...In today’s society, incarceration has been the medium by which justice is addressed. However, within this medium, exists inconsistencies that have caused a massive population of incarceration. The most obvious inconsistency is that the majority of the prison population is composed of minorities. Furthermore, the main reason for this mass incarceration is due to the inequalities that minorities face in this country. In this literature review, an attempt is made to take a more in depth look into different elements of inequality through the views of various authors. It will include how inequality exists in employment, education, and the justice system, while identifying the link between these elements and incarceration. In addition, it will also...
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...was unconstitutional. Not only did this start a generation that flourishes with these beliefs that all Muslims were terrorists and also as a country that promoted torture. Many different aspects changed how the criminal justice system’s function was originally meant to do. The attack rebirthed the old stigma our nation has decades ago of racial profiling being a norm....
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...Racial disparity in u.s prisons MBOGO .W. APOLLO (MOI). Professor: Institution affiliated Date: Racial disparity in prisons in America can be conceptualized as a situation where the population of a specific group of people is the most in the criminal justice system as compared to the general population. Prisons in U.S.A are a significant constituent of the criminal justice system. The main function of the American prisons is to protect society from violation of law, to rehabilitate also punish the law breakers in order to assist them to be responsible members of the society. The prisons in the state continue to grow in order to meet the demands of the correctional and the criminal justice system in general. However, the trend in the justice system, especially in the prisons, is characterized by ethnic disparity. This normally compromises the level of justice dispensation. It has been a controversial issue for several decades among the prisons in the state. Some individuals seem to defy the concept of existence of disparity in the justice system. They believe that it does not exist. For instance, statistics that were presented by Marc Mauer proved that if the argument that there existed racial discrimination in the prisons, then the extraordinary rise in the American prisons in the past three decades would be explained in six fold increase. This to him would eventually lead to incarceration of two million Americans. For instance, “one in every eight African –American...
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...Sociology Introduction One of the most important trends in the study of sociology is the inevitable social inequality in the society. When talk about inequality, sociologists usually link stratifying institutions which label people into social categories such as the educational system and the formal labor market. The three articles discussed below explore the different faces of inequality in society. These articles are Incarceration and Stratification (2010), The Mark of Criminal Record (2003) and The Black-White Test Score Gap (2004). The overarching theme that will be pointed out below is inequality face by black people in the United States. These articles show inequalities face by black people in three different landscapes: incarceration cells, employment, and education. This paper included the role of media in the proliferation of racial inequality between white and black people. Lastly, this paper also presented the missing gaps on literature and how should we address the problem of racial inequality. Summary Inequality is present in incarceration cells. Wakefield and Uggen (2010) claimed that incarceration became a powerful “engine of social inequality that plays a massive and racialized part in the contemporary stratification system” (Wakefield and Uggen, 2010, p. 388). The study conducted by Wakefield and Uggen (2010) covers the scope of imprisonment and the process of selection into prison. The authors then proceed by giving the implications of incarceration in...
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...Race and ethnicity issues in the criminal justice system have been a pervasive and deeply concerning phenomenon. Research consistently reveals significant disparities in the treatment of different racial and ethnic groups within the system. Factors Causing the Trend One factor contributing to the disproportionate representation of certain racial and ethnic groups in the criminal justice system is the over-policing of minority communities. Law enforcement agencies often deploy more resources to neighborhoods with higher populations of minorities, leading to increased surveillance, stops, and arrests within these communities. Racial profiling, or the practice of targeting individuals for suspicion of crime based on their race or ethnicity, remains...
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...Roichelle Marble Sociology 134 Bryton Fredrick May 3, 2015 The criminal justice system has caused a lot of heartache and pain due to its unfair, racist, biased opinion. Resulting in killings, shootings, and protests. There are a variety of races that make the headline stories of these events, but there is a specific race that repeatedly makes headlines of newspapers. The shootings and killing of African-Americans teenage boys have been the trending topic lately. It is hard to distinguish why these events happen. Certainly, there is no one, or race, to blame for this happening, however, understanding the root cause may help. The high incarceration rates of minorities is an examples and the killings proves how the criminal justice system is extremely flawed to this day and has always been built off of the privilege whites inherited and that blacks do not have. It has been proven time and time again that black and whites are not equal within the criminal justice system. History even says that the early conception of the criminal justice system and punishments were formed under conditions of colonialism and slavery. An example is white police offers repeatedly killing African American Males and being found not guilty; from Emmitt Till to the Ferguson case. Which is history repeating itself, the more things change, and the more they remain the same. In each generation, new tactics have been used for achieving the same goals—goals shared by the Founding Fathers (Alexander)...
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...Inequality and the Sociological Impacts In modern society inequality is an inescapable fact of life; certain social groups are better positioned than others to take advantage of the opportunities, wealth and power of a society. When Australian society is examined it becomes obvious that indigenous people as a social group are faced with a decided disadvantage when it comes to opportunities, wealth and power. This essay intends to focus on the over-representation of indigenous people in the criminal justice system from a sociological viewpoint. This over-representation becomes sociologically significant when it is seen as an expression of inequality meaning that wider social issues are at play that effect indigenous people specifically. The two major reasons or drivers of this over-representation stem from this inequality; the first is an element of institutional discrimination found in both the courts and the police services in Australia which tend to target indigenous people disproportionately with the facilitation of legislation and practices which indigenous people have little to no involvement in formulating. The second is a set of cultural and social norms that exist amongst indigenous people which clash with the norms of the dominant white culture who are responsible for the laws and regulations that all groups in society are meant to abide by. Furthermore social conflict theories on crime such as those formulated by Turk and Sellin provide a rich theoretical support...
