tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79815318449835384842024-03-14T01:57:01.804-07:006and44African American men make up 6% of the United States population, but 44% of the population in U.S. federal and state penitentiaries. This needs to change.6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.comBlogger96125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-65859927437651139632013-07-20T10:02:00.000-07:002013-07-20T10:02:04.840-07:00Prison Populations Are Expected To Boom Now That The Economy Is RecoveringAs the U.S. economy improves, people are going back to work, investing in their homes, and preparing to make new purchases.<br /><span id="more-516503"></span><br />
They’re also going to spend a lot more time in prison.<br />
<br />
Walter Hickey of Business Insider Australia offers this report. Read more <a href="http://au.businessinsider.com/prison-populations-climb-with-economic-recovery-2013-7" target="_blank">here</a>.6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-2991874719656567512013-07-13T13:01:00.002-07:002013-07-13T13:01:46.992-07:00Michelle Alexander: The New Jim CrowListen to Michelle Alexander and Ross Reynolds discuss mass incarceration and "The New Jim Crow" on <a href="http://www2.kuow.org/program.php?id=22451" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>. Click on the buttons below Ross Reynolds' picture to listen to the broadcast.6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-30477270019425958072013-06-10T17:03:00.001-07:002013-06-10T17:03:11.659-07:00Blacks Are Singled Out for Marijuana Arrests, Federal Data Suggests<nyt_byline>By <span itemid="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/u/ian_urbina/index.html" itemprop="author creator" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person"><a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/u/ian_urbina/index.html" rel="author" title="More Articles by IAN URBINA"><span itemprop="name">IAN URBINA</span></a></span><br /></nyt_byline>Published: June 3, 2013<br />
<nyt_text><br />
WASHINGTON — Black Americans were nearly four times as likely as whites to be arrested on charges of marijuana possession in 2010, even though the two groups used the drug at similar rates, according to new federal data.<br />
<br />
Read more at <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/04/us/marijuana-arrests-four-times-as-likely-for-blacks.html?smid=tw-share&_r=0" target="_blank">The New York Times</a></nyt_text><div class="articleBody">
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6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-53783808244890193362013-05-09T09:11:00.001-07:002013-05-12T18:41:14.167-07:00Telling the IRP-6 Story<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ozfMkZsT7DA/UZBEjs_exgI/AAAAAAAAADM/OvklkVqU2dQ/s1600/IRP+portfolio+pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ozfMkZsT7DA/UZBEjs_exgI/AAAAAAAAADM/OvklkVqU2dQ/s200/IRP+portfolio+pic.jpg" width="178" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="color: white;">Today's post is written by Dr. Alan Bean, of the non-profit organization, </span><a href="http://www.a-justcause.com/#" target="_blank"><span style="color: white;">Friends</span></a><span style="color: white;"> of Justice. The acronym IRP, used throughout the article, stands for Investigative Resource Planning.<br />
<em>Quick shameless plug: Are you an expert in the area of race and incarceration? Do you have a story to tell? Advice to offer? Do you have an example from your own experience? We’d love to have you as the next Contributor Spotlight! Contact us at: <a href="mailto:6and44@gmail.com">6and44@gmail.com</a>.</em><br />
</span></span><br />
<h2>
<span style="color: white;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">
<span lang="X-NONE">Telling the IRP-6
Story<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></h2>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="color: white;">
<span style="color: black;">
</span><span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">This is a story about how prosecutorial tunnel vision
created a tragic communication failure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The criminal justice system exists to give everyone a chance to tell
their story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Juries decide who brings
the best story to the table. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bad things
happen when the system amplifies one story while silencing the other.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">The IRP-6 case is characterized by an unusually deep divide
between the government’s story and the defendants’ story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Such a wide gap is rare, 95% of federal cases
are resolved short of trial because few defendants ultimately maintain their
innocence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If a federal case proceeds to
trial it is either because the government isn’t offering much of a plea deal or
because the defendants actually believe in their own innocence.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="color: white;">
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">There are two ways of approaching the issue and everything
depends on where you start.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has been
said that where we place our focus determines what we miss.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="color: white;">
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
</span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">Are the IRP-6 defendants innocent or guilty?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If they are guilty, why do they claim to be
innocent and why are their friends, family and church so convinced that they
are?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If they are innocent, why is the
government, represented by Assistant US Attorney Kirsch, convinced of their
guilt, and why did a jury agree?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="color: white;">
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">This is primarily a story about motivation and
intention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why did the IRP-6 choose to
engage with staffing companies, and why did these companies choose to engage
with IRP?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">The government began with the second question and that made
it difficult to take the first question seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The defendants and their supporters,
naturally, begin with the first question and answer the second question
accordingly.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">Let’s address the motivation and intention issue from the
perspective of the defendants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At every
stage of the process IRP executives were convinced that they were on the verge
of closing business with a major governmental agency and the company’s
negotiations with the NYPD and DHS appeared to be particularly promising.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">On the other hand, IRP had no money and, because the company
was repeatedly asked to make significant tweaks to its software, it became
necessary to hire a wide range of personnel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The alternative was to give up their dream, lay off all their employees,
declare bankruptcy and leave a steadily growing list of creditors unpaid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since they were perennially convinced that a
government contract was just around the corner they persevered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">IRP engaged the services of staffing companies because, for
a small, black-owned IT company doing business shortly after the dot.com
meltdown, conventional sources of start-up income simply weren’t
available.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>IRP made a good faith attempt
to obtain funding from banks, angel investors and other sources of investment
capital, but repeatedly came up empty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They used staffing companies to bridge the gap between the present and a
successful future because that was the only way of staving off catastrophic
consequences.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">Now we address the issue of motivation and intent from the
perspective of the staffing companies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Why did they choose to engage with IRP?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The government’s answer is the narrative the jury heard at trial.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The staffing companies chose to do business
with IRP because they were told that IRP had a contract with the government, or
was on the verge of closing a contract.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They believed this story, and the story proved to be false.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because IRP was never close to closing a
contract with a government agency, the prosecution argued, they misrepresented
their business position to the staffing companies and this suggests that they
never had a viable product and they knew it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Their only motivation for using staffing companies, therefore, was to
get free labor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one ever asked why
IRP would want to get free labor to work on a bogus product but it was hinted
that the goal was to provide work for their friends.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">The government turned a deaf ear to the defendants’ story
because they had already committed to the staffing company’s narrative.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is important to note, however, that the
staffing company’s narrative was largely shaped by the government itself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>FBI agents approached these companies and
said, in effect, “Do you know that you are the victim of fraud?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">In theory, the decision to prosecute follows on the heels of
