The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander (Audiobook Excerpt)

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4 Jun 202004:52

Summary

TLDRThe transcript highlights the growth of the American penal system since the 1970s, focusing on its disproportionate impact on African Americans. It traces how criminologists once predicted the decline of prisons, citing their failure to prevent crime and calls for a moratorium on prison construction. However, instead of fading away, mass incarceration expanded to unprecedented levels, particularly targeting Black men. Despite this, civil rights groups have prioritized issues like affirmative action, often neglecting the profound racial injustice within the criminal justice system.

Takeaways

⚖️ The American penal system has evolved into a system of social control, disproportionately affecting certain racial groups.
📉 Despite declining crime trends, incarceration rates have soared, particularly impacting African-American communities.
🔍 Experts in the 1970s predicted that the prison system would soon diminish, citing its failure to deter crime effectively.
📚 In 1973, the National Advisory Commission recommended closing juvenile institutions and halting the construction of new adult prisons.
🚫 Prisons were seen as creating more crime than preventing it, with the penal system viewed as fundamentally flawed.
🔗 Despite expert opinions advocating for a reduction in incarceration, the prison population has skyrocketed since the 1970s.
📈 From 350,000 incarcerated individuals in 1972 to over 2 million today, the rate of imprisonment has grown at an unprecedented pace.
🚨 One in three young African-American men is projected to serve time in prison if current trends persist.
🧑🏾‍⚖️ The civil rights community has been largely quiet on mass incarceration, focusing more on issues like affirmative action.
🏫 Affirmative action debates have overshadowed mass incarceration in national racial justice discussions, even as prisons fill with Black and Brown individuals.

Q & A

What is the main argument presented in the transcript regarding the American penal system?
-The transcript argues that the American penal system is a form of social control that targets people based on race and is unparalleled in world history. It highlights that the system has expanded significantly since the 1970s despite expert opinions predicting its decline.
How did criminologists in the 1970s view the future of the prison system?
-In the 1970s, criminologists believed that the prison system would fade away because it didn't significantly deter crime. They concluded that people with meaningful economic and social opportunities were unlikely to commit crimes and that prison often led to higher rates of recidivism.
What recommendation did the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals make in 1973?
-The National Advisory Commission recommended in 1973 that no new adult prisons should be built, and juvenile institutions should be closed. This recommendation was based on evidence that prisons failed to prevent crime and instead created more crime.
How has the prison population in the U.S. changed since the early 1970s?
-The prison population in the U.S. has grown from fewer than 350,000 people in 1972 to more than two million today. This massive increase was unprecedented and not anticipated by experts at the time.
What does Marc Mauer highlight as remarkable about the moratorium campaign of the 1970s?
-Marc Mauer points out that the moratorium campaign in the 1970s was notable for its context. At the time, the incarceration rate was much lower than it is today, yet activists still viewed it as excessively high. They could not have foreseen the massive prison expansion that would follow.
What is the current impact of mass incarceration on the African-American community?
-Mass incarceration has disproportionately affected African-American men, with one in three young black men expected to serve time in prison if current trends continue. In some cities, more than half of all young black men are under correctional control.
Why is mass incarceration often seen as a criminal justice issue rather than a racial justice issue?
-Mass incarceration tends to be categorized as a criminal justice issue because the focus is often on the legal and institutional aspects of the system. However, the transcript argues that the racial disparities in incarceration make it a racial justice and civil rights crisis as well.
What civil rights issue has dominated the focus of activists instead of mass incarceration?
-Over the past 20 years, civil rights activists have primarily focused on defending affirmative action, particularly in higher education, rather than addressing the growing issue of mass incarceration.
Why might civil rights organizations have focused on affirmative action rather than mass incarceration?
-Civil rights organizations may have focused on affirmative action because it has been seen as a crucial tool for maintaining diversity in elite colleges and universities, which dominated racial justice discourse in the media. This attention diverted resources away from addressing mass incarceration.
What is the public perception of the main racial justice battlefront in the U.S.?
-The general public perceives affirmative action as the primary racial justice issue in the U.S. due to the attention it has received in the media, even though mass incarceration disproportionately affects black and brown communities.

Outlines

00:00

⚖️ The Rise of the U.S. Penal System as Social Control

The U.S. penal system has evolved into an unparalleled form of social control, targeting specific racial groups, particularly African Americans. Despite the mid-1970s belief that prisons would soon diminish due to their failure to deter crime or provide meaningful rehabilitation, the system has instead expanded. Experts previously concluded that crime was influenced more by social and economic opportunities than punitive measures, and prison often worsened recidivism. Notably, in 1973, a national commission recommended halting prison construction, citing evidence that incarceration increased crime rather than preventing it.

