Racial Disparities in the Criminal Justice System
The Criminal Justice System: A Framework of Racial Disparities. The American criminal justice system, though ostensibly based on principles of fairness and equality, has been deeply influenced by racial inequities. Three critical aspects of these disparities include mass incarceration, police violence, and unfair sentencing. Scholars, activists, and researchers have highlighted how these practices disproportionately affect communities of color, particularly Black men, perpetuating cycles of discrimination and control. This paper explores these areas by citing significant works and evidence that underscore how structural racism manifests within the system.
Mass Incarceration: A Modern Form of Racial Control
Mass incarceration has become one of the most glaring forms of racial injustice in the United States. As Michelle Alexander argues in The New Jim Crow Mass incarceration functions as a modern-day system of racial control, disproportionately targeting Black men through punitive drug laws and harsh sentencing practices. Alexander traces the historical and legal roots of this phenomenon, noting that it evolved from earlier systems of racial oppression, such as slavery and Jim Crow laws. She reveals that, although Black men constitute a small percentage of the U.S. population, they represent a significant portion of those incarcerated for drug offenses—despite similar rates of drug use across racial groups.
Alexander’s research highlights the War on Drugs, initiated in the 1980s, as a primary driver of mass incarceration. It led to the militarization of police and the implementation of "three-strikes" laws and mandatory minimum sentences, which disproportionately affected Black men. This trend, as Alexander illustrates, has deep social implications, resulting in diminished employment opportunities, family breakdown, and political disenfranchisement for countless Black Americans (Alexander, 2010). Thus, mass incarceration operates not just as a punitive measure but as a mechanism for maintaining racial hierarchy. Although her research is accurate I found that the actual “War on Drugs” began much earlier (1971) under President Nixon.
Police Violence: The Disproportionate Impact on Black Men
Another dimension of systemic racism within the criminal justice system is police violence. Research by the Center for Policing Equity reveals that Black men are disproportionately subjected to excessive force and fatal encounters with law enforcement. This research underscores what activists and grassroots movements like Black Lives Matter have long asserted: police violence is not an isolated issue, but a symptom of systemic racial profiling and discrimination.
The lived experiences of racialized policing, as shared by Black community activists, resonate with this research. For example, the founders of Black Lives Matter—Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi—initiated their movement in response to the extrajudicial killings of Black individuals, including Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, and George Floyd. These tragedies sparked nationwide protests, drawing attention to the broader issues of racial injustice within law enforcement. Black communities, disproportionately patrolled and policed, bear the brunt of stop-and-frisk policies, excessive surveillance, and the use of lethal force. The Center for Policing Equity’s findings corroborate these narratives, emphasizing the racial disparities in police encounters and the use of force (Center for Policing Equity, 2020).
Unfair Sentencing: The Role of Implicit Bias
Unfair sentencing further compounds racial disparities in the criminal justice system. The Sentencing Project, an organization dedicated to advocating for fair and effective criminal justice reforms, reports that Black men often receive harsher sentences than their white counterparts for the same crimes. Implicit racial biases, consciously or unconsciously held by judges, prosecutors, and juries, influence sentencing outcomes and perpetuate inequities.
Bryan Stevenson, a Black legal scholar and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, elaborates on this issue in his book Just Mercy. Stevenson’s legal work exposes the persistent racial disparities in sentencing, particularly in capital punishment cases. His work demonstrates that Black defendants are more likely to face the death penalty, particularly when the victim is white. Moreover, Stevenson shows how these biases are reinforced through systemic barriers that prevent many Black defendants from receiving adequate legal representation (Stevenson, 2014). Implicit biases, as documented by the Sentencing Project, contribute to a cycle of over-punishment and under-protection for Black Americans, further entrenching racial inequalities.
Conclusion
The criminal justice system, far from being an impartial arbiter of justice, has proven to be a system rife with racial disparities. From mass incarceration to police violence to unfair sentencing, these injustices disproportionately affect Black men, reinforcing historical patterns of racial subjugation. Through the works of Michelle Alexander, the Center for Policing Equity, and Bryan Stevenson, the scale and persistence of these racial inequities become clear. Addressing these issues requires not only a reevaluation of policies but also a fundamental shift in the perception of race and justice in America.
References
- Alexander, M. (2010). The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. New Press.
- Center for Policing Equity. (2020). The Science of Justice: Race, Arrests, and Police Use of Force. [https://policingequity.org].
- Sentencing Project. (2020). Report on Racial Disparities in Sentencing. [https://sentencingproject.org](https://sentencingproject.org).
- Stevenson, B. (2014). Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. Spiegel & Grau.
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