"Do you think it has to do with racism?"

I attended a prisoners’ rights meeting in Buffalo and was one of two white people in attendance. The group discussed The New Jim Crow, the profiteering of the prison industrial complex, and the concerns of families affected by incarceration. The other white woman, a self-proclaimed activist, shared her opinion frequently, and at one point – as we discussed the racial disparities of mass incarceration – she blurted (and not sarcastically), “Do you think it has to do with racism?”

The room drew a quick breath, as if to refrain from incredulous laughter or avoid a barrage of no-sh*t-Shirlock and welcome-to-the-conversation. The moderator let out a curt Yes, but then took a moment to patiently teach her. I admire that he didn’t wave her off. How many times do black people have to explain their experiences before white people “believe” racism still exists? It is currently being expressed through the largest incarceration system in the entire world – that of the United States.

Did you know that currently the United States imprisons a larger percentage of its black population than South Africa did at the height of apartheid? (Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow). That should tell you something.

Currently, 1 in 3 black males will be under some form of correctional control in their lifetime.

Consider these statistics on racial disparity from the NAACP:

• -African Americans now constitute nearly 1 million of the total 2.3 million incarcerated population
• -African Americans are incarcerated at nearly six times the rate of whites
• -Together, African American and Hispanics comprised 58% of all prisoners in 2008, even though African Americans and Hispanics make up approximately one quarter of the US population
• -According to Unlocking America, if African American and Hispanics were incarcerated at the same rates of whites, today's prison and jail populations would decline by approximately 50%
• -One in six black men had been incarcerated as of 2001. If current trends continue, one in three black males born today can expect to spend time in prison during his lifetime
• -1 in 100 African American women are in prison

African Americans represent 26% of juvenile arrests, 44% of youth who are detained, 46% of the youth who are judicially waived to criminal court, and 58% of the youth admitted to state prisons (Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice). This might cause one to think that African Americans simply commit more crimes, but African Americans only represent 12% of the total population of drug users yet 38% of those arrested for drug offenses, and 59% of those in state prison for a drug offense. They are sent to prison for drug offenses at ten times the rate of whites. African Americans serve virtually as much time in prison for a drug offense (58.7 months) as whites do for a violent offense (61.7 months). (Sentencing Project)

Now consider that over 95% of elected prosecutors are white, and according to the American Bar Association, so are 88% of lawyers. How does this influence sentencing outcomes? Well, I don’t think I can say it as eloquently as this piece of research from The Sentencing Project (2005).

No matter what race, we need to acknowledge the racial disparities of mass incarceration and stand up to the issues behind it; otherwise, we are complicit in systemic racism.