an investigation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the Department of
Justice, the FBI investigates and the US Attorney’s Office prosecutes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the IRP case began in the US Attorney’s
Office and wasn’t handed to the FBI until the Assistant US Attorney had already
developed a theory of the case and a prosecutorial strategy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The prosecution began when a former AUSA was
approached by a friend who happened to be the principal of a staffing company
that had engaged in business with IRP.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Asked to assist, and knowing that failure to satisfy his friend’s
request might impact his own career trajectory, the ex-prosecutor wrote a
letter to AUSA Kirsch explaining his theory of the case and suggesting how the
case could be prosecuted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">This relates to Harvey Silverglate’s famous assertion that
the vagueness of federal law makes it relatively easy for a federal prosecutor
to successfully prosecute any business person or public official, especially
those in financial embarrassment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
fact that the first grand jury to hear the government’s case refused to indict
(a rare occurrence) suggests that the government’s initial theory of the case
and its prosecutorial strategy were seriously flawed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In other words, it is likely that both AUSA
Kirsch and the defendants genuinely believed their very different narratives.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">Why did the staffing companies decide to engage with
IRP?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Part of the reason was, as the
government suggests, that they realized that if IRP <em>did</em> sign a contract with an agency like the NYPD or the DHS, a
staffing relationship with IRP could prove very lucrative in the long
term.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">But there is another side to this story—the side the jury
never heard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trial testimony suggests
that a staffing company run a Dun and Bradstreet credit check on prospective
clients that is largely related to a company’s payment history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since, in the beginning, IRP had no payment
history to speak of, and since, as the story developed, their payment history
became progressively worse, none of the staffing companies could justify a
decision to provide staffing to IRP.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or,
if services were provided, it was only in the belief that, although IRP was a
clear credit risk, the staffing company would win big if IRP’s cash flow
reversed in a dramatic way.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">In other words, IRP executives shared their genuine belief
that they were poised to do major business with law enforcement agencies and
the staffing companies decided to roll the dice.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">Unfortunately, the jury never heard this explanation because
the presiding judge barred the testimony of the only witnesses who could have
explained how staffing companies evaluate potential clients and make business
decisions. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Andrew Albarelle, a veteran
of the staffing industry with a wide-ranging knowledge of the IT field, was
prepared to testify that IRP’s outreach to staffing companies was reasonable
and legal and that a quick review of the Dun and Bradstreet credit check would
have revealed that IRP might have trouble paying invoices in the short
term.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If these companies decided to do
business with IRP anyway, Albarelle believes, it was because they were
motivated by the potential for windfall profits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In this view, the staffing companies entered
into business with eyes wide open. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Garamond;"><span style="color: white;">Because this testimony was disallowed, the government’s
story was amplified, the defendants’ story was effectively silenced, and the
jury responded accordingly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: white;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="color: white; font-family: Garamond;">This story could be told by interviewing Mr. Albarelle, Mr.
Silverglate, the defendants (or their attorney), AUSA Kirsch (if he is
agreeable), former IRP employees, church members and friends of the defendants,
staffing company representatives and FBI special agents Moen and Smith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The story would be about the growing
potential for prosecutorial tunnel vision and wrongful conviction created by
the vagueness of federal fraud law.</span></div>
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="color: white;"></span><br /></div>
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<br /> </span><br />6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-37009127471059889002013-01-25T10:07:00.001-08:002013-01-25T10:07:29.269-08:00HB1338
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif";"><span style="color: white;">The
House Bill concerning juveniles sentenced to long terms has a number!
HB1338 ...</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif";"><span style="color: white;"></span></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif";"><span style="color: white;">Here is the bill ... THIS IS THE BILL THAT WE NEED TO SUPPORT!
Please share this with everyone you know.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif";"><br />
</span><a href="http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=1338&year=2013" target="_blank"><span style="color: #3b5998; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif";">http://apps.leg.wa.gov/billinfo/summary.aspx?bill=1338&year=2013</span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
There are 14 co-sponsors on this bill which is very
encouraging considering that the senate bill (SB 5064) only has 2 ... I will
update on hearing dates, location and times as they become available !!!<o:p></o:p></div>
6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-37718079782655251532012-12-16T11:33:00.003-08:002012-12-16T11:33:51.900-08:00For Lesser Crimes, Rethinking Life Behind Bars<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ry6r6wAWIHc/UM4h9kZeBuI/AAAAAAAAAC4/kC6aZTnmwus/s1600/12jpPrison1-articleLarge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="195" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ry6r6wAWIHc/UM4h9kZeBuI/AAAAAAAAAC4/kC6aZTnmwus/s320/12jpPrison1-articleLarge.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<h6 class="byline">
By <span itemid="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/t/john_tierney/index.html" itemprop="author" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person"><a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/t/john_tierney/index.html" rel="author" title="More Articles by JOHN TIERNEY"><span itemprop="name">JOHN TIERNEY</span></a></span></h6>
<h6 class="byline">
Published: December 11, 2012 </h6>
<div class="shareTools shareToolsThemeClassic articleShareToolsTop shareToolsInstance" data-description="Many scholars say mandatory sentencing policies lock up nonviolent, low-level offenders for too long and are no longer a cost-effective way to reduce crime in the United States." data-shares="facebook,twitter,google,save,email,showall|Share,print,singlepage,reprints,ad" data-title="For Lesser Crimes, Rethinking Life Behind Bars" data-url="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/12/science/mandatory-prison-sentences-face-growing-skepticism.html">
<div class="shareToolsItem shareToolsItemFacebook firstItem" data-share="facebook">
</div>
</div>
<div class="articleBody">
<span itemid="http://www.nytimes.com" itemprop="copyrightHolder provider sourceOrganization" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Organization"> </span> <nyt_text><nyt_correction_top></nyt_correction_top> <div itemprop="articleBody">
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Stephanie George and Judge Roger Vinson had quite different opinions about the lockbox seized by the police from her home in Pensacola. She insisted she had no idea that a former boyfriend had hidden it in her attic. Judge Vinson considered the lockbox, containing a half-kilogram of cocaine, to be evidence of her guilt. </div>
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</div>
<div itemprop="articleBody">
Read the article <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/12/science/mandatory-prison-sentences-face-growing-skepticism.html" target="_blank">here</a>.</div>
</nyt_text></div>
6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-9056813000896943822012-07-20T10:25:00.003-07:002012-07-20T10:25:48.766-07:00ACLU's Page on The War on Drugs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qRr87HGuBAo/UAmUQfJV-GI/AAAAAAAAACo/wL9zsO4LN8M/s1600/WAr-on-Drugs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qRr87HGuBAo/UAmUQfJV-GI/AAAAAAAAACo/wL9zsO4LN8M/s1600/WAr-on-Drugs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qRr87HGuBAo/UAmUQfJV-GI/AAAAAAAAACo/wL9zsO4LN8M/s320/WAr-on-Drugs.jpg" width="320" /></a>The ACLU has created a great page on their blog dedicated to information related to the <a href="http://www.aclu.org/blog/tag/war-drugs" target="_blank">War on Drugs</a>. If you don't already know, the War on Drugs, declared by President Nixon, was actually started for political reasons. Over the past 40 years, the War on Drugs has had devastating affects on the African-American community and has been the largest contributing factor to the explosion in the U.S. prison population. As a result of War on Drugs laws, African Americans are incarcerated at rates 10 times greater than whites, even though whites commit more drug offenses.<br />
<br />
