Racism in the American Justice System
Forms of crime and justice have been relevant and can be traced all the way back to the first civilized societies of the Ancient world. Fortunately these systems have reformed to reflect changing customs, political ideals, and economic conditions of a given society. That being said, one would think that America’s justice system would be one of the most progressive in the world. However, looking at the overwhelming evidence, the it is actually to the contrary. As the book The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness outlines, it has been proven that the American criminal justice system is in fact, inherently racist.
The first example of how this is true is that the War on Drugs is really …show more content…
As soon as a minority obtains a criminal record, suddenly a vast amount of legalized scapegoating besieges them. They can now legally be disenfranchised, denied housing, and quality education. Disenfranchisement of African Americans is a huge problem. In fact, today more African American males are disenfranchised than in the 1870’s. This is mainly to do with felon disenfranchisement laws that deny felons the right to vote. People who are felons are disproportionately people of color. Research has shown that as much as 10% of the population in some minority communities in the United States are unable to vote as a result of felony disenfranchisement. The criminal justice system has been able to arrest significantly more African Americans and deny them the right to vote as part of the War on Drugs. This is inherently racist and has in turn expanded the powers of the system in a negative way.
During the duration of the War on Drugs, the power and incentives of law enforcement has risen, which has had negative effects on African Americans. One of the main negative powers is known as Civil Forfeiture. Which by definition is “a
Forms of crime and justice have been relevant and can be traced all the way back to the first civilized societies of the Ancient world. Fortunately these systems have reformed to reflect changing customs, political ideals, and economic conditions of a given society. That being said, one would think that America’s justice system would be one of the most progressive in the world. However, looking at the overwhelming evidence, the it is actually to the contrary. As the book The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness outlines, it has been proven that the American criminal justice system is in fact, inherently racist.
The first example of how this is true is that the War on Drugs is really …show more content…
As soon as a minority obtains a criminal record, suddenly a vast amount of legalized scapegoating besieges them. They can now legally be disenfranchised, denied housing, and quality education. Disenfranchisement of African Americans is a huge problem. In fact, today more African American males are disenfranchised than in the 1870’s. This is mainly to do with felon disenfranchisement laws that deny felons the right to vote. People who are felons are disproportionately people of color. Research has shown that as much as 10% of the population in some minority communities in the United States are unable to vote as a result of felony disenfranchisement. The criminal justice system has been able to arrest significantly more African Americans and deny them the right to vote as part of the War on Drugs. This is inherently racist and has in turn expanded the powers of the system in a negative way.
During the duration of the War on Drugs, the power and incentives of law enforcement has risen, which has had negative effects on African Americans. One of the main negative powers is known as Civil Forfeiture. Which by definition is “a