in straight edge populations was the Ellerman brothers; Clinton Ellerman was sentenced to two years in prison for a raid on a local milk farm while his younger brother, Joshua Ellerman, was awaiting a trial on federal charges for connection to the bombing of a fur breeder's cooperative. Sahagun uses the brothers as an example of straight edge as a collective and fails to introduce their extremist views on animal rights as an intersectionality; extremist views on animal rights caused their violence, not being straight edge. Violence within straight edge groups is predominantly limited to concerts which provide an outlet for the group; this becomes their space for rebellion and to develop meaning as a collective.
The fear of juveniles and groups like straight edge in the 90s influenced the public's state of panic, and focused on the idea that violent crime rates were rising due to youth who were transitioning into superpredators. Scholars from the 70s and 80s produced voluminous research depicting increased violence from youth. We can see evidence of the effects of this research on outlets like the media when reporting events like the British youth conflicts between the mods and the rockers. Because researchers and tabloids kept reporting how violence was increasing, our nation's greatest crime decline went unnoticed until the early years of the 21st century.
Zimmring's The Great American Crime Decline addresses the reasons, such as the legalization of abortions and stabilizing of the crack market, why the purposed increased levels of violence never came to fruition. In recent years much literature has been dedicated to explaining the massive national crime decline that occurred during the 90s and the adverse effect it had on legislation aimed at juveniles. There is no clear answer to why crime declined; part of the reason is that researchers spent so much time saying how things were getting worse, they did not notice when they got better.
Flaws in articles about straight edge represent a larger issue with addressing subgroups in contemporary literature. Their inappropriate deviant label has transitioned into a criminal one. Criminal labeling of any group furthers aspects of alienation and pushes them further into the fringe of society where they have increased interactions with law enforcement. The criminal label straight edge individuals earned in the 90s transcends the group and can be applied to other juvenile subgroups. Donald Trump scolded Hillary for using the term "superpredators" when describing youth, but this was the normative thought process of the period. Juvenile subgroups suffer from frequent mislabeling and become, subsequently, demonized and vilified by politicians and legislators. It is important for the next leader of our nation to understand the follies of the past and explore juvenile subgroups in order to promote visibility and appropriate labels.