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13th Essay

881 Words4 Pages

Although race is a social construct that categorizes people based on physical traits, sociologists argue that it is a social idea rather than a biological one. Social construction of race refers to the process through which society creates and maintains racial categories, meanings, and hierarchies. Sociologists investigate how race influences people's experiences, opportunities, and life chances, and they fight to end racial injustice and promote social justice. Understanding race is important in the criminal justice system because it exposes structural imbalances and injustices that disproportionately affect marginalized populations. "The criminal justice system, in targeting black men through the war on drugs and other policies, has created …show more content…

It highlights the system's persistent racial biases and systemic inadequacies, suggesting that racial superiority was maintained by discriminatory laws and practices even after slavery was legally abolished. Mass incarceration is shown in the movie as a modern form of racialized social control that promotes poverty, disenfranchisement, and institutional racism. Through interviews, it analyzes the catastrophic impact on individuals and communities, challenging viewers to critically evaluate the relationship between race, politics, and criminal justice, and arguing for serious reform and a reevaluation of cultural …show more content…

Advocating for diverse media representation, promoting education and awareness to challenge biases, enacting and enforcing anti-discrimination legislation, fostering inclusivity in all sectors, addressing implicit biases through training, engaging communities, supporting allyship and advocacy, implementing systemic reforms, empowering marginalized communities, and encouraging ongoing self-reflection are all part of the process. By combining these approaches, society can advance toward a more inclusive and equitable future for all. If you have a position of privilege and/or power, admit it and respect the feelings of others. Avoid racial color blindness, which reduces people of color's experiences. "In the age of colorblindness, using race explicitly as a justification for discrimination, exclusion, and social contempt is no longer socially acceptable." (DuVernay, 2016) As a result, we do not. Rather than relying on race, we use our criminal justice system to identify individuals of color as 'criminals,' and then engage in all the practices we abandoned. Michelle Alexander, author of "The New Jim Crow," expresses this striking quote. The remark emphasizes the concept of colorblind racism, in which open racial discrimination is substituted by laws and practices that appear to be race neutral. It focuses on how the criminal justice system has been used to disproportionately target and control people of color,

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Racism and racial discrimination has been a major issue in the U.S. since the colonial periods, where people have been treated differently only based upon their race. Although the civil rights movement opposed racial discrimination, the act of stereotyping individuals still continues till this day. Racial profiling by law enforcement is commonly defined as a practice that targets people for suspicion of crime based on their race, religion or national origin. A recent case, involving a young black man named Michael Brown is an example of how a police officer may act differently when facing an African American. “Ferguson Grand Jury Evidence Reveals Mistakes, Holes In Investigation” is an article written by Jason Cherkis’s and published on November

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Summary Of The New Jim Crow By Michelle Alexander

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The main theme that is known throughout the book is that mass incarceration of blacks is essentially the “New Jim Crow” because it works to capture mostly African Americans and because of its similarity to the old caste systems of race. It’s also evident that once you do time in a correctional facilities an African American, all of the old discriminations like housing discrimination, employment discrimination, denial to further your education, and exclusion of jury service are suddenly legal again. When joined with the actuality that whites are more likely to commit drug related crimes than blacks, the issue shows a clear message from Alexander. The main targets of race can be spotted mainly by race. This eventually leads Alexander to be convinced that mass incarceration is "a stunningly comprehensive and well-disguised system of racialized social control that functions in a manner strikingly similar to Jim Crow.”

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Her central thesis is that mass incarceration is “The New Jim Crow,” or the new system of control used by the government to uphold racial class in the U.S. This book will be helpful to my research because it directly discusses the topic of race and the criminal justice system. Amnesty International. (2003). United States of America: Death by discrimination

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1721 Words | 7 Pages

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The mass incarceration of black men serves to define the meaning and significance of race in America today. Previously, race (black) was defined as slaves; today, race (black) is defined as criminals. Thus, mass incarceration perpetuates and deepens a pre-existing pattern of racial segregation and isolation. African Americans are being sold to private prisons and are warehoused in prisons for long time and once they get out of prison, they are labeled and destined to carry a stigma that extends to the family members, friends and even to their

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629 Words | 3 Pages

The media depicts African American males, in particular, as dangerous and the ones who commit really serious crimes such as rape or murder. African Americans are shown as criminals on television more than they really are, which has an influence on the public of being scared of African Americans who have been referred to as super predators in the past. Some African Americans cannot help but agree with the notion that they are criminals because it is what they have been told and seen which makes them terrified of themselves. All of this goes back to what was touched on in class on how incarceration is an important social justice issue that impacts the individual, family, and children which usually results in negative outcomes overall. Last but not least, an issue raised in the film was that state institutions have legally produced criminalization, particularly targeting minority communities.

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