Incarceration of African American Males Essay

Introduction The trend of African American males amongst the ages of 25 and 29 has seen a dramatic add-on of incarceration. Attention has been centering on areas of housing, education, and healthcare but the most prominent problem for African American males is the increase in the incarceration rate. African American males between the ages of 25 and 29 incarceration rate has been thought, by many a nonher(prenominal), to be caused by economic factors much(prenominal)(prenominal) as under employment or unemployment, execrable housing, overleap of education, and lack of healthcare.Yet, others believe it is collect to the imbalance of minorities within the turn evaluator system, such as judges, lawyers, and law fliprs. This paper pass on explore two different issuelooks smart set has come up with so far, as to why African American Males between the ages of 25 and 29 are increasingly incarcerated. Fin every last(predicate)y, the information get out shit awareness to the pr oblems that is faced by African American Males between the ages of 25 and 29. prevalence Problem 1 More than 40% of all American prisoners, men and women, are African American men, yet they make up just 13% of the U. S. male population (Roberts, 2004).This statistic does non involve those African American men who are in local jails nor does it allow those African American men under custodial supervision (Table 2). They get into the state and federal prison system, at the prime of their economic and generative lives and yet they exit prison behind both economically and favorablely. The luxuriously rate of incarceration among African Americans has been noted by the interconnection of poor economy, lack of affordable housing, mental illness, substance abuse, domestic violence, absence of a strong black male role model, lack of access to education, or some type of combination of these factors.Statistics dont even give African American males a good chance to stay out of jail. Th ey direct a one in four chance of creation incarcerated, while Hispanic American males endure a one in six chance, and white males unaccompanied take a one in xx three chance of incarceration. The color of African Americans sets them apart and makes them targetable. Prevalence Problem 2 There is evidence, in our American Justice System, of geomorphological disagreement as seen in the percentages of minorities to the percentage of majorities employed in elevated ranking positions, within the system.The percentage of United States judges by look sharp are 79% Caucasian, 12% African American, and 2% Hispanics American (Federal juridical Center, 2012), as for the thousands of lawyers in the United States it is approximate of 3% are African American (National Law Group, 2010-2011), and about 1 in 4 police officers are members of a racial or ethnic minority in 2007 (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2013). An investigation into racial profiling showed that African American and Hi spanic American offenders, who often are newfangled unemployed males, are more than credibly than their white counterparts (Spohn, C., 2000). Their prison sentences are in like manner typically long-acting or they receive differential benefits from guideline departures than do similarly ascertain white offenders (Spohn, C. , 2000). We must ack at presentledge the problems of racial disparity within the criminal rightness system, communicate racial disparity within the criminal justice system with those we who are not informed of the problem, and stay committed to changing racial disparity within our justice system for change to begin.Causes In researching the high gear rate of incarceration in America it is more likely than not that the increase in African American Males being incarcerated is due to the War on Drugs (Table 1). It is frequent cognition that drug crime ranks high among the effects of poverty. These poor neighborhoods not only endure crime they draw poor sch ools, poor food, cramped living areas, and shortage of jobs if any jobs at all.Drugs and drug crime has acquire regularity in low income communities, arrests of Hispanics make up 55% of cocaine powder offences and 52% of marijuana offenses and 49% involving opiates African Americans were suspected in 75% of crack cocaine cases albumen males were suspected in 41% all methamphetamine cases (Motivans, M. , 2011). Decades of failed public and privy remedies for chronic disparities and disadvantages in communities of color invite us to reexamine systems and institutions that show and restrict opportunity in new ways (Lawrence, K. , 2011).The causes seem to be intertwined being poor equals, equals a poor education, equals lack of employment, and ultimately equals an increase rate of crime. Consequences The causes seem to be intertwined being poor, equals lack of education, which equals lack of employment, which equals change magnitude rate of crime which equals impossibility to join criminal justice system. Also, many of these men are incarcerated while all the other non-incarcerated American young men are finishing school, starting careers, earning seniority at manoeuver, marrying and having children then gaining capital.Even when released from prison, these men return back to their communities with a felony record that exit pose extreme problems for them. The incarceration leads the released