The Criminal Justice System : An Analysis Of Income And Racial Inequality Essay

In this video Marc Mauer explains the racial disparities in the criminal justice system which are overlooked and continues silently in the criminal justice system. Mauer explains how two teenage boys arrested for shoplifting in different social classes receives different treatment from the criminal justice system. The first teenager has a two parents that are able to send their son to get help. They are able to send him to a social worker. They inform the prosecutor that their son is doing better. The prosecutor decided to drop the charges against the teen because he was able to seek help for his criminal behavior. It is also implied this teenager is white financial stable and not a danger to the community. He is just an average teen who fell into the wrong crowd. Therefore, he has no criminal record and is able to apply for jobs without scrutiny for being arrested as a teen. This teen would also be viewed as a youth that is having environmental problems and would get social dispute resolutions, interventions for acting out in

Chavis, Benjamin F., Jr. "U.S. Criminal Justice System Needs Urgent Reform." Washington Informer, Mar 2015, pp. 24-24,41, Global News stream; ProQuest Central, http://ezproxy.gsu.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.gsu.edu/docview/1669733723?accountid=11226.

Racial inequality is growing. Our criminal laws, while facially neutral, are enforced in a manner that is massively and pervasively biased. My research will examine the U.S. criminal justice policies and how it has the most adverse effect on minorities. According to the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics, out of a total population of 1,976,019 incarcerated in adult facilities, 1,239,946 or 63 percent are

Although saying the criminal justice system is racist is a controversial statement, there is evidence and statistics that prove it to be true. Research and evidence validate the issue of racism to be undeniable. Equality and justice are out of reach with the racism that takes place in our criminal justice system and our country. Racial discrimination is prevalent amongst the African American culture in issues regarding drug use, and incarceration which creates unfair inequality for this race. I will use peer reviewed articles to verify the racial disparity in the criminal justice system.

“The system is not fair. Institutional racism is alive and well in the juvenile justice system as it is in the criminal justice system, due to racial disparity and bias in the court room” (Jones, Bridgett). This is a statement that plagues many people involved in the justice systems. There are huge racial disparities throughout the world. Post-Slavery: the early development of the Race/Crime Connection, Profiling: Racializing possible cause, and differential bias involvement as well as institutional racism. We can work on having better policies and procedures driven into police practices and we need to make sure people of color are not excluded from juries to stop most of the disparity.

In today’s society, discrimination continues to affect millions of minorities from inappropriate name calling to being shot by a law enforcement officer because you were perceived to be dangerous. The underlying effects of racial discrimination are seen in all aspects of our society, especially in our social institutions. These social institutions range from the educational system to our government, yet racial discrimination is more evident in the criminal justice system. When analyzing how the criminal justice system discriminates against minorities we are able to do so through the visible disparities within the system. Unfortunately, these disparities display African Americans having the highest population rates in the criminal justice system, therefore, we can immediately conclude this disparity in population is due to the injustices conducted by the system. Thus, there is a need for urgent change not just within the criminal justice system but within all social institutions beginning with our government. This change should create greater opportunities for minorities to enter the political field in our government as well as promoting higher participating in voting. Yet, the criminal justice system within all its aspects practices discrimination due to its deeply interwoven prejudice, institutional racism, and socioeconomic status.

The existence of racial disparity and structural inequality within the criminal justice system renders the concept of true justice for all unobtainable. The statistics of convictions and prison sentences by race definitely support the concept that discrimination is a problem in the justice system as well as the insignificantly number of minority judges and lawyers. There are a multitude of circumstances that influence these statistics according to the “Central Eight” criminogenic risk factors. The need for programs and methods to effectively deter those at risk individuals has never been greater and the lack of such programs is costing society in countless ways.

Racism in police treatment of minorities has created great disparities in incarceration amongst the races. Blatant cases of racist law enforcement that are covered in the news are a testament to the fact that racism within police departments exists from coast to coast. However, these are only the cases that people find out about; there are countless other cases of police racism and brutality that are not reported.

