Written by Manali Jama Last month Meek Mill was sentenced 2 to 4 years in a state prison for violating his probation on a conviction in 2008. Starting at the young age of 19, Robert Rahmeek Williams popularly known as “Meek Mill” has been fighting off the relentless grasp of the criminal justice system. This is just one example of how many young black men get pulled into the system. The system is set up in a way that makes it very hard to escape once you're trapped. This is a big problem because, the justice system was created in order to provide justice but that is not the case, it often times discriminates against black individuals. Blacks are incarcerated at higher rates than any other races. The criminal justice system; although it was created in order to uphold social control, and deter crime as well as punishing those who violate laws and commit crimes, it often times discriminates against African Americans. It is setup so that it can bring down these individuals. The rate of incarcerated black individuals is disproportionate and alarming. This then takes a big toll on individual communities. According to Ap News "African Americans constitute nearly 1 million of the 2.3 million persons incarcerated". This is concerning because black people alone make up more than half the incarcerated population. This in turn negatively affects families and communities. In a study done by "National Survey of American Life", it showed that the children of inmates do less well in school and exhibit behavioral problems. Mass incarceration of blacks isn't just an issue that affects just the individuals targeted, but it goes beyond and has an effect on children and family members. Others might argue that they are not targeted, but they just commit more crimes. According to Ap News once again, "Blacks are 6 times more likely to be incarcerated than their white counterparts for the same crime". A white person is more likely to get away with the same crime compared to a black individual which shows how unfair the justice system can be. The war on drugs is an epidemic that heavily penalize drug charges. It increases incarceration among the African American population especially. Some believe that the war on drugs was the new “Jim Crow”, like the Jim Crow laws, mass incarceration due to the war on drugs discriminates against blacks. The war on drugs seems to be targeting blacks more than any other race. In an article published by Huffington post showed that, "Whites also use marijuana, painkillers, meth, and other drugs at higher rates than people of color — and yet black individuals are arrested for drug possession more than three times as often as whites are" (Huffington Post). This shows how it directly affects blacks and how they are discriminated against when it comes to the war on drugs. The fact that whites use drugs at a higher rate than blacks but aren't sent to prison for it shows the unfair advantage they have. It also shows how unjust the Justice System can be. African Americans are having to constantly feel the target that’s been placed on their backs strictly due to the amount of melanin in their skin. It is very unfair and it is a problem that needs to be addressed. This can be first done by educating those who aren't aware of what is happening. Systems that were put into place to protect and provide justice are failing many black people. Cops are mistreating black individuals daily, and even resorting in taking innocent lives, under the assumption that if they are black, they are dangerous and guilty. There needs to be a change in the way that cops handle situations, a way that doesn’t automatically resort to violence. There also needs to be a change in the way the justice system handles cases involving black individuals. Mass incarceration is a big issue that tends to mainly affect blacks because they are found guilty more times than their counterparts of white people. These systems need to do a better job in not attacking and making the lives of black people any harder.
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AuthorSirena Backham Archives
March 2018
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