Check out the ACLU War on Drugs page, and get to work helping to change the laws that contribute to this injustice.<br />
<br />
Image <a href="http://technorati.com/politics/article/the-institutionalization-of-the-war-on/" target="_blank">here</a>.6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-86722268419544755022012-07-13T23:34:00.003-07:002012-07-13T23:35:58.569-07:00A Day in the Life of the Death Penalty<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8EN80t2qkVM/UAEQhvHIwJI/AAAAAAAAACU/OQWMPR0hXR0/s1600/hill_warren_r440x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8EN80t2qkVM/UAEQhvHIwJI/AAAAAAAAACU/OQWMPR0hXR0/s1600/hill_warren_r440x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="167" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8EN80t2qkVM/UAEQhvHIwJI/AAAAAAAAACU/OQWMPR0hXR0/s200/hill_warren_r440x300.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="200" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Warren Hill</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</a>It saddens me that I'm not even shocked to see that both of these men, set to be executed, are black, and that they will be put to death in the Southern states of Georgia and Texas. I don't know how "ya'll" do things in the South, but putting mentally handicapped men to death doesn't sound like justice to me. It sounds like murder.<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Check out the full article in <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2012/07/a-day-in-the-life-of-the-death-penalty-july-18-2012/259647/" target="_blank">The Atlantic here</a>.</div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n_QImdPcvr4/UAESn3_mmII/AAAAAAAAACc/urVlXFlIusE/s1600/Hearn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n_QImdPcvr4/UAESn3_mmII/AAAAAAAAACc/urVlXFlIusE/s200/Hearn.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yokamon Hearn</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Warren Hill's photo is <a href="http://newsone.com/2023747/georgia-execution-warren-hill/" target="_blank">here</a> with more on his case.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Yokomon Hearn's photo can be found <a href="http://www.scoop.it/t/anti-death-penalty/p/1672075564/michael-selsor-oklahoma-execution-date-1st-may-2012" target="_blank">here</a> along with a <a href="http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/siteapps/advocacy/ActionItem.aspx?c=6oJCLQPAJiJUG&b=6645049&aid=517965" target="_blank">petition</a> through Amnesty International.</div>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-27565385407959519482012-07-02T17:52:00.001-07:002012-07-02T17:52:11.219-07:00Institutional racism in the aftermath of the Rodney King beating<a href="http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/life-line-healthful-habits-made-simple/2012/jun/20/institutional-racism-aftermath-rodney-king-beating/#.T_JCJEu7gCc.blogger">Institutional racism in the aftermath of the Rodney King beating</a>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-84065617683149154622012-07-02T10:59:00.000-07:002012-07-02T10:59:06.545-07:00Prison in AmericaThis powerful <a href="http://www.nola.com/prisons/" target="_blank">eight-part series</a> on how Louisiana became the prison capital of the world, published by the Times-Picayune, is some of the best journalism I have seen about mass incarceration in America. Go take a look.<br />
<br />
You can watch the first video here.<br />
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<img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3LI1lQ0jdwE/T2k40GkYXHI/AAAAAAAAACM/K-4oQ_Vg1OQ/s320/trayvon-martin1.jpg" width="217" /></div>
Busy as I am, I needed to take time out today to participate in a <a data-mce-href="http://www.forharriet.com/2012/03/join-us-in-blog-in-for-trayvon-martin.html" href="http://www.forharriet.com/2012/03/join-us-in-blog-in-for-trayvon-martin.html" target="_blank">Blog In</a> in honor of young Trayvon Martin.<br />
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You've probably seen the news stories by now. Trayvon had walked to the store to get Skittles and an Arizona iced tea on the night of February 26th. On his way home, roughly 70 yards from his father's house in Sanford, Florida, he was gunned down by a volunteer neighborhood watch captain, George Zimmerman. Zimmerman is claiming self-defense even though he outweighed Trayvon by 100 pounds, was armed with a loaded handgun, and followed Trayvon despite the 911 operator telling him not to.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
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Trayvon, of slight build, was armed with a package of Skittles, an Arizona iced tea, and a cell phone.<br />
<br />
The case will soon be a month old, Zimmerman has not been arrested, and young Trayvon Martin is dead.<br />
<br />
When I first heard the recordings of the 911 calls from that night, I got a knot in the pit of my stomach. My next reaction was a heat I felt course through my body as I got angry. Why is Zimmerman not in jail? AND, after hearing more about his history, why was he ever authorized to carry a weapon? Furthermore, who ever thought it was a good idea for this guy to do neighborhood watch?!<br />
<br />
Why should I care, and why should I, a middle-aged white woman, write about this?<br />
<br />
Well, you see, like Trayvon's mother, I am the mother of young, black men. Like Trayvon's mother, my 17-year-old son often asks if he can walk a couple of blocks down to the store to buy some snacks. Like Trayvon, my son wears his pants low and often wears a hooded sweatshirt. Does this make him a criminal?<br />
<br />
No.<br />
<br />
In today's America, it is his blackness that makes him a criminal.<br />
<br />
Now, I know what some of you might be thinking. Maybe it's something along the lines of, "How can you say your son is a criminal just because he's black? I'm not racist. My friends aren't racist. I have black friends. We have a black President. Yada, yada, yada."<br />
<br />
Then I challenge you this: Close your eyes and think of the words drug dealer. What image comes to mind? Most often it will be the indelible image of a young black man in his saggy pants that has been imprinted on your mind by the media.<br />
<br />
As much as we would like to stick our heads in the sand and believe we are living in a post-racial America, it just isn't so. All you have to do is go search for the story of Trayvon Martin's murder in Florida newspapers, read the insensitive, ignorant, racist comments left by people who apparently think they are invisible on the internet, and you will quickly know that racism is alive and well in America.<br />
<br />
To summarize the gist of the comments: Zimmerman should go free because young black men kill white people all the time (a statistical untruth) and you don't see white people protesting about it.<br />
<br />
I am flabbergasted by this line of reasoning, but one thing I know for sure; we have not transcended race. In fact, I think we need a big "come to Jesus" moment around race. Instead of continuing to tiptoe around the issue, afraid to talk about it, I think it's time for some serious, sustained dialogue.<br />
<br />
If I were Trayvon Martin's mother, first of all, I would want my son back. I would be devastated at the loss. I'm talking about the crippling kind of agony one feels when something tragic happens to someone you love. I don't know how I would function, but this I know for sure; I would want justice. I would want Zimmerman dead, but I would settle for having him locked up. I would want him to get his day in court. I would want answers.<br />
<br />
There is a key difference between me and Trayvon's mother though. I'm white and she's black. There are certain rights and privileges that I take for granted that Trayvon's mother probably does not. It's called white privilege. I grew up being told that if I was in trouble, I should find a friendly police officer to help me out. A police officer was your friend.<br />
<br />
Now, if you're sitting there saying, "Huh? What are you talking about?" you probably have white privilege. If you have never been stopped by the cops for "Driving While White" or because you were in the "wrong" part of town, you have white privilege. Be thankful. You're life is easier because of it.<br />
<br />
As a white mother of African American sons, shamefully, I have to admit that it took me a long time to recognize that my firmly held beliefs about my rights as a citizen would not be applied equally to my sons. When they were babies I kissed their pudgy caffé latte cheeks and could not understand how the world would not love my sons as much as I do. When I sent them off to kindergarten, I did not recognize that they would not be afforded the same opportunities to participate in class that I had when I was growing up. (There are numerous studies showing the differences between how often white, female 4th graders and black, male 4th graders are called upon to answer questions.) And, now that they are young men, I warn them about hanging out in certain areas, and it frightens me to think that, because of my white priviledge, I may not have adequately prepared them for what to do if they are stopped by the police.<br />
<br />
Neither one of my sons has an arrest record, but as the case of Trayvon Martin shows, you don't need to BE a criminal. You just need to LOOK like one.<br />
<br />
And, apparently, that is all the justification George Zimmerman felt he needed to murder Trayvon Martin. What does it say about our criminal justice system and our society if Zimmerman is not arrested and charged?<br />
<br />
The old remnants of racism, white hoods, burning crosses, and a hangman's noose, may be gone, but new forms of racial control have emerged to take their place. Nowhere is racial inequality more prevalent that in our criminal justice system. There are two dramatically different criminal justice systems in America, one if you're white and one if you're black. In 2000, a Human Rights Watch report found that in some states, black men are incarcerated for drug crimes at rates twenty to fifty times higher than white men even though the rates of drug use and sale are similar regardless of race.<a data-mce-href="#_edn1" href="http://mydatingprescriptiondotcom.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=1401&action=edit#_edn1" title="">[i]</a> Basically, cops don't tend to go into college dorms to arrest white students for drug use and possession, and if Lindsay Lohan was a black man, we can presume she would have been sent off to prison a long time ago.<br />