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...Ohio State University law professor and civil rights activist Michelle Alexander, author of "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness," reports there are more African American men in prison and jail, or on probation and parole, than were slaves before the start of the Civil War. Statistics reported in 2006, by the U.S .Department of Justice, Bureau of Statistics support this claim, which show that Blacks made up 41 percent of the nation’s 2 million prison and jail inmates, while Non-Hispanic whites made up 37 percent and Hispanics made up 19 percent. The disproportionate ratio of blacks to whites who are incarcerated is especially great in Iowa, Vermont, New Jersey, Connecticut, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and South Dakota – greater than 10-to-1 (USJB, 2006). Why this structural inequality towards African Americans is happening, why it matters, and suggestions to rectify this, are issues that are discussed in this paper. Why is this happening? Since 1970, the U.S. has experienced a large and rapid increase in the rate at which people, regardless of race, are housed in federal and state correctional facilities (Snyder, 2011). This rapid growth in the prison population has been attributed in a large part to the rate at which individuals are incarcerated for drug offenses, especially minorities (Snyder, 2011). Between1995 and 2003, the number of people in state and federal prisons incarcerated for drug offenses increased by 21 percent, from 280,182 to 337...
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...executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative gave a ted talk titled “We Need to Talk About an Injustice”. In that talk, he discussed the current condition of the American criminal justice system and the issue of mass incarceration. He stated that “we have a system of justice in this country that treats you much better if you're rich and guilty than if you're poor and innocent. Wealth, not culpability, shapes outcomes.” I found this to be a profound quote on the criminal justice system as it seems contrary to everything the rule of law is about. So I considered if this was similar in a Canadian context, if there are any inequalities in the way we administer justice, and criminal law. I found...
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...Introduction The United States of America’s national anthem the “Star Spangled Banner” and the “Pledge of Allegiance” state that the United States is “land of the free” with “liberty and justice for all.” Yet, the United States houses 25 percent of the world’s inmates even though it only houses five percent of the world’s population (Martensen, 2012). Additionally the fundamental concept of the United States Criminal Justice System is that an individual is “innocent” until proven guilty. This makes one question whether, people in the United States are really held to this standard, or are certain people more prone to crime in the land of opportunity and freedom? Our society is built around the societal norms of the dominant white group and racial and ethnic inequalities are intertwined in every aspect of our society causing minority groups to struggle against a society built around white privilege. Prevalence Minorities in comparison to their population in the United States are incriminated at a higher rate than Whites. Spohn (2000) stated that “a majority of the studies reviewed…found that African Americans and Hispanics were more likely than Whites to be sentenced to prison, even after taking crime seriousness and prior criminal records into account” (as cited in Hartney & Vuong, 2009, p.10). In 2010, racially the United States population identified as being comprised of 196.8 million Whites who identified as White alone (69.1%), 38.9 million Blacks or African Americans...
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...German philosophers, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engles; such ideologies include the system of institutions such as family, churches, the education system, and mass media. The ideologies of the ruling class thus render the working class (proletariat) into conformity by persuading them that the interests of the capitalists (bourgeoisie) are also in the interest of the working class. These ideologies defend and uphold the social position of the ruling classes. Jeffery Reimen stated that, the rich get richer and the poor get prison, thus, as the laws reflect the ideologies of the ruling class, there cannot be equality before the law, as the law protects those who define it. This essay will demonstrate the issue of the justice system within capitalist societies and the effects of the law and policy formations that reflect the wishes and ideologies of the ruling class, while exploiting the poor. The broad theory of critical criminology also known as radical criminology, explores various theoretical perspectives, specifically Marxist criminology and labeling theory. In light of these perspectives, this essay will provide insight on the disproportionate and bias treatment of the criminal justice system. White-collar crime (corporate crimes) and blue-collar crime (street crimes) will be used as illustrations of the disproportion of class systems within capitalist societies in terms of the criminal justice system, which further address how legislations and policies reflect the wishes ideologies...
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...crime, women have generally been perceived as disregarded and discriminated in the criminal justice system. Various stereotypes and assumptions about females in the criminal justice system, saw feminist perspectives challenge the theories, concepts and assumptions of those involved in the study of crime (Bryant, 2014). This essay begins by firstly providing a brief description and its origins, how feminist theories causes crime, how its theory defines crime, the multiple feminist perspectives within feminism and how feminist criminology attempts to combat crime. It will then discuss the relevance and how feminist theory influences the criminal justice system, such as women’s role as professionals, as well as women as offenders and victims (Schram & Tibbetts 2013, p. 285). Finally, this essay will examine the applicability to Australian society by exploring if the suggested causes of crime apply to Australian society. It