What Are The Effects Of Mass Incarceration
Mass incarceration is the mass intake of people of color into the justice system. It is being labeled as the “new Jim Crow.” Meaning that it is the unspoken legal separation of people of color from whites. The old Jim Crow made it legal for segregation to exist and the new Jim Crow made it easier to hide the racism that still exists in America. Mass incarceration is the new racial caste system/the new Jim Crow because it made a clear divide between whites and blacks. It did this by promoting stereotypes and using the media to fuel hatred and fear.
While Jim Crow punished people for who they are, mass incarceration launched a clear attack on the black community. As explained in the film the 13th, crack and cocaine are the same drug. The only …show more content…
difference is the intake of the drug. Cocaine was predominant in white communities while crack was predominant in the black communities. Crack was labeled it as the “devil's drug” and often referred to the users with such derogatory names. They demonized people using it when in reality white people were doing the same exact drug. The media was flooded with images of people of color who were getting arrested for the same thing that whites were doing. Using the power of media, it made the public believe that blacks were predators and dangerous. In reality, white people where doing the same drug but it wasn’t publicized.
The justice system also created the fear of young black men.
The film the 13th talked about “super predators.” This was a term to stigmatize and dehumanize young black drug abusers. The media created an outlet through the justice system allowing for racism to peak through. The New Jim Crow written by Michelle Alexander also talked about the Three Strike policy. The Three Strike policy gave people three strikes, meaning that if they commit three felonies, they are in prison for life (Alexander). In her book, Alexander says, “ [if the] worst thing you have ever done is speed ten miles over the speed limit on the freeway, you have put yourself and others at more risk of harm than someone smoking marijuana in the privacy of his or her living room. Yet there are people in the United States serving life sentences for first-time drug offenses, something virtually unheard of anywhere else in the world.” She goes on to talk what other governments are doing to combat drug addiction. Some countries developed drug prevention programs, gave people education etc. There are 2.2 million people in prison and 67% of those inmates are black (The Sentencing Project). With this number so high, it forces people to believe that people of color are predators, even people of color
themselves.
Some may argue that African-Americans support “tough on crime” laws as a response to ghetto crime that mostly harms African-Americans. It’s hard for them not to believe it when what we see in the media portrays these individuals as criminals. It portrays them as predators and makes the public fear them. How is it hard for them to not believe it when that is getting shoved in their face? However, this isn’t true for all African Americans. Some African Americans see the issue that they are facing and they stand up for it. This is where the civil rights movement comes in.
While Jim Crow punished people for who they are, mass incarceration launched a clear attack on the black community. As explained in the film the 13th, crack and cocaine are the same drug. The only …show more content…
difference is the intake of the drug. Cocaine was predominant in white communities while crack was predominant in the black communities. Crack was labeled it as the “devil's drug” and often referred to the users with such derogatory names. They demonized people using it when in reality white people were doing the same exact drug. The media was flooded with images of people of color who were getting arrested for the same thing that whites were doing. Using the power of media, it made the public believe that blacks were predators and dangerous. In reality, white people where doing the same drug but it wasn’t publicized.
The justice system also created the fear of young black men.
The film the 13th talked about “super predators.” This was a term to stigmatize and dehumanize young black drug abusers. The media created an outlet through the justice system allowing for racism to peak through. The New Jim Crow written by Michelle Alexander also talked about the Three Strike policy. The Three Strike policy gave people three strikes, meaning that if they commit three felonies, they are in prison for life (Alexander). In her book, Alexander says, “ [if the] worst thing you have ever done is speed ten miles over the speed limit on the freeway, you have put yourself and others at more risk of harm than someone smoking marijuana in the privacy of his or her living room. Yet there are people in the United States serving life sentences for first-time drug offenses, something virtually unheard of anywhere else in the world.” She goes on to talk what other governments are doing to combat drug addiction. Some countries developed drug prevention programs, gave people education etc. There are 2.2 million people in prison and 67% of those inmates are black (The Sentencing Project). With this number so high, it forces people to believe that people of color are predators, even people of color
themselves.
Some may argue that African-Americans support “tough on crime” laws as a response to ghetto crime that mostly harms African-Americans. It’s hard for them not to believe it when what we see in the media portrays these individuals as criminals. It portrays them as predators and makes the public fear them. How is it hard for them to not believe it when that is getting shoved in their face? However, this isn’t true for all African Americans. Some African Americans see the issue that they are facing and they stand up for it. This is where the civil rights movement comes in.