📉 The Failure of Prisons and the Push for a Moratorium

During the 1970s, prison abolition was a mainstream academic idea, and reformers called for a moratorium on prison construction. Many believed society would benefit from eliminating prisons, which were seen as ineffective. Marc Mauer of the Sentencing Project reflects on the prison moratorium movement, noting that in 1972, the U.S. prison population was under 350,000. Supporters were unaware that incarceration rates would explode, quintupling in just a few decades. Instead of declining, prisons have expanded beyond expectation, becoming a permanent fixture of the American justice system.

🧑🏾‍⚖️ The Civil Rights Movement's Silence on Mass Incarceration

Despite the dramatic rise in African American incarceration rates, the civil rights community has largely remained silent on this issue. One in three young Black men is expected to be imprisoned in their lifetime if current trends persist. However, civil rights advocates have focused on other concerns, such as affirmative action, rather than the mass incarceration crisis. The national conversation on racial justice has centered on higher education diversity, while the racial disparities in the prison system have worsened, with prisons disproportionately filled with Black and brown men.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Penal system

The 'penal system' refers to the network of institutions, laws, and processes used to punish individuals who commit crimes, primarily through imprisonment. In the video, it is highlighted as a tool of social control, particularly targeting racial minorities, especially African Americans, marking its unprecedented expansion in U.S. history.

💡Mass incarceration

This refers to the large-scale imprisonment of people, particularly in the U.S., which now has over two million people in prisons and jails. The video emphasizes that mass incarceration has disproportionately impacted African Americans and has become a modern tool of racial control, despite its ineffectiveness in deterring crime.

💡Race

In the context of the video, 'race' is a central theme, especially regarding how the U.S. penal system targets African Americans. The discussion highlights that racial minorities, particularly black men, are disproportionately affected by incarceration, making mass incarceration a racial justice issue, not just a criminal justice one.

💡Civil rights

Civil rights refer to the protections and privileges of personal liberty given to all citizens by law. The video contrasts the historical focus of the civil rights movement on issues like affirmative action, while remaining largely silent on the crisis of mass incarceration that disproportionately affects African Americans.

💡Affirmative action

Affirmative action refers to policies that aim to improve opportunities for historically marginalized groups, especially in education and employment. In the video, it is noted that civil rights organizations have concentrated their efforts on defending affirmative action, diverting attention from the growing issue of mass incarceration.

💡Criminologists

Criminologists are experts who study crime, its causes, and its social impact. In the 1970s, many criminologists predicted that prisons would become obsolete, given their failure to deter crime. The video notes their mistaken belief that the prison system would diminish, while the opposite occurred.

💡Prison expansion

This refers to the rapid growth of the prison system in the U.S., particularly since the 1970s. The video points out that the massive increase in the prison population was unprecedented, going from 350,000 incarcerated individuals in 1972 to more than two million today, driven largely by policies that disproportionately target African Americans.

💡Reformers

Reformers are individuals or groups advocating for change in policies, systems, or institutions. The video mentions reformers from the 1970s who campaigned for a moratorium on prison construction, believing that prisons contributed more to crime than preventing it, a belief that has since been overshadowed by mass incarceration.

💡Prison moratorium

A 'prison moratorium' is a halt on the construction of new prison facilities. In the 1970s, reformers and criminologists advocated for this, believing that the prison system was failing to reduce crime. The video highlights the failure of this campaign as mass incarceration surged in the following decades.

💡Racial justice

Racial justice involves the systematic fair treatment of people of all races that results in equal opportunities and outcomes. The video frames mass incarceration as a racial justice issue, as African Americans are disproportionately incarcerated, but civil rights groups have historically focused on other battles, such as affirmative action.

Highlights

The American penal system is a system of social control unparalleled in world history.

The primary targets of the penal system's control can largely be defined by race.

In the mid-1970s, criminologists predicted the prison system would soon fade away.

Experts concluded that prison did not deter crime significantly, and those with economic and social opportunities were unlikely to commit crimes.

A 1973 recommendation from the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals suggested no new institutions for adults should be built.

The Commission found that prisons create crime rather than prevent it.

Advocating for a world without prisons was once a mainstream idea among reformers.

In 1972, fewer than 350,000 people were held in U.S. prisons and jails compared to over 2 million today.

The moratorium campaign in the 1970s aimed to stop prison expansion but was naive in the face of unprecedented growth.

No one at the time could have predicted the fivefold increase in the prison population.

Despite the dramatic rise in African American incarceration, the civil rights community has remained largely quiet on the issue.

One in three young African American men will serve time in prison if current trends continue.

In some cities, more than half of all young adult Black men are under correctional control.

Mass incarceration tends to be framed as a criminal justice issue rather than a racial justice or civil rights crisis.

The civil rights community has focused heavily on defending affirmative action, leaving the issue of mass incarceration under-addressed.