11.10 Conclusion

Overall, feminist criminology centres gender together with other aspects of identity in crime and criminology rather than minimising or treating gender as an add-on. Rather than taking the male experience for granted, feminist criminology actively theorises the female experience of both criminalisation and victimisation, with critical attention to racism, classism, sexism, and other bases of discrimination and marginalisation. This chapter has illustrated the unique and critical lens that feminist criminology brings to issues of incarcerated women as well as gender based violence and victimisation. Sharing feminist roots with the diverse feminist theories, feminist criminology emphasizes the role of patriarchy, inequality, and gender in all explanations of crime and criminality.