<br />
Would Zimmerman be in jail right now if he was black? I can't say for sure, but I'm going to venture a "yes." Studies have repeated shown that at every level of the criminal justice system, African Americans are disproportionately stopped and frisked, arrested, charged, found guilty, and sentenced compared to their white counterparts and it has little to do with their rate of offending. It depends a lot more on who is perceived to be a criminal. Who LOOKS like a criminal? Who is disposible in our society?<br />
<br />
So, you see, if I was Trayvon's mother I would probably feel frustration and hopelessness toward the criminal justice system. I am not his mother, however, so I can only imagine myself in her shoes. Those of us with white privilege need to think long and hard about this. What if it was your son? The administration of the law applied to the least of us affects all of us. It defines who we are as a society. Are we really okay with defining a particular race as criminal, locking them away in disproportionate numbers, and systematically eliminating them through the death penalty, life without parole, or, in the case of Trayvon, vigilante murder?<br />
<br />
Really?<br />
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<a data-mce-href="#_ednref1" href="http://mydatingprescriptiondotcom.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=1401&action=edit#_ednref1" title="">[i]</a> Human Rights Watch, <em>Punishment and Prejudice, Racial Disparities in the War on Drugs</em>, HRW Reports vol.12, no.2 (New York, 2000)</div>
</div>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-23763615030311967052012-03-19T14:49:00.000-07:002012-03-19T14:49:06.041-07:00How Can Zimmerman Claim Self-Defense When He Followed Trayvon Martin?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_pwuCb6aczk/T2enusgwW8I/AAAAAAAAAB8/f3vAH33lVlI/s1600/TrayvonMartin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_pwuCb6aczk/T2enusgwW8I/AAAAAAAAAB8/f3vAH33lVlI/s320/TrayvonMartin.jpg" width="217" /></a>I've listened to the 911 tapes of the calls that came in on the night 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was gunned down by George Zimmerman, and frankly, I'm outraged. Why is George Zimmerman not in jail pending investigation of the case?</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
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There's only one reason I can think of; George Zimmerman is white.<br />
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If the tables had been turned, there is no doubt in my mind that Trayvon Martin would be sitting in a jail cell right now. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Trayvon is dead and George Zimmerman has been allowed to go free, free to kill the next young black man he suspects is up to no good.<br />
<br />
A video with the 911 tapes and an opinion piece by Carolyn Edgar can be found on <a href="http://inamerica.blogs.cnn.com/2012/03/19/opinion-trayvon-martin-not-george-zimmerman-was-engaged-in-self-defense/" target="_blank">CNN's Black in America</a>. If you haven't already heard the calls, I warn you that they are very disturbing.<br />
<br />
A <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-03-19/neighbrhood-watch-death-trayvon-martin/53655188/1" target="_blank">USA Today article</a> stated that 70 protesters at a Sanford rally chanted "What if it was your son?" and
held posters saying, "This is not a race issue." Many carried Skittles.<br />
<br />
They are only partially right. Unfortunately, this IS a race issue. Yes, the criminal justice system is supposed to be colorblind. It is supposed to afford everyone the same rights and punishments under the law, but let's face it, the criminal justice system is only as colorblind as the racial biases of those who administer said justice. The fact that Trayvon Martin's parents cannot find justice in Sanford, Florida is an outrage.<br />
<br />
Zimmerman should be in jail, and Sanford, Florida Police Chief Lee should be fired.<br />
<br />
Feel free to voice your opinion. You can contact Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee at:<br />
<span style="color: #01004c;"><a href="mailto:Bill.Lee@sanfordfl.gov"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Bill.Lee@sanfordfl.gov</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial;"> <br />407.688.5070
- Office</span></span><br />
<br />6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-86796855360812519072012-03-18T16:08:00.000-07:002012-03-18T16:08:19.534-07:00Contributor Spotlight: Inequitable Incarceration Efforts in Norway and United States<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="color: white;">Today's post is written by Kevin Stordahl, a student at the University of Washington, working on his sociology degree<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">.</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><em><span style="color: white;">Quick shameless plug: Are you an expert in the area of race and incarceration? Do you have a story to tell? Advice to offer? Do you have an example from your own experience? We’d love to have you as the next Contributor Spotlight! Contact us at: </span><a href="mailto:6and44@gmail.com"><span style="color: white;">6and44@gmail.com</span></a><span style="color: white;">.</span></em><br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GvjQaHcq9jc/T2Zo7f-17gI/AAAAAAAAAB0/TuN7UKPswXo/s1600/imagesCATI13Y1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GvjQaHcq9jc/T2Zo7f-17gI/AAAAAAAAAB0/TuN7UKPswXo/s1600/imagesCATI13Y1.jpg" /></a>Incarceration
in the United States has increasingly become a focal point of racial and social
inequality over the past decade.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Socially, the prison system does little to correct any behavioral
problems and uses a simple punishment tactic that puts people behind bars for a
determined amount of time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This has resulted
in a recidivism rate a little over 60% and even higher than that when you look
at non-violent crimes such as; robbery, larceny, motor vehicle theft, and
selling of stolen property (Bureau of Justice Statistics, BJS).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This alone shows that we need to reform the
system so it is more efficient in correcting these behavioral problems so that they
can try to live differently when they are released.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More alarming though, are the racial
disparities that are infused into the U.S. prison systems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>African Americans, while constituting 12.6
percent of the total U.S. population, make up 35.4 percent of those
incarcerated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In comparison, the white prison
population makes up just less than that at 32.9 percent while making up 72
percent of the total U.S. population (2010 census).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mostly attributed to the War on Drugs that
began under President Reagan in the early 1980s, African Americans have been
subjected to racial profiling and discrimination by the criminal justice system
in the U.S. more often than any other racial group.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This issue of racial discrimination is
nothing new in the United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
fact, it has been the basis for much our country’s legislative history and has
shaped the ways in which people interact with people from different racial
groups.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Norway has inequalities in their
incarceration efforts as well, but by simply looking at the rates they do not
seem to be to the extent of those in the United States. The historical past of
Norway becoming an independent nation, the laws that followed the independence
along with their unique rehabilitation incarceration system, have contributed
to their skewed incarceration statistics that suggest that they are more
tolerant of minority groups than the U.S.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In some ways, the immigrant population in Norway is analogous to
minority racial groups in the United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Focusing on incarceration, their populations in their respective prison
systems do not accurately represent their respective countries’ total
populations and they continue to be disproportionately charged and convicted of
criminal activity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today, Norway remains
94.4 percent Norwegian, while 3 percent of the population is comprised of
immigrants from other European countries and only 2 percent come from countries
outside of Europe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These immigrants are
the recipients of most discrimination and inequalities but they are not as
evident in Norway as they are in the United States because of the lack of distinct
diverse groups.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While the immigrant
population only makes up about 5 percent of the total population in Norway,
they make up 19.5 percent of those incarcerated in Norway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These rates are somewhat comparable to those
in the United States, but it suggests that if there was more diversity in
Norway, there would be even greater disparities between groups who are
incarcerated, possibly more than the disparities seen in the U.S., because of
the focus on creating and preserving a national Norwegian identity. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Eileen Myrdahl, in her dissertation
on Norwegian racial projects, discusses the history and formation of the
Norwegian identity and the legislation that was put in place to protect that
