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Read the Preface

"The result of Miller's information lode is aa]sometimes uplifting book. It is possible for government and private-sector programs to alleviate the violence against females, Miller believes--but not if those in charge lack the will and refuse to allocate the resources."
--"St. Louis Post Dispatch"

aMiller gives us a detailed examination of the violence experienced by Black inner city girls whose victimization is based on multiple dimensions of their lives: because they are Black, because they live in extremely disadvantaged neighborhoods, and because they are women. Milleras careful, rich, detailed field work documents and analyzes the complex realities of these young womenas lives that set the context for the struggles they routinely contend with. The voices of these young people have been ignored for too long. Getting Played has given them an opportunity to be heard that is long overdue.a
--Robert Crutchfield, University of Washington

aGetting Played shows powerfully how gender, class, and race inequality expose girls in disadvantaged urban communities to violent and sexual victimization, both in neighborhoods and in schools. Miller expertly analyzes how extreme social and economic disadvantage combine with pervasive normative codes to create a context in which girls face high risks of victimization at the hands of boys and men. Getting Played is masterful.a
--Karen Heimer, co-editor of "Gender and Crime: Patterns in Victimization and Offending"

aBy giving us a better understanding of how the neighborhoods and the peer culture of poor African American youth increase the risk of agendered victimization, a GettingPlayed challenges both academics and policymakers to face the role of structured discrimination in the perpetuation of violence toward women.a
--Candace Kruttschnitt, co-author of "Marking Time in the Golden State: Womenas Imprisonment in California"

aThis is a significant and timely book. Miller has taken on a vitally important, but understudied, topic--violence against young Black girls in economically depressed urban settings.a
--Dana M. Britton, author of "At Work in the Iron Cage: The Prison as Gendered Organization"

aMiller grabs readers' attention with the stark reality of the widespread occurrence of violent victimization among the girls she studies.a
--From the Foreword by Ruth D. Peterson, Distinguished Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences, The Ohio State University

Much has been written about the challenges that face urban African American young men, but less is said about the harsh realities for African American young women in disadvantaged communities. Sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, and even gang rape are not uncommon experiences. In Getting Played, sociologist Jody Miller presents a compelling picture of this dire social problem and explores how inextricably, and tragically, linked violence is to their daily lives in poor urban neighborhoods.

Drawing from richly textured interviews with adolescent girls and boys, Miller brings a keen eye to the troubling realities of a world infused with danger and gender-based violence. These girls are isolated, ignored, and often victimized by those considered family and friends. Community institutions such as the police and schools that are meant to protect them often turn a blind eye, leaving girls to fend for themselves. Miller draws a vivid picture of the race and gender inequalities that harm these communities--and how these result in deeply and dangerously engrained beliefs about gender that teach youths to see such violence--rather than the result of broader social inequalities--as deserved due to individual girlsa flawed characters, i.e., ashe deserved it.a

Through Milleras careful analysis of these engaging, often unsettling stories, Getting Played shows us not only how these young women are victimized, but how, despite vastly inadequate social support and opportunities, they struggle to navigate this dangerous terrain.

This book is about the meanings of masculinities within the social networks of the streets of an American city (St Louis, Missouri), and how these shaped perceptions and enactments of violence. Based on a large number of interviews with offenders the author provides a rich description of life on the streets, contextualizing criminal violence within this deviant subculture, and with a specific focus on issues of gender. The book provides one of the most detailed descriptions yet of the forms masculinity takes in disadvantages communities in the United States. It establishes how street based gender identity motivated and guided men through violent encounters, exploring how men's relationships with women and their families instigated violence. One key issue addressed is why men resorted to violence in certain situations and not in others, exploring the range of choices open to them and how these opportunities were interpreted. The book makes a major contribution to the study of the relationship between masculinities and violence, making use of a much larger sample than elsewhere.

This book is about the meanings of masculinities within the social networks of the streets of an American city (St Louis, Missouri), and how these shaped perceptions and enactments of violence. Based on a large number of interviews with offenders the author provides a rich description of life on the streets, contextualizing criminal violence within this deviant subculture, and with a specific focus on issues of gender. The book provides one of the most detailed descriptions yet of the forms masculinity takes in disadvantages communities in the United States. It establishes how street based gender identity motivated and guided men through violent encounters, exploring how men's relationships with women and their families instigated violence. One key issue addressed is why men resorted to violence in certain situations and not in others, exploring the range of choices open to them and how these opportunities were interpreted. The book makes a major contribution to the study of the relationship between masculinities and violence, making use of a much larger sample than elsewhere.

