Black Men In The Prison System Essay - 1792 Words

We ain’t thugs for the sake of just bein’ thugs. Nobody do that where we grew at N___, duh! The poverty line we not above. So I come in the mask and gloves ‘cause we ain’t feelin’ the love. We ain’t doin’ crime for the sake of doin’ crimes. We movin’ dimes ‘cause we ain’t doin’ fine. One out of three of us is locked up doin’ time. You know what this could do to a N___ mind? My mind on my money, money on my mind. If you owe me ten dollars you ain’t givin’ me nine! Ya’ll ain’t give me 40 acres and a mule. So I got my glock 40 now I’m cool. Jay-Z Imagine waking up every morning hungry, except rather than just driving down to your local fast food spot, you can not even afford a dollar hamburger from McDonald’s. Imagine falling asleep to†¦show more content†¦Black youths are admitted to state correctional facilities for drug offenses at 48 times the r ate of white youths, according to a report by the Building Blocks for Youth Initiative. (CITATION) There is obviously a problem in the programming of the successful African American youth. If a shortage can be created in the circuit of this problem, then the rate at which these young men are straying can be decreased. In a much simpler time, humans roamed the earth just living and reproducing. The quote, â€Å"So easy a caveman can do it† has implied that humans were pretty much illogical at one time. As logic and sheer discovery came into play, we evolved into a purposeful race. â€Å"A boat without a paddle† just does not make sense anymore. Would you walk your dog if it did not have accidents inside of your home as a puppy? Would soldiers continue to fight in Iraq if their freedom and liberties were not threatened? From walking a dog to fighting for freedom, the common denominator is motivation. Motivation is defined by the U.S. Army as, â€Å"the will to accomplish a mission†. (CITATION) It is safe to assume that throughout our lives, the will, not necessarily the want, is essential for change. With that said, the logical answer to my questions is ‘no’. Without some kind of motivation, whether positive or negative, even the simplest task isShow MoreRelatedBlac k Men in the Prison System Essays1839 Words   |  8 Pagesmany black high school students live in. Rap lyrics may not be the formal type of quote to open a paper; however, in order to properly represent the voice of young black males, it is completely appropriate. The fact is that they are angry, and extremely resentful towards white people because of the treatment of their slave ancestors. Seeing successful whites while they are struggling in the slums of America is not fair to the African-American community. Despite the numerous pleas from black supportRead MoreBlack Americans Receive A Stricter Punishment Than White Americans Essay1446 Words   |  6 PagesWithout a doubt, black men in the United States continue to be excessively â€Å"incarcerated, policed, and sentenced to death at significantly higher rates than their white counterparts (Kerby 2).† Portrayals in the media have depicted black men as thugs and common criminals; these negative stereotypes demoralize men of color and allow society to believe and internalize this destructive thinking. The racial disparities that exist in the criminal justice system are an indirect consequence of the portrayalsRead MoreAfrican American Men And The United States Prison System1422 Words   |  6 PagesAfrican American Men and the United States Prison System There is a racial connection between the United States criminal justice system and the overrepresentation of black men in the United States prison system. There are over 2 million people in the U.S. prison system exceeding that of any other nation and represents 25% of the world’s prisoners (The Sentencing Project, 2016). According to Prison Policy Initiative, African American communities are the most impacted with African American men representingRead MoreThe New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration1199 Words   |  5 PagesImagine if someone was able to change others perceptions on the American criminal justice system? Michelle Alexander was able to accomplish that by altering some people s entire perception on the American criminal justice system by focusing on our most pressing civil right issues of our time for some of those who did read her book The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration In The Age of Colorblindness. Michelle Alexander stated that The most despised in America is not gays, transgenders, nor even illegalRead MoreThe, Deloria, Collins, And Mcclintock1712 Words   |  7 Pagesaims to disprove the myth that prisons are built by crime by focusing on the growth of California’s state prison system since 1982 and the accompanying grassroots opposition. Prisons are thought to stop crime through retribution, deterrence, rehabilitation, and incapacitation. The dominant explanation for prison growth is that crime went up, so prisons were created, and crime went down. However, states with fewer prisons have noticed greater decreases in crime. Prisons do not lead to increased stabilityRead MoreDisproportionate Incarceration of African Americans Essay1673 Words   |  7 PagesAfrican Americans The disproportionate numbers of African Americans in the prison system is a very serious issue, which is not usually discussed in its totality. However, it is quite important to address the matter because it ultimately will have an effect on African Americans as a whole. Of the many tribulations that plague Americans today, the increase in the amount of African American men and women in prisons is unbelievable. It would be naà ¯ve to say that the increase is due to the factRead MoreRacism in the Criminal Justice System Essay1276 Words   |  6 PagesJustice system racist? This question has been asked many times by people of many colors. According to Mac Donald (2008), the criminal justice system is not at all racist. The article depicts arrest rates of both whites and blacks and compares statistics on these arrests. It looks at the number of whites and the number of blacks in jails and prisons. In this critique, we will be looking into this article to see these points in which Mac Donald states proves that the criminal justice system is, inRead MoreAfrican Americans During The Civil War Essay1319 Words   |  6 Pagesof incarceration among young African American men with little schooling. Radical changes in crime control and sentencing polices led to an unprecedented buildup of the United States prison population over the last thirty years. African Americans comprise a disproportionate percentage of the individuals imprisoned in State correctional institutions across the United States. . There are 5 main reasons as to why African Americans repeatedly go to prison. These reasons are racial discrimination, theRead MoreThe African Of African Diaspora1329 Words   |  6 PagesAmerica going to keep reliance on African slave labor without angering the union and breaking the constitution? In order to do this legally, black codes were enacted. By the end of the Civil War, many states had several divisions of black codes containing, civil rights, labor contracts, vagrancy, apprenticeships, and courts, crimes and punishment. For one, black codes illegitimized the liberties and freedoms of African Americans that today we take for granted. In addition, many state constitutions initiatedRead MoreIs There A Criminal?1236 Words   |  5 Pagesplagued our African American men in this society for many years. There has been a long debate for many years on whether we can rehabilitate prisoners so when they they return to our society they are new men. But the question remains do we give theses prisoners the means to survive once they are out of the system. Or do we judge them denying them jobs and the rights of every other American once they have serve their time. About 600,000 individuals are released from prison each year to return to their