identity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After long being ruled by
Danish and Swedish powers, Norway gained its independence in 1905 and made
strong efforts to create a national identity in order to set themselves apart
from the Danish and Swedish identities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These efforts continued through Nazi occupation during WWII, from 1940
to 1945, and concentrated on making the Norwegian identity in an anti-Nazi
manner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anyone who had been born of a
German man and Norwegian woman were classified as non-Norwegian along with
anyone who had been employed by the Nazi regime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 1956, Norway had eradicated all laws
pertaining to barring particular groups of people from immigrating into the
country, which had been put into place after WWII, invited Hungarian refugees
who were fighting Communism and the U.S.S.R., but at the same time, also
decided to not accept migrants from other European nations, claiming that they
were inassimilable (Myrdahl).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eventually
this inassimilable characteristic got stretched to apply to those with darker
skin, in particularly those from Asia and Africa. As one can imagine, this did
not result in any real influx of immigrants from all over the world and
actually led to the politicization of immigration laws in the 1970s that
focused on Asian and African nations because of a labor movement that was short
lived and did little to change the population in the late 1960s (Myrdahl).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One law in particular that has led to most of
the immigrant population in Norway is the family reunification law.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This law allows for people who live outside
Norway to apply for entry into the country on the basis of reconnecting with a
family member who already lives in Norway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Laws put in place in the following decade focused on immigrants and
their ability to gain citizenship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
Immigration Act of 1988 allowed migration into the country, but those who moved
to Norway had to have continuous residence for 7 years with a record of “good”
behavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This law also said that any
children born in Norway of two foreign parents had to wait until the age of 18
to apply for citizenship (Migration Policy Institute, MPI).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These laws show how important preserving the
Norwegian identity is to the country and also gives a scope of how difficult it
is to be truly accepted as a Norwegian if you are an immigrant.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">This
focus on a national identity is something that the United States has not
embraced to the extent that Norway has, but has a similar background in that
there have been restrictions on who could actively be a part of American
society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since the early colonization of
the United States, the dominant white culture has subordinated people of color
through legislation and force with a focus on assimilation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As soon as the first colonizers arrived in
the Americas they began calling the indigenous people “unfit” to rule
themselves and decided to take matters into their own hands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This process of labeling minority racial
groups who were not white as “unfit” was used throughout the time before the
Civil War and the Reconstruction efforts in order to justify the violence that
came to be the center of black and white race relations (Moon Ho-Jung).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was not until after the Civil Rights
Movement when the subordination of racial groups became a more taboo subject
and seemingly less accepted across the nation. This has resulted in a near
annihilation of American Indians and high percentages of poverty among other
minority groups, mostly Latino and African American. More importantly though,
the subordination has made significant advances in the United States’ prison system
over the last few decades, with a total prison population of nearly 2.3
million, the prisons in the United States have continuously become increasingly
occupied by minorities, most evident are African Americans, who make up about
35 percent (ABC news).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While this
subordination may be outrageous and unfair, it is not surprising considering
the fact that these types of racial disparities have always been a part of
United States history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">Another
possible reason for the skewed comparison of incarceration rates between Norway
and the United States are the differences in recidivism rates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The United States has a recidivism rate of
nearly 70 percent in a criminal justice system whose sole purpose is to gage
the severity of a committed crime and sentence the criminal to a period of jail
time (BJS).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The tactic of punishment has
long been the way of dealing with criminals in the United States and one would
think that severely punishing an individual would make them less likely to
engage in criminal activity that would result in them returning, but obviously
this is not the case.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The system does
nothing to help correct or prevent criminal behavior. So naturally, criminals
who are released, more often than not, get rearrested and put back in jail,
often for the same crime or a crime similar to what they had previously gotten
in trouble for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is important
because if African Americans make up the majority of the prison population, it
means they are most likely the ones who are rearrested after already facing
longer average sentences than whites accused of the same crimes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 2002, African Americans with a drug offense
had an average prison term of 105 months compared to 62 months for whites with
a drug offence (BJS).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This supports the
notion that racial discrimination is laced throughout the entire criminal
justice system in the United States and as a result it has had a negative
impact on minority groups.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">Norway,
in comparison, has a very different approach in its prison system which
includes more rehabilitating efforts in dealing with criminal behavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First of all, they do not have a death
penalty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The longest sentence an individual
can serve is 21 years and potentially up to 30 years if it is a crime against
humanity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They do have another option
that is rarely used that includes a system of review every five years to
determine if the individual has been rehabilitated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the only way a person could
potentially get a life sentence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Secondly, they work to rehabilitate criminals through socialization and
providing them with opportunities to get educated and to learn to take
responsibility of not only their actions, but in some situations, like at the Bastoy
Prison, of a small business.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a result
of this approach, Norway has a recidivism rate of about 40 percent, two-thirds
less than that in the United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
even though there is still a disproportional amount of immigrants in prison
that misrepresents the total population of Norway, its system provides
individuals with an alternative to simply sitting in a cell, rotting away, and
it has proven to help lessen the amount of those who are rearrested.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This approach does have some disputed tactics
though.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">This
approach has been seen, by many, as the most progressive way in dealing with
crime in Europe and it would appear to be a more effective use of taxpayer
dollars in dealing with criminal behavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But a criticism that this approach has had to deal with recently is the
criminals who commit violent crimes against humanity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anders Breivik, who is a well-known Norwegian
terrorist and recently killed over 70 people in attacks last July, is being
placed in this rehabilitation prison system in Norway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many Norwegians have actually come together
to voice their opinion in opposition to the rehabilitation effort of this
particular individual because of his goal to divide the nation of Norway, but
the current Norwegian policy is being applied to Breivik in the same way they
are to any other criminal convicted of violent crimes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The severity of the violence is something
that Norway does not have to deal with often, so violent in fact, that many
people across the world are skeptical of the rehabilitation process working on
Breivik.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It will be interesting to see
if the efforts to rehabilitate a mass murderer will be successful or if he will
end up being classified as mentally ill and placed in an asylum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One thing is for sure, Norway’s prison system
has shown evidence of actually correcting criminal behavior by simply treating
its criminals as human beings, while we will have to wait and see if it will
