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From the Civil Rights to Incarceration Nation by Doctor Brown

Salient Points of the Article

The ethos of American politics has been characterized by a dominant feature of

inequality since its inauguration as an independent nation within the modern world system of

capitalism. Equally, America’s history is filled with various instances where individuals whose

features were different from those of the fathers who found the nation were denied their political

and human rights. Eventually, the people won those rights through prolonged struggles against

the prevailing American society political ethos. Additionally, the inequality perpetuated in

America contradicts the constitution pronouncementsthat every man is created equal, and

therefore they have equal rights. Moreover, the political language of the American society is

designed in a manner that it makes murder respectable and lies true. Similarly, the Americans’

perceptions of crime and race have been manipulated as a way of maintaining black

marginalization, thus perpetuating the racial hierarchy system of America. As such, the

racialhierarchy system of America is firmly entrenched in inequality.

The connection between crime and race is evident in the prison-industrial complex of

America that perpetuates the continuing African Americans marginalization. For instance,

according to the Criminal Justice Fact Sheet of NAACP, approximately 2.6 million African

Americans and 14 million whites used an illicit drug. However, the conviction and arrest rates of

African Americans for drug distribution or usage are much higher than their other counterparts

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who are whites. Additionally, blacks with a conviction of felony experience major obstacles to

legal employment, and in various states they are not allowed to be involved in political processes

at the national and local levels. Although, it is evident that every individual with convictions of

felony face considerable obstacles to employment, the problem is acute especially for African

Americans. Similarly, African Americans looking for jobs without criminal annals are treated the

same way as the whites who have been released from prison.

The Civil Rights Movement’s success gave rise to purported race-neutral rules like the

war on drugs that made the nation’s prisons be filled with a great number of blacks. Furthermore,

a great number of black males in nation’s jails and prisons have gained the attention of

journalists, scholars, and criminologists but the number of black females in prison depicts

disturbing implications. Precisely, African Americans females are warehoused in prisons of

America three times more than their counterparts who are whites. However, since the year 2000

there has been a drop in the black to white woman ratio of imprisonment. Moreover,

incarceration social costs have destructive consequences on the family, employment, community

and political engagement of African Americans.

Despiteblacks progress and the prevalent view that discrimination based on race is no

longer an important force restraining the opportunities obtainable to minorities, African

Americans continue to encounter substantial challenges in the workplaces. Additionally,

discrimination is a major obstacle to economic self-sufficiency to blacks at the low end of the

work market hierarchy. Equally, opportunities for advancement in America’s employment and

education arenas are not entirely independent of a person’s ethnic or racial classification(s).Dr.

Brown tries to understand the connection between incarceration, employment, and education. It

is evident that young African American males with college degrees or diplomas from high school

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are engaged in the labor market successfully. Equally, the educated young African American

males’ likelihood of being under the law implementation community supervision is less. On the

other hand, Dr. Brown asserts that African American males who left high school lead in the

numbers of blacks who are behind bars.

Types of Statistical Evidence Used to Buttress Dr. Browns Main Arguments

Dr. Browns make use of tables and graphs to support his arguments. For instance, he provides a

table to show that African American Black males who are behind bars failed to progress through high

school education. As a result, they are jobless and in jail. The statistics provided by Dr. Brown are

between 1980 and 2008 as illustrated.

Table 1: Percentage of Jobless in Jail or Prison, 1980-2008

Year 1980 2008

Non-

Hispanic

White

On-

Hispanic

Black

Non-

Hispanic

White

Non-

Hispanic

Black

18-64 2.4% 9.6% 5.6% 20.8%

20-34 4.2% 16.7% 9.2% 27.4%

20-24

with less than

a high school

diploma

8.7% 23.8% 28.2% 50.4%

He also uses graphs to highlight the number of adult population in Parole, prison, or

jail, from 1980 to 2010; male prisoners under Federal or state jurisdiction per 100,000 residents

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based Hispanic Origin and Race(1980-2010); the rate of incarceration by race (2000-2010);

female incarceration rates by race(2000-2010).

Conclusion

I agree with Dr. Brown’s argument that discrimination is still evident in the post-civil

rights era and remains a crucial component of a multifaceted racial inequality pattern. Equally,

opportunities for advancement in America’s employment and education arenas are not entirely

independent of a person’s ethnic or racial classification. Moreover, I agree with Dr. Brown’s that

despite the problems of incarceration, crime and illicit drugs, race remains the primary force

determining the life trajectories of Blacks. As such, the American government should come up

with policies that safeguard the freedom and civil rights of African Americans. Equally, there

should good will among the political leadership to uphold the principles of the constitution where

every man is created equal and have equal rights. Moreover, Dr. Brown should advocate for a

change in attitude in the criminal justice structure of America. Additionally, Dr. Brown should

enlighten the policy makers of America’s government about the continuing racial discrimination

in employment, education and incarceration so that they can come up with policies that deal with

the issue of race in totality.

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Work Cited

Brown, Owen. From the Civil Rights Movements to the Rise of the Incarceration Nation: The

Politics of Race and Crime in Contemporary America. The New York Sociologists

6(2012): 72-92