Summary: The Sliding Scale Of Snitching

Edward,
Thank you for another informative posting. I agree with your take on the anti-snitching may not just be a trust issues. It was nothing in my younger years to hear parents tell us to stop tattling on each other and like with anything, if one hears it enough it is instilled in them pretty much for life, that instills a fear of telling things especially when one knows that the law is being broken and it is a stigma that sticks for life and can affect future relationships and activities. “Keeping one's mouth closed when rules or laws are broken has a long history” (Clampet-Lundquist et al., 2015 para. 2), however there are ways that people can report crimes anonymously like here in town there is a program called Crime Line where illegal activities can be reported anonymously so no one would know who filed the report. Proverbs 16:13 “Righteous lips are the delight of a king, and he loves him who speaks what is right.” (Holy Bible ESV).

Reference
Clampet-Lundquist, S.
C. (2015). The Sliding Scale of Snitching: A Qualitative Examination of Snitching in Three Philadelphia Communities. Sociol Forum, 30: 265–285,
doi:10.1111/socf.12162.