Social justice career inspired by childhood event

Social justice career inspired by childhood event

An event from his childhood affected Murray Riches so much, he’s spent his life studying it.

In 2014, the University of Waikato management school student completed a Master of Management Studies, supervised by Professor Debashish Munshi, for which his thesis received an A+.

His thesis is entitled Constructing and Reconstructing Criminality in Aotearoa/New Zealand: Dominant Media Discourses on Crime and Criminality and their impact on offenders’ identities and rehabilitation efforts.

Murray says his interest in this subject began when, as a 10-year-old, his foster brother went to prison.

“I have clear memories of how my foster-brother’s ‘self’ was diminished by this, and our family became voiceless once he was deemed to be a criminal,” says Murray. “No-one was interested in what we had to say. It was a very confronting experience and it was the first time I realised my privileged experience of being a middle-class, white person weren’t shared by everyone. That was a foundation moment that started my journey to social justice, activism and advocacy.”

Originally from Taumarunui, Murray now works as a youth mentor with Anglican Action in Hamilton.

His Masters research examines media reporting and ideologies surrounding crime and criminality in New Zealand, how such ideas are constructed and reinforced by mainstream media and what implications these stereotypes have on rehabilitating offenders who have served time.

His project had two parts: half of it was analysing media reporting of crime and criminals, focusing on the New Zealand Herald and Waikato Times over a 12-month period. The other half involved ethnographic work where Murray spent 12 months as a participant/observer in an offender rehabilitation programme for men serving jail terms of up to 20 years who are deemed high risk, attending focus groups and interviews.

“It was a really humbling experience,” says Murray. “The men’s openness, kindness and willingness to make me feel included was quite overwhelming. I was made to feel a part of their community and journey.”

Murray says there is a portrayal in the media of a one dimensional criminal identity. A person’s offending becomes all they are, not part of a bigger story.

“I’ve heard people described in the media as mongrels, and violent monsters who shouldn’t be approached, and had vastly different experiences of them when meeting with them face-to-face. We’ve all done things we wouldn’t want to be defined by, but there is no humanity in the portrayal of what is a criminal.”

His study identified the “otherisation” of criminals in the media, where offenders are referred to as an “other”, a person outside what is assumed to be the mainstream social framework.

Murray believes this ‘wilful blindness’ in mainstream media needs to change. And while he says the media in general reports on criminals a certain way, Murray acknowledges some journalists see beyond the stereotypes, and challenge the idea of the crime being all a person is.

His research emphasised that the media and society needs to shift away from fear-based sensationalised responses to crime.

“Until we are able to understand a person’s full story, and therefore their full humanity, the fears and prejudices about criminals will remain.”

ENDS

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