convict into a lower social class even if they were considered lower class Americans prior to their incarceration they now are lower in social class standing in most instances. This leads to a poor African American community, perhaps as many as 50% of the male population go away have been in prison.These incarcerated African American Males, who are in their prime of life, similarly are leaving half the families in this community facing such things as poverty, lack of affordable housing, mental illness, substance abuse, violence, absence of a strong black male role mo del, lack of access to education, or some type of combination of these factors. The community ultimately will become poverty stricken, struggling to survive, and ultimately vulnerable to the situation repeating. Solutions How can this be changed? There are four key aspects to addressing racial disparity, in my flavour 1.Acknowledge 2. Communication 3. Setback = Strength 4. Commitment Not only is the problem of racial disparity under recognized by federation it is not being communicated effectively to make change. Majority groups needs to accommodate racial disparity and minority groups need to communicate their knowledge regarding racial disparity. As each group majority and minority begins to become partake their information with each other and work together for a third estate solution acknowledging there will be setbacks but with continued commission systemic change will happen.Conclusion By refusing to tolerate disparate treatment of people of color or anyone within the cr iminal justice system we dower ourselves and our country. It is time that everyone including our legislators, law enforcement, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and judges work collectively and courageously to eradicate this negative stigma. Despite, America being cognize for its equal rights we are living proof that in this era inequality is a factor that cannot be taken lightly. The statistics that are surrounding African American males is astounding.We need to empower African American males with the knowledge that they have a one in four chance of becoming incarcerated. It is also important to know that Hispanic males have a one in six chance, and white males have a one in twenty three chance of incarceration. All of these statistics need to be addressed to empower each and every one us. Throughout history we have not seen a change in majority groups (White, Male) and minority groups (Women, anyone that is not White) although we have seen numbers of minorities increasing at a fas t pace.Today, however, the election of Barack Obama, not once but twice, may set the new ideal of what an American actually is. As we embrace different cultures and their ethnic backgrounds society will prosper. As society increases their knowledge, in regards to each persons differences, they will acquire greater strength and prosperity. The only issue, that can occur, will be in the short term empowering others to embrace diversity. When we look beyond short-term, focus will shift to diverse empowerment through embracing the knowledge of our differences thus making us stronger as a society.TABLE 1 blackness PROPORTION OF DRUG ARRESTS, EXCLUDING MARIJUANA POSSESSION YEAR BLACK % 1999 40. 1 2000 39. 3 2001 39. 1 2002 35. 8 2003 33. 8 2004 33. 1 2005 33. 2 Data calculated from drug arrest figures by race provided by the ordered hatred Reports division of the FBI TABLE 2 FBI CRIME comprehend Arrests By Race, 2006 11,249 agencies 2006 estimated population 216,685,152 Total White Bl ack American Indian or Alaskan Native Asian or Pacific islander Total White Black American Indian or Alaskan Native Asian or Pacific Islander TOTAL 10,437,620.7270214 2924724 130589 112093 100. 0 69. 7 28 1. 3 1. 1 Drug abuse violations 1376192 875101 483886 8198 9607 cat valium 63. 6 35. 1 0. 6 0. 7 DUIS 1034651 914226 95260 13484 11681 100 88. 4 9. 2 1. 3 1. 1 Liquor laws 466323 398068 50035 12831 5389 100 85. 4 10. 7 2. 8 1. 2 Drunken-ness 408439 344155 54113 7884 2287 100 84. 3 13. 2 1. 9 0. 6 Dis-orderly conduct 5117264 325991 179733 7606 3934 100 63. 0 34. 7 1. 5 0. 8 (The FBI Uniform Crime Report, 2010) References Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2013, http//bjs. ojp. usdoj. gov/index. cfm?ty=tp&tid=71 The FBI Uniform Crime Reports, 2010, Table 43, http//www. fbi. gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u. s/2010/crime-in-the-u. s. -2010/tables/table-43 Federal Judicial Center, 2012, Overview of the United States Court System, http//www. fjc. gov/public/pdf. nsf/lookup/FJC_Stand ard_PPT_English_June_2012. pdf/$file/FJC_Standard_PPT_English_June_2012. pdf Lawrence, K. , 2011, Race, Crime, and Punishment Breaking the Connection in America, http//www. aspeninstitute. org/sites/ inadvertence/files/ marrow/docs/pubs/Race-Crime-Punishment.pdf Motivans, Mark, 2011, Washington, DC US Dept. of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics, http//bjs. ojp. usdoj. gov/content/pub/pdf/fjs09. pdf National Law Group 2010-2011, http//blacklawyers. net/ Roberts, D. , 2004, Measuring the affable and Moral Cost of Mass Incarceration, in African American Communities, http//www. law. fsu. edu/module/2003-2004workshops/roberts. pdf Spohn,C. ,2000, Thirty Years of Sentencing Reform The Quest for a Racially inert Sentencing Process, http//www. justicestudies. com/pubs/livelink3-1. pdf.