The book "The Rich Get Richer and the Poor Get Prison" by Jeffrey H. Reiman provides a very interesting account of how the rich are being treated by the criminal justice system in a more favorable than the poorer and nonviolent criminals who are generally mistreated. Reiman started his book by stating that the recently noted decline in crime rate is skewed. This is clear in the 12th page of his book when he stated that After more than 20 years of telling us that crime was growing out of control and proposing more cops and tougher laws and more prisons, crime rates are now coming down and politicians are jumping to claim credit for the reductions" (Reiman ,p. 12).The book is a well written text that effectively examines the various harmful acts that are committed by the rich in our society. These harmful acts include bribery, medical crimes, and embezzlement of public funds, crime against consumers as well as environmental crimes such as unsafe workplaces as well as pollution among many others. Reiman's book, in its thorough analysis of the various harmful acts noted that there is a particular bias against the poor people within the American criminal justice system.He demonstrated that acts like murder, assault and theft that are committed by the poor people are treated by the criminal justice system as very serious crimes while on the other hand, other harmful acts like bribery, medical crimes, embezzlement of public funds, crime against consumers as well as

family income for whites is 38,909 and for blacks it is 21,161. This shows that

There are many ways the criminal justice system plays a huge role in the discrimination against all people of color. Mostly, there are a wide range of studies within the African American communities that expresses concern, prejudice, and even racial profiling in the criminal justice system pertaining to blacks. Judges, jurors, police officers, and even marriages are key roles of the societal disadvantages African Americans have. African Americans are even being arrested more than any other race in America. With societal disadvantages, how can African Americans be striving citizens in America?

Research shows that African Americans and Latinos have been the victims of racial profiling by the criminal justice system. African Americans and Latinos are at a higher risk of being arrested, prosecuted and sentenced that Whites. The main cause of racial disparities occurs because law enforcement agencies believe that African Americans and Latinos are at high risk of engaging in crime and violence. During prosecutions and court hearings, the jury and judges give harsher sentences to minority groups. As a result, minorities view the criminal justice system as unjust since it favors whites. This research paper reviews relevant literature to show white privileges and racial disparities in the criminal justice system. Additionally, the paper provides linkages between racial disparities in the United States criminal justice system and the law. In this regard, the main objective of the research paper is to give detailed insights on racial discriminations in the criminal justice system.

There is a very evident problem with racism in the United States Criminal Justice System. Society chooses to ignore this problem because many do not think they are a part of it. What they do not understand is they are a part of society, therefore a part of the problem. Even if a particular person is not doing anything to cause this problem directly, they are not helping the situation either. Society has to become aware of this issue and stop pretending as though it is something that will go away on its own. Others need to become aware of this issue so they can not only make others aware, but so they can find out the exact source of the problem and how to fix it before it is too late. The United States is supposed to be a free country where people feel safe, yet there are issues still happening today that people like Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and others fought and risked their lives to change. Society likes to look back on history and say that things are different and the country has come so far and that everyone is equal. However, today’s news and statistics show that is not the case at all. If we do not take action now, we will be right back where we started. Many races are not treated fairly by citizens of this county and even the United States Criminal Justice System, especially African Americans. Nationwide, African Americans are stopped, searched, arrested, and incarcerated at rates much higher than people of other races.

There are many ethnic differences in each stage of the justice system. In order to be able to prove these it is important to break the system down, and evaluate it bit by bit, showing the possible signs of ethnic differences.

The general idea of the Criminal Justice system in the United States is that everyone be treated equal despite race, ethnicity, sexuality, and class. However, social class must be taken in consideration when examining criminology and criminal justice. It is often viewed as a crucial factor that influences individuals to commit a crime. A person’s social status structures “social interactions”, as every role has a specific behavior that is associated with it as well as power. Within the “hierarchical organization of social statuses” people have access to certain resources, wealth, and education that sometimes controls the outcomes that it occurs. The class you are born in usually determines what crimes are committed though everyone is capable of doing the same crimes, some crimes are more accepted. Those who are in a lower class are more likely to do a blue collar crime while someone in a higher class commits a white