What are today’s social evils? » Social evils: your responses

What are today’s social evils? » Social evils: your responses: "What are today’s social evils?"

Against this backdrop, people identified the following, more concrete, social evils:
• The decline of the family: family breakdown and poor parenting were felt to cause many
other social problems and leave young people particularly vulnerable.
• Young people as victims or perpetrators: Young people were seen as perpetrators of social
evils like anti-social behaviour, or the victims of stereotypes and limited opportunities.
• Drugs and alcohol: misuse of drugs and alcohol was viewed as the consequence and
cause of many other social problems, like family breakdown and poverty.
• Poverty and inequality: poverty was viewed as a corrosive social evil in an affluent society,
underpinning other social problems, such as homelessness and family breakdown.
• Immigration and responses to immigration: participants felt that local residents lose out to
immigrants in competition for scarce resources. Others criticised negative attitudes to and
lack of support for immigrants and thought society should be more tolerant and inclusive.
• Crime and violence: people felt that Britain is more dangerous and violent than in the past.
Child abuse and exploitation were highlighted as particularly damaging evils.

Government, media, big business and religion were believed to be responsible for these social
evils. People also emphasised personal responsibility for social evils, but thought bad choices and
damaging behaviour could be symptoms of underlying social problems, such as poverty. They
also thought some social evils are embedded in current ways of living and thinking.