work for an extreme case such as Breivik’s.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: left; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">While
incarceration rates in the United States and Norway suggest that there is
similar discrimination that occurs in their respective criminal justice
systems, it is the history of racial groups in the U.S. and the construction of
a national identity in Norway that play a role in the animosity felt toward
minority groups.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The United States,
however, has in place a criminal justice system that does little to correct
criminal behavior and seemingly works to keep those classified as criminal
locked up away from society for our safety.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Norway’s criminal justice system, on the other hand, offers
opportunities for criminals to correct their behavior through self-reflection,
education, and socialization.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
compared recidivism rates suggest that the U.S. should look at reforming parts
of their system, but perhaps not to the extreme that Norway currently has in
dealing with even the most violent of criminals. For those criminals who have
never committed a violent act, there should be more opportunity for them to get
out of the prison system and back into society as a productive and competent
individual.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-54993129071047572952012-03-17T23:33:00.000-07:002012-03-17T23:37:46.305-07:00Anatomy of JusticeWe have been adding to our book shelf lately. Check out <em>Anatomy of Justice: A Murder Case Gone Wrong</em> by Raymond Bonner. The NYTimes article about the book can be found <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/18/books/review/anatomy-of-injustice-by-raymond-bonner.html" target="_blank">here</a>.6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-17642582272886979362012-03-14T17:46:00.000-07:002012-03-14T17:46:11.231-07:00The Modern Minstrel Show<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QojfWHq0kwA/T2E7CAhhcEI/AAAAAAAAABs/01zJRgqf13o/s1600/Minstrel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QojfWHq0kwA/T2E7CAhhcEI/AAAAAAAAABs/01zJRgqf13o/s1600/Minstrel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QojfWHq0kwA/T2E7CAhhcEI/AAAAAAAAABs/01zJRgqf13o/s1600/Minstrel.jpg" /></a>What are your thoughts on gangsta rap, television shows like <em>Flavor of Love</em>, and others portraying gangsta culture?<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
I was reading Michelle Alexander's book, <a href="http://www.newjimcrow.com/" target="_blank">The New Jim Crow</a>, and came upon her arguments drawing the parallels between black performers in the minstrel shows and the images we see of black, gangsta culture on television today.<br />
<br />
To paraphrase, she points out that,<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Psychologists have long observed that when people feel hopelessly stigmatized, a powerful coping strategy - often the only apparent route to self-esteem - is embracing one's stigmatized identity."</blockquote>
In regards to mass incarceration and the War on Drugs, she observes that gangsta rap did not become popular until after the War on Drugs was in full effect and young, black men were suddenly being swept off the streets and into prisons.<br />
<br />
Before the War on Drugs, we had "Rapper's Delight" and "My Adidas" not songs about pimps and 'hos. (I might be dating myself.) However, you have to admit; the timing is certainly interesting.<br />
<br />
Alexander equates prevalent negative images in the media today to the minstrel shows of the slavery and Jim Crow eras, both of which are for-profit enterprises established to portray the worst racial stereotypes of African-Americans. Further, like the minstrel shows, today's audience is primarily white. White, suburban teenagers are the largest consumers of gangsta rap.<br />
<br />
Alexander goes on to question,<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"It seems likely that historians will one day look back on the images of black men in gangsta rap videos with a similar curiosity [to the minstrel shows]. Why would these young men, who are targets of a brutal drug war declared against them, put on a show - a spectacle - that romanticizes and glorifies their criminalization? Why would these young men openly endorse and perpetuate the very stereotypes that are invoked to justify their second-class status, their exculusion from mainstream society? The answers, historians may find, are not that different from the answers to the minstrelsy puzzle."<br />
</blockquote>
Her answer is that they are embracing the stigma placed upon them by the War on Drugs. Like the minstrel show it "has its roots in the struggle for a positive identity among outcasts."<br />
<br />
What are your thoughts?6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-41687258609439906772012-02-20T17:44:00.000-08:002012-02-20T17:45:13.384-08:00Senior Deputy King County Prosecutor Resigns<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/ABPub/2012/02/16/2015278963.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="James Konat " border="0" class="pic" height="320" src="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/ABPub/2012/02/16/2015278963.jpg" title="James Konat " width="230" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James Konat</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The Seattle Times reported last week that James Konat, a senior deputy King County prosecutor who went on leave last summer after being rebuked by the state Supreme Court for using racially charged language during a murder trial, has resigned. Check out the original article by <a href="http://search.nwsource.com/search?searchtype=cq&sort=date&from=ST&byline=Jennifer%20Sullivan">Jennifer Sullivan</a><br />
<div class="source">
Seattle Times staff reporter at the <a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2017523017_konat17m.html" target="_blank">Seattle Times website</a>.<br />
</div>
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In June, the Supreme Court found that Konat had engaged in "prosecutorial misconduct" in questioning witnesses during the 2007 trial of Kevin L. Monday Jr., who was convicted of first-degree murder and first-degree assault, and sentenced to 64 years in prison.</div>
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<div class="body">
During the trial, Konat questioned witnesses, many of them black, about a purported street "code" that he claimed prevented some from talking to the police, according to the Supreme Court's majority opinion. In questioning some witnesses, Konat referred to police as the "PO-leese," the justices found.<br />
During his closing argument to jurors, Konat also said that while witnesses denied the presence of such a code, "the code is black folk don't testify against black folk. You don't snitch to the police," according to the Supreme Court decision.<br />
<br />
The Supreme Court overturned Monday's conviction and awarded the man a new trial. Monday is black; Konat is white.<br />
Monday, in his appeal, claimed Konat "made a blatant and inappropriate appeal to racial prejudice and undermined the credibility of African-American witnesses based on their race," according to the Supreme Court.<br />
<br />
While the state Court of Appeals upheld Monday's conviction, the Supreme Court cited Konat's comments as grounds for the conviction to be overturned, saying they cast doubt on the credibility of the witnesses based on their race. One justice called the deputy prosecutor's comments "repugnant."</div>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-67964783843465308652012-02-05T12:18:00.000-08:002012-02-05T12:24:28.152-08:00How Many Are Wrongfully Convicted?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vYSbVnIq7_g/Ty7j4BECAOI/AAAAAAAAABk/RxJaPIS3wic/s1600/DNA.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vYSbVnIq7_g/Ty7j4BECAOI/AAAAAAAAABk/RxJaPIS3wic/s320/DNA.jpg" width="320" /></a>We know that African-American men make up a disproportionate percentage of the federal and state penitentiary populations, but how many of those men are there because they have been wrongfully convicted? </div>
<br />
According to the Innocence Project"s <a href="http://www.innocenceproject.org/200/ip_200.pdf">"200 Exonerated: Too Many Wrongfully Convicted",</a><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"We...know that those who are exonerated by DNA are a subset within a subset—a fraction of cases that have evidence that still exists and can yield DNA results, within the tiny fraction of cases that even have DNA evidence as part of the crime. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Very few cases involve physical evidence that could be subjected to DNA<br />
testing (for example, it is estimated that, even among murders, only 10% of cases<br />
have such evidence)."</blockquote>
Also, according to Innocence Project data, <strong>h<span style="font-weight: bold;">ere is the figure that no one should be shocked about: 146 of the 245 people who have been cleared using DNA evidence are African-American.</span></strong><br />
"Seventy percent of the 245 people who were wrongly convicted are people of color. Sixty percent were African-American. By now, everyone knows that African-Americans are over-incarcerated. The prison population is 40 to 45 percent African-American, which is wildly disproportionate, but the percentage of those exonerated is even higher," said Ferrero<br />
<br />
Watch "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0436039/" target="_blank">After Innocence</a>," and then find out about the process for exoneration in your state.<br />
<br />6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-84992984926654521732012-01-16T14:18:00.000-08:002012-01-16T14:18:01.841-08:00Read 'The New Jim Crow' and change your perspective on race in America<br />
<div class="block">
<div class="summary">
"The New Jim Crow," which posits that the so-called "War on
Drugs" amounts to a war on African-American men, has been a sensation, writes
Leonard Pitts Jr. But it needs to be more, he adds. It needs to be a movement.
