Prison Pipeline: The Injustice of the Justice System

The Prison Pipeline is taking our young men away in droves. A young black baby born into a particular zip code may have a higher chance of going to prison or encountering some sort of law enforcement in his lifetime. He has a higher probability of going to jail at the age of sixteen and an even higher chance of being placed into the adult prison system. The lack of education, decent housing, recreational activities, has almost guaranteed him a place in the prison pipeline. Why is this happening? How could we have let this happen? “No child left behind” and already we have left so many behind to fend for themselves.

The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander published in 2010, focuses on the issue of mass incarceration of men of color in the United States. The legal system incarcerates 25% of black males. Michelle Alexander has explained that in our society the globalized economy has no need for our young black men because they are labeled as felons and second-class citizens. The same goes for Latino men and anyone of color. While the women have also been affected, the men are bearing the full brunt of it.

Michelle Alexander also claims that the U.S. criminal justice system uses the “War on Drugs” as a tool for enforcing discrimination and repression. This means that African Americans serve more time in prison for a drug offense as Caucasians do for a violent offense. The issues have remained unexamined and unimportant because of the general perception of black males. Despite some changes in society, the law continues to treat men of color with a lack of equality and extreme apathy. This shows that somewhere along the lines we are still struggling for freedom and rights.

Moreover, where do the children stand in all this? With the lack of fathers in the home how can children ever hope to grow into the young man/woman they have always inspired to be? Single mothers are raising their children alone and most of them are teen mothers barely making ends meet in today’s society. What can we hope to accomplish if both parents are not there to raise their children together? Mass incarceration has taken more than just young black males; it has also taken away their fathers. This has gotten to a point where it is tearing apart families and we must join as a community to stop this from killing our children and leaving families torn.

A Foot Soldier for Peace

In June 2013, a group of Detroit college students and I traveled to Tennessee and attended the Youth Advocate Leadership Training Program. I went to the historical sight of the Alex Haley Farm where I would be trained to end the Prison Pipeline and help young children. YALT, which is a part of The Children’s Defense Fund, trains and prepares community servants to become leaders in their own communities and to be effective role models for youth. Both YALT and CDF are on a mission to build leadership in the community and turn our servant leaders into crucial assets to the community.

YALT’s training lessons allowed me to grow not only as a person but also as a responsible and active member of my community. I attended workshops that strengthened my knowledge concerning the issues affecting different school districts and the Prison Pipeline. I also attended bonus workshops to further my training and listened to sermons for spiritual renewal. Because I attended two workshops a day, I gained new skills and learned about community organizing. I connected with others doing similar tasks, and I strengthened my knowledge on public policy issues.

I intend on bringing back a plan on raising awareness concerning the Prison Pipeline. My love for writing has given me an idea to start a blog to raise awareness on this matter. The public deserves to know what is happening to our youth and how Mass incarceration affects us all. We need to start a movement that will change our unfair justice system and challenge the Prison Pipeline head on. Together we stand, divided we fall and no one wins.

 

The New Jim Crow Generation: Who we Are

The New Jim Crow. When you hear that phrase, what is the first thing that comes to your mind? Does it take you to a place of injustice, unrest, and for colored & for whites only signs? If you’re anything like many of us in society you may have thought Jim Crow ended in the late 1960’s when the desegregation of public schools began. You think of the past, and although the present may not be so great when it pertains to racial equality it’s still better than before…right? Although things may appear better it doesn’t mean that they necessarily are. Just because things aren’t as blatantly obvious in our face, doesn’t mean they don’t exist.

Lets get to the point here. Jim Crow has taken form in terms of mass incarceration. The next question on your mind may be “How so?”.  Well this is exactly why this blog is here. Our society is apart of what we like to call “The New Jim Crow Generation”. This blog is here to bring the subject of mass incarceration in the African American community to light and fill you in on why and how mass incarceration is the new Jim Crow in American society. We’ll touch on issues such as how to end the “Cradle to Prison Pipeline”, expound on topics from the book “The New Jim Crow” by Michelle Alexander, and talk about what we can do to ensure our minorities stay out of the prison system.

Studies on incarceration suggest that the return rate of prisoners after they’ve been released has exponentially increased nationally. Laws and social stigmas are the most oppressive to ex criminals making it harder to rebuild relationships, find/maintain employment, and stay away from criminal activity. Lack of income and stress from societal transitions are both major factors in the increasing return rate of prisoners.

These issues along with the issues of education must be considered if we want our efforts to break the United States’ historic system of social injustice to pay off.