The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness is a book written by Michelle Alexander, a civil rights lawyer and advocate, that examines the ways in which the criminal justice system in the United States disproportionately impacts people of color, particularly Black Americans. The book argues that the United States has effectively created a new form of racialized social control that serves to maintain racial hierarchy and segregation, similar to the Jim Crow laws of the post-Civil War era that enforced racial segregation and discrimination against Black Americans.
One of the main arguments of the book is that the War on Drugs, which was launched in the 1980s, has disproportionately targeted people of color and has led to the mass incarceration of Black Americans. Alexander argues that the War on Drugs has served as a justification for the criminalization and incarceration of Black Americans, and has contributed to the creation of a new racial caste system.
Alexander also discusses the impact of mass incarceration on individuals and communities, including the ways in which it destroys families, communities, and the ability of people to fully participate in society upon release from prison. The book also examines the ways in which the criminal justice system disproportionately impacts people of color at every stage, from arrest and sentencing to re-entry into society after serving time.
The New Jim Crow has received widespread acclaim for its analysis of the ways in which the criminal justice system disproportionately impacts people of color and for its call to action to dismantle this system. The book has been widely influential, and has sparked important conversations about mass incarceration and racial justice in the United States.
Overall, The New Jim Crow is a powerful and thought-provoking examination of the ways in which the criminal justice system disproportionately impacts people of color and the need for systemic change to address this injustice. It serves as a critical and necessary call to action for individuals and communities to work towards a more just and equitable society.
Michelle Alexander The New Jim Crow Essay
In response to revolts formed between black slaves and white indentured servants, rich whites extended special privileges to their indentured servants that drove a wedge between them and the slaves that successfully stopped the revolts. The War on Drugs enacted by. Adding these factors onto a felony charge makes it nearly impossible for a black man to get ahead of all the white people vying for the same jobs. Get help now 124 experts online When an ex-offender is released from prison, they know very little about the world in which they are about to encounter. The officers been discriminating people of color because they assume every african american are criminal and bad. Its use of false narratives and over exaggerated crime, as seen in its disproportional coverage of homicide convictions and the mass publication of The system claims to be non-discriminatory, justifying its actions in the false narratives that transformed. This definition of racism helps to establish Dr.
"The New Jim Crow" Review
Alexander argues that the cateism still lingers beyond the lines of our society. Even with this as proof, courts defend their case saying that these restrictions do not exemplify discriminatory behavior because they were enacted after the original Jim Crow era 191. Alexander did not only gave an example where the Jim Crow law took place, but also included a recent a like situation where the similarities are not quite different. Every year, the United States spends an excessive amount of money to lock up criminals, and often convict people who can benefit from rehabilitation and counseling as opposed to a three year sentence. Racial Disparities In The Criminal Justice System 1107 Words 5 Pages Through the years, the world has made substantial progress towards ensuring equal treatment under law for all citizens. Many Americans have been deceived into believing that the civil rights laws of the 1960s eradicated these things …show more content… Alexander contends that during both the Jim Crow era and slavery, functioning caste systems were used to suppress African Americans.
Summary: The New Jim Crow Essay Essay on African American, Race, Racism
However, her attempt to discuss the symbolic production of race weakens her argument due to the lack of evidence in relation to the Old Jim Crow. Alexander believes that colored people yet face discrimination in their daily lives in various of forms reawakening the Old Jim Crow. The purpose of this scenario is to show how visualizing and defining a criminal based on physical features is a form of active participation within the system of The appearance of the theoretical robber was formed from egemony and preconceived notions of what a robber, or any criminal, looks like. I will get into more detail about this later on in my paper, but for now I am going to address some of the issues of racial inequality in the criminal justice system that Alexander mentioned. Unfortunatelly, by having minimum sentences, judges rarely get involved in these types of sentences since now they cannot opt for the most comprehensive sentence even if they really wanted to. Alexander constructs both a compelling and informative tone in order to interest and educate the readers on her points and ideas in relation to incarceration in America. This piece of writing was difficult for me to organize my ideas around.
The New Jim Crow Summary
The cause of inequality and unfair treatment began in the 16th-17th century when African American were Slaves to the whites. Alexander uses many examples of discrimination throughout the book, but the most prevailing one to me was how the criminal justice system used to the War on Drugs. The black man was being oppressed during segregation and treated like animals. This discrimination has spilled over into voting and other areas as well and has, in essence, created barriers at every level to prevent African Americans from succeeding in a functioning society. Alexander explains the way racial hostility is misinterpreted for racism and using this example, she is trying to make people understand that in the past people did not care about hurting others, not only in time of slavery, she believes all caste systems are based on racial indifference. The New Jim Crow that Alexander speaks of has redesigned the racial caste system, by putting millions of mainly blacks, as well as Hispanics and some whites, behind bars Mass Incarceration In Michelle Alexander's The New Jim Crow 358 Words 2 Pages It is an existing theory that our society is constructed via racial dimensions, and that racial equality is a figment of the imagination. The author maintains that the racial …show more content… She also gives the reader an opportunity to form his own perspective on the topic.