If you want a copy of the book, read this column.</div>
<div class="byline">
By <a href="http://search.nwsource.com/search?searchtype=cq&sort=date&from=ST&byline=Leonard%20Pitts%20Jr">Leonard
Pitts Jr</a></div>
<div class="source">
Syndicated columnist</div>
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I have something for you.<br />
In June 2010, I wrote in this space about a book, "The New Jim Crow," by
Michelle Alexander, which I called a "troubling and profoundly necessary" work.
Alexander promulgated an explosive argument. Namely, that the so-called "War on
Drugs" amounts to a war on African-American men and, more to the point, to a
racial caste system nearly as restrictive, oppressive and omnipresent as Jim
Crow itself.<br />
<br />
This because, although white Americans are far and away the nation's biggest
dealers and users of illegal drugs, African Americans are far and away the ones
most likely to be jailed for drug crimes. And when they are set "free" after
doing their time, black men enter a legal purgatory where the right to vote,
work, go to school or rent an apartment can be legally denied. It's as if George
Wallace were still standing in the schoolhouse door.<br />
<br />
"The New Jim Crow" won several awards, enjoyed significant media attention,
and was an apparent catalyst in the NAACP's decision last year to call for an
end to the drug war. The book was a sensation, but we need it to be more. We
need it to be a movement.<br />
<br />
As it happens and not exactly by coincidence, Alexander's book is being
reissued in paperback this week as we mark the birthday of the man who led
America's greatest mass movement for social justice. In his battle against the
original Jim Crow, Martin Luther King, in a sense, did what Alexander seeks to
do: pour sunlight on an onerous condition that exists just beyond the periphery
of most Americans' sight.<br />
<br />
I want to help her do that. So here's the deal. I'll give you a copy of the
book — autographed by the author, no less — free of charge. You don't even have
to pay for shipping. All you have to do is tell me you want it and promise me
you'll read it.<br />
<br />
In fact, make that the subject line of the email you send to request your
copy: "I want it. I'll read it." Send it to <a href="mailto:lpitts@miamiherald.com">lpitts@miamiherald.com</a>. Make sure to
include your contact information and mailing address. At month's end, I'll draw
50 names from a bucket and send out 50 books. If you work for the company that
syndicates my column, or a newspaper that runs it, you can't participate. The
same goes if you're my kin or my friend.<br />
<br />
On March 15, Alexander has agreed to appear with me at Books and Books in
Coral Gables, Fla., where I will moderate a discussion with an audience. You'll
also be able to submit questions via Twitter @MiamiHeraldLive and Facebook.
Video from the event will be posted on The Miami Herald's website<br />
<br />
(<a href="http://www.miamiherald.com/">www.miamiherald.com</a>).<br />
<br />
And here, let me make one thing clear. This giveaway is underwritten neither
by my employer nor by Alexander's publisher. Me, myself and I will pay for both
books and shipping. I chose to do it that way in order to impress upon you how
vital I personally feel it is that you read this book.<br />
No, I have no financial interest in its success. I do, however, have
tremendous emotional interest. Half a century ago, Martin Luther King and a
cadre of courageous idealists made a sustained appeal to this nation's misplaced
sense of justice, forced Americans to see an outrage that was right in front of
them yet, somehow, beyond their line of sight.<br />
<br />
There could be no better homage to his memory than to do that again.<br />
<em>Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts Jr.'s column appears regularly on
editorial pages of The Times. His email address is: <a href="mailto:lpitts@miamiherald.com">lpitts@miamiherald.com</a></em></div>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-88314826494030976642011-10-13T10:59:00.000-07:002011-10-13T10:59:54.984-07:00Disciplinary Gaps Not Limited to Prison<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KnZFm8qzGr4/TpckQI9vz9I/AAAAAAAAABc/VocJbxIq52w/s1600/5169887507_169786aab0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KnZFm8qzGr4/TpckQI9vz9I/AAAAAAAAABc/VocJbxIq52w/s320/5169887507_169786aab0.jpg" width="240" /></a>A report by the National Education Policy Center entitled, <a href="http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/discipline-policies">"Discipline Policies, Successful Schools, and Racial Justice,"</a> illustrates a widening disciplinary gap between students of color and white students in grades K-12. Unfortunately, disproportionate punishments are not limited to those we see in the criminal justice system. Check out the report through the link above and read the full article in <a href="http://colorlines.com/archives/2011/10/black_students_suspended_from_schools_for_minor_infractions_more_often_than_whites_says_a_new_report.html">ColorLines Magazine</a>. Then, ask yourself. What does a lifetime of disproportionate punishment do to an individual? What can be done to change this trend? Are we taking a proactive or reactive role in our childrens' education?</div>
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<br /></div>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-72565359772621080992011-10-07T10:56:00.000-07:002012-02-20T19:18:43.530-08:00Contributor Spotlight: Getting a Degree in Prison<a href="http://www.onlinecolleges.net/2011/09/20/earning-a-degree-in-prison/"><img alt="Prison Education" border="0" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/infographics/PrisonEducation_page.png" width="500" /></a><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">We hope you enjoy a feature called Contributor Spotlight. Today's post is provided by Online College Resources.</span><br />
<br />
<em><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Quick shameless plug: Are you an expert in the area of race and incarceration? Do you have a story to tell? Advice to offer? Do you have an example from your own experience? We’d love to have you as the next Contributor Spotlight! Contact us at: </span><a href="mailto:6and44@gmail.com"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">6and44@gmail.com</span></a><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">.</span></em><br />
Via: <a href="http://www.onlinecolleges.net/">Online Colleges Resource</a>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-41839932419034420272011-09-21T23:26:00.000-07:002012-10-22T20:40:35.812-07:00Contributor Spotlight: Is Racism Just a Part of Being Human?<span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Due to limited staffing at 6and44, we are trying something new. We hope you will enjoy a new feature called Contributor Spotlight. Today's post is written by Allison Gamble who<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"> has
been a curious student of psychology since high school. She brings her
understanding of the mind to work in the weird world of internet marketing.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<em><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Quick shameless plug: Are you an expert in the area of race and incarceration? Do you have a story to tell? Advice to offer? Do you have an example from your own experience? We’d love to have you as the next Contributor Spotlight! Contact us at: </span><a href="mailto:6and44@gmail.com"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">6and44@gmail.com</span></a><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">.</span></em><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Is Racism Just a Part of
Being Human?<o:p></o:p></span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-autospace: ideograph-numeric;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">Most Americans are pretty
well aware of racism and its effects on our population, but the question of why
racism exists is something of a mystery to many. Does racism occur naturally,
or is it a learned behavior? If it's learned, can it be unlearned? Is there
hope for a racism-free America?</span></div>
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-autospace: ideograph-numeric;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">Some theories suggest
racism is merely a </span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><u>fear of the
unknown</u></span></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">,
and that these fears foster prejudices against individuals of different
ethnicity. There are several reasons a person would fear individuals of another