This book reports the impact a four-year longitudinal study (Representations, Oral Language and Engagement in Mathematics (RoleM)) had on teachers and students from 16 schools in disadvantaged contexts. It offers theories with regard to the interplay between teaching and learning mathematics as teachers and students in these contexts implement a mathematics program. The data are longitudinal, drawn from 154 teachers and their students (up to 1738 students) from the first four years of school (Foundation to Year 3). To ascertain the effectiveness of the RoleM Professional Learning model, teachers were interviewed three times a year and pre and post-tests were administered to students at the beginning and end of each year. Students' results indicated that all students' understanding of mathematics improved significantly, with the ESL students showing the greatest gains. Their results matched the norm-referenced expectations for all Australian students of this age. This book shares the journey of these teachers, Indigenous teacher aides and students. It outlines the dimensions of the research findings that supported teachers to become effective teachers of mathematics and assisted students in becoming successful learners of mathematics. The book also draws on the expertise of researchers from both Canada and New Zealand. They share the similarities and the differences between RoleM findings and their own contexts, in order to draw general conclusions for the effective teaching and learning of mathematics at the margins of society.

View the Table of Contents
Read the Preface

"The result of Miller's information lode is aa]sometimes uplifting book. It is possible for government and private-sector programs to alleviate the violence against females, Miller believes--but not if those in charge lack the will and refuse to allocate the resources."
--"St. Louis Post Dispatch"

aMiller gives us a detailed examination of the violence experienced by Black inner city girls whose victimization is based on multiple dimensions of their lives: because they are Black, because they live in extremely disadvantaged neighborhoods, and because they are women. Milleras careful, rich, detailed field work documents and analyzes the complex realities of these young womenas lives that set the context for the struggles they routinely contend with. The voices of these young people have been ignored for too long. Getting Played has given them an opportunity to be heard that is long overdue.a
--Robert Crutchfield, University of Washington

aGetting Played shows powerfully how gender, class, and race inequality expose girls in disadvantaged urban communities to violent and sexual victimization, both in neighborhoods and in schools. Miller expertly analyzes how extreme social and economic disadvantage combine with pervasive normative codes to create a context in which girls face high risks of victimization at the hands of boys and men. Getting Played is masterful.a
--Karen Heimer, co-editor of "Gender and Crime: Patterns in Victimization and Offending"

aBy giving us a better understanding of how the neighborhoods and the peer culture of poor African American youth increase the risk of agendered victimization, a GettingPlayed challenges both academics and policymakers to face the role of structured discrimination in the perpetuation of violence toward women.a
--Candace Kruttschnitt, co-author of "Marking Time in the Golden State: Womenas Imprisonment in California"

aThis is a significant and timely book. Miller has taken on a vitally important, but understudied, topic--violence against young Black girls in economically depressed urban settings.a
--Dana M. Britton, author of "At Work in the Iron Cage: The Prison as Gendered Organization"

aMiller grabs readers' attention with the stark reality of the widespread occurrence of violent victimization among the girls she studies.a
--From the Foreword by Ruth D. Peterson, Distinguished Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences, The Ohio State University

Much has been written about the challenges that face urban African American young men, but less is said about the harsh realities for African American young women in disadvantaged communities. Sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, and even gang rape are not uncommon experiences. In Getting Played, sociologist Jody Miller presents a compelling picture of this dire social problem and explores how inextricably, and tragically, linked violence is to their daily lives in poor urban neighborhoods.

Drawing from richly textured interviews with adolescent girls and boys, Miller brings a keen eye to the troubling realities of a world infused with danger and gender-based violence. These girls are isolated, ignored, and often victimized by those considered family and friends. Community institutions such as the police and schools that are meant to protect them often turn a blind eye, leaving girls to fend for themselves. Miller draws a vivid picture of the race and gender inequalities that harm these communities--and how these result in deeply and dangerously engrained beliefs about gender that teach youths to see such violence--rather than the result of broader social inequalities--as deserved due to individual girlsa flawed characters, i.e., ashe deserved it.a

Through Milleras careful analysis of these engaging, often unsettling stories, Getting Played shows us not only how these young women are victimized, but how, despite vastly inadequate social support and opportunities, they struggle to navigate this dangerous terrain.

An up-to-date collection of the most insightful and influential research on gangs today, The Modern Gang Reader, Fourth Edition, brings together articles that discuss the prevalence, structures, and behaviors of gangs today and analyze society's responses to them.
With a strong focus on international and comparative research, this authoritative volume exposes students to the array of dissenting points of view that represent the ongoing controversies behind the nature of gangs.
NEW TO THIS EDITION
Thirty-two new articles covering a variety of issues--gang desistance, reentry from incarceration, victimization, international gangs, and more
New sections throughout, including three devoted to better understanding the relationships between gang membership and racial inequality, gender, and community contexts
New introductions at the beginning of each section that provide conceptual links with other pieces in the anthology
Updated and expanded coverage of methodological strategies for studying gangs, the demographic characteristics of gang members, group processes within gangs, and other key topics