The United States’ practice of mass incarceration is detrimental for many reasons. The article by Jennifer Rubin for The Washington Post called “Mass incarceration is bad law enforcement policy. It’s bad for the economy, too” discusses why mass incarceration is a counter-productive and harmful practice. One reason why mass incarceration is unjust is because the justice system has unfairly targeted minorities in the United States for decades. This racial inequality also leads to economic inequality, with many ethnic groups earning less money and having a higher unemployment rate. Ex-convicts and their families aren’t just feeling the economic effects of mass incarceration; the American population feels the effects too. Money spent per inmate adds up quickly, and the government loses billions of dollars of taxes. Although some argue that mass incarceration is necessary to keep the nation safe, mass incarceration is harmful because it unjustly targets minority groups, negatively affects the United States’ economy and further perpetuates wealth disparities amongst families.
Mass incarceration unfairly targets minority groups. Rubin adds that mass incarceration disproportionately locks up Black and Latino Americans in her article for The Washington Post. Rubin elaborates by displaying The Sentencing Project’s research found. It was found that “[b]lack men are six times as likely to be incarcerated as white men and Latinos are 2.5 times as likely. For Black men in their thirties, about 1 in every 12 is in prison or jail on any given day.” This statistic shows just how real and evident the racial breakup is of prisons. The article by Greg Howard called “America Is Not For Black People” discusses Howard’s perspective on how minorities, specifically black Americans, are treated. Howard states, “[t]here are reasons why white gun’s rights activists can walk into a Chipotle restaurant with assault rifles and be seen as gauche nuisances while unarmed black men are killed for reaching for their wallets or cell phones, or carrying children’s toys.” According to Howard, black Americans are viewed as more dangerous and violent than white Americans. When viewed as more dangerous, they are more likely to get incarcerated than white Americans. This proves true when looking at the statistics of minorities arrested versus white Americans. A similar viewpoint is articulated in Charles Mill’s The Racial Contract. In this reading, Mills discusses how America’s systems stem from white supremacy and its values which still affect black Americans’ lives today. He highlights the social power that black Americans lack. Mills’ perspective reflects how governmental systems can unfairly target minority groups. Mass incarceration is a government system that targets minorities, so Mills’ point holds true.
In the article “Mass Incarceration is Bad Law Enforcement Policy. It’s Bad For The Economy, Too”, Rubin introduces the economic effects the nation endures due to mass incarceration. One key point Rubin makes is that the more people are incarcerated, the fewer people are paying taxes. Since people are unemployed in prison most of the time, they don’t pay certain taxes that most Americans pay. The lack of taxes negatively affects the U.S. government, making it harder to afford social programs and infrastructure projects. Mass incarceration also means larger numbers of unemployment. North Texas Daily’s article called “The Negative Effects on the Economy Caused by Mass Incarceration” talks about mass incarceration’s consequence on the American economy, specifically unemployment. As stated in the article by North Texas Daily, the American economy loses between around fifty-seven billion dollars and sixty-five billion dollars yearly due to the unemployment of prisoners and ex-prisoners. Interrogating Justice states that the United States spends an average of thirty thousand dollars a year per inmate. In some states like California, this number goes up to eighty thousand dollars per inmate. This is a heavy cost to not only individual states but also the federal government.
Wealth inequality and disparities are linked to mass incarceration. In the article “Mass incarceration is bad law enforcement policy. It’s bad for the economy, too”, Rubin talks about wealth disparities amongst different racial groups in the prison system. The article, “High Incarceration Rate Is Drag on U.S. Growth, Fed Official Says” by Bloomberg Equity found that incarceration rates have contributed to the wealth difference between white and black Americans. The statistic showed “the difference between the White unemployment rate, at 5.2%, and the one for Black Americans, at 9.2%.” Black Americans experience a higher employment rate than whites after their time in jail ends. This inevitably causes wealth disparities amongst the racial groups. Prisoners’ families also experience wealth disparities. The financial ramifications for these families are huge. The American Action Forum estimates that the cost to families of prisoners is “more than $100 billion.” This cost considers health issues and the mortality rates of an inmate’s child. This number is significant because it shows how prison negatively affects both inmates and their families socioeconomically. There is a noticeable income disparity between those who have been imprisoned and those who haven’t. The Brennan Center For Justice’s article called “Mass Incarceration Has Been a Driving Force of Economic Inequality” considers the effect a prison record has on an ex-con’s income. Latinos and Blacks lose nearly $360,000 and more than $510,000, respectively, when compared with socioeconomically similar Black and Latino people who have not been to prison.” Ex-convicts, specifically those of color, can lose hundreds of thousands of dollars of income throughout their lives.
Some may argue that mass incarceration prevents crime. The article “Keep’ em Off the Streets: Tough Prison Sentences Mean a Safer Society” by Intelligence Squared discusses what seems to be a benefit of mass incarceration. The article states that “the prison population of England and Wales, for example, has more than doubled in 20 years – but our crime rate has steadily fallen.” The source attributed this decline in crime to the uptake in incarceration. The article added that the “fundamental purpose of prison is to protect the public, and to punish those who have done wrong.” Many think mass incarceration keeps criminals off the street and that prison’s purpose isn’t to rehabilitate but to punish. While the crime rate may have fallen due to mass incarceration, sufficient evidence supports that mass incarceration has had virtually no effect on the prevalence of violent crimes. Vera’s article called “The Prison Paradox: More Incarceration Will Not Make Us Safer” discusses how most people in prison have been convicted of non-violent crimes like drug-related offenses. With this in mind, “increasing incarceration rates for those convicted of nonviolent, marginal offenses does nothing to impact the violent crime rate.” Violent crime rates have been shown to remain the same, even with mass incarceration. Along with the violent crime rates staying the same, it has been shown that mass incarceration doesn’t help overall crime. Equal Justice Initiative discussed a study that showed the ineffectiveness of incarceration. The study found that “since 2000, the increased use of jails and prisons accounted for nearly zero percent of the overall crime reduction.” This study highlighted just how unsuccessful mass incarceration is at reducing crime.
Although some argue that mass incarceration is necessary for a safe society, mass incarceration is very harmful because it perpetuates racial inequality, affects the U.S. economy, and further affects wealth disparities between ex-con’s and their families. Statistically, it is shown that minorities are more likely to get arrested than white Americans. Many sources have also shown that the U.S. economy takes a hit due to mass incarceration. Many things like the lack of taxes, the high unemployment rate, and the sheer cost of incarceration negatively affect the economy. Another unfortunate effect of mass incarceration is the effect on ex-con’s income. With this, the already prominent wealth disparity increases and affects prisoners and their families. It’s vital to understand the harms that mass incarceration causes so that leaders can come up with better systems to rehabilitate convicts.
This blog post is part of the CIMA law group blog. If you are located in Arizona and are seeking legal services, CIMA law group specializes in Immigration law, Criminal Defense, Personal Injury, and Government Relations.
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