race, including previous negative experiences with people of another race or
being taught from childhood to fear those who are different.</span></span></div>
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-autospace: ideograph-numeric;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">Sociology and <span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">ForensicPsychology.net </span></span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">lead us to believe most actions and behaviors are learned and do</span><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"> not occur
naturally. Most sociologists believe racism is such a learned behavior. They
reason that children raised in a racist household or community where racism is
prevalent will eventually adopt these beliefs and behaviors as their own. This
could be considered </span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><u>good news</u></span></span><span style="font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">:
if racism can be learned, it can therefore be unlearned. But how can one
unlearn racism? Generally speaking, education and dialogue are key, as is
recognizing, accepting, and appreciating human differences. </span></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-autospace: ideograph-numeric;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">It could also be argued
racism is a natural human behavior. This theory suggests humans naturally group
according to ethnicity, and that this division inevitably leads to
discrimination. </span><a href="http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1870408,00.html"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Studies</span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"> have shown individuals
will naturally try to surround themselves with people of their own race, even
when they differ in age, sex, and ways of thinking. This "unconscious
racism" can still be a powerful force for discrimination, as it still
serves to separate and exclude. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-autospace: ideograph-numeric;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">Racism seems to run rampant
in the judicial and corrections systems in the United States. The </span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><u>African American population in US
prisons</u></span></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">
has always been significantly higher than the White prison population. This is
true of females as well as males, but the numbers are considerably higher among
men. In fact, black males outnumber white males more than six to one in the US
prison system. Further, it's reported that one in three African American men
aged 20 to 29 are under some type of criminal justice supervision, whether
incarceration, probation, and parole.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-autospace: ideograph-numeric;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">Of the many theories on why
this is this case, the most widely accepted highlights the role of
socioeconomic issues associated with crime. Typically, African Americans come
from lower socioeconomic brackets than most Whites. This includes lower levels
of income and education as well as different associated social groups and
upbringing. It's believed factors such as poverty, poor education, and coming
from broken families lead to higher instances of crime in any community.
However, since African Americans are more likely to hail from these sorts of
circumstances, it is they who populate US prisons in disproportionate numbers. </span></div>
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 14pt; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-autospace: ideograph-numeric;">
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">The war on drugs is another
significant factor. Since crack cocaine sparked the war on drugs in 1980, the
number of </span><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><u>incarcerated drug
offenders </u></span></span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;">has
steadily been on the rise. In fact, approximately one third of the US prison
population is made up of drug offenders. Furthermore, studies indicate that
African Americans are </span></span><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1352947/Black-drug-offenders-times-likely-jailed-whites.html"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">eight times more likely</span></a><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"> than Whites to be
convicted of drug charges. African Americans may not break the law more often
than anybody else, but they more often suffer the consequences. This brings
socioeconomic aspects back into play, especially poverty. African Americans are
less likely to be able to afford lawyers, which increases their chances of
being convicted on drug charges and impairs their ability to effectively appeal
such convictions.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-autospace: ideograph-numeric;">
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Verdana; mso-fareast-font-family: Verdana;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">Whether racism is a learned
or innate behavior may always be up for debate. However, just because we don't
know why racism exists doesn't mean we can't work to defeat it. If racism is
learned, it can most certainly be unlearned. By the same token, natural racism
can be overcome as well. Not all natural instincts are acceptable or
productive, and humankind needs to work to overpower our inclination to set
ourselves apart according to ethnicity. Racism may be a natural instinct; hate,
however, is not.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-46177636309169486452011-06-01T04:45:00.000-07:002011-06-01T04:45:04.198-07:00A lot of progress... and so much more to comeThere are a lot of discussions on mass inarceration and states are starting to talk about changes to sentencing or prison reform.<div><br />
</div><div>The ACLU announced that they will be taking on mass incarceration - citing even more statistics to build a strong case. We found the numbers speak for themselves. Here is a link to their new weekly blog, with resources and weekly highlights. <a href="http://www.aclu.org/blog/tag/overincarceration%20clips">http://www.aclu.org/blog/tag/overincarceration%20clips</a></div><div><br />
</div><div>What makes an impact is a real life, where somebody with so much potential was locked up - Voices from Prison. We did have a set back with this part of our blog, and are hopeful that access to the Monroe state prison will open up again soon.</div><div><br />
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</div>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-47628986092163838352011-05-31T16:01:00.000-07:002011-05-31T16:01:07.079-07:00Up and RunningHi followers, it has been awhile since our last post. We wrapped up our classes, and spent some time reconnecting with friends and family while we finalized our plan going forward. We will continue with our purpose, and hope to spread to awareness to this injustice. Good to talk with you again...6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7981531844983538484.post-6991414711901619092011-03-28T22:52:00.000-07:002011-03-28T22:52:56.672-07:00Community Feedback Wanted<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IfIajsl7vFg/TZFzbMkPduI/AAAAAAAAABY/FZGEKmWtwN0/s1600/question-mark.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" r6="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IfIajsl7vFg/TZFzbMkPduI/AAAAAAAAABY/FZGEKmWtwN0/s320/question-mark.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>We have been working on our awareness campaign for about six or seven months now, and the question has been raised, "What should we DO?"<br />
<br />
We're interested in everyone's feedback. Is an awareness campaign enough? Once people are aware, they want to DO something. What should that something be? <br />
<ul><li>We have discussed starting a "Ban the Box" campaign, asking employers to eliminate the box on job applications that has to be checked if you're a felon.</li>
<li>We've talked about establishing a mentor program, where ex-offenders who have successfully transitioned back into society would mentor guys coming out of prison.</li>
</ul>We have some other ideas up our sleeves, but we would love to hear from you. What is the most important thing we could do? Please either comment on this post, or send us an email. We want to hear from <u>you.</u>6and44http://www.blogger.com/profile/12848368965079315244noreply@blogger.com2