Racial Disparities In Prisons

The Racial disparities in the US prison population has been a problem for a very long time despite only being brought to the attention of the people of America. Unable to help themselves, prisoners relied on others to get the word out. The word is that the way the prison system treats blacks and other minorities is prejudiced and unjust. We are supposed to help others so how is keeping minorities, who in most cases, have committed small crimes which pent up and give them a record. We need to look out for these people and fight for their rights since they are not in a situation to do so to themselves. Without reflection by the government there will be no change in this problem for the future. Our nation has been based off the freedom of American
This problem has been sustained by the culture of treat minorities with less respect than deserved. Dignity is an important part of human nature. Catholic teachings state that about human dignity that “The Catholic Church proclaims that human life is sacred and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. This belief is the foundation of all the principles of our social teaching.. The author Ronn Johnson wrote in a textbook named Color behind Bars: Racism in the U.S. Prison System, “It might be argued that prison somehow manufactures or exacerbates race-conscious behavior by prisoners or staff within various U.S. prisons settings (e.g., mental health, supermax, military, and juvenile)” (Johnson). The idea that the people that are supposed to be protecting us are actually hurting us is a common thought today. It is a fact that blacks are arrested more than whites. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People states that “African Americans are incarcerated at nearly six times the rate of whites”. The people that hold the power over someone else combined with the past transgressions against minorities help change the mind of correctional officers. This also warps the officers thinking into it being a part of the
There are solutions that can help this problem subside. Some of these solutions are law changes benefit first time offenders for petty crimes. There are statistics to help point this out. The NAACP says again that, “5 times as many Whites are using drugs as African Americans, yet African Americans are sent to prison for drug offenses at 10 times the rate of Whites”. Many of these law target minorities who are put at different disadvantages from other races. A solution to this is to give leniency with more programs to help reform. Without any help these children will repeat offenders. More change could also be brought by the change in training of correctional officers today. If more preventative tactics were put in place and less race focused, our society will be able to help make the injustices lessen. There are other problems as prisons tend to not reform their prisoners. The NAACP shows that “Prison has not been proven as a rehabilitation for behavior, as two-thirds of prisoners will offend again”. Making prisons try and put more effort into reforming the prisoners will do much better for the repeat offenders in the future.
These unjust minorities treatments are holding back the future of America's ability to adjust to the changing world. After the problems of how the minorities are treated in the prison system changing, problems will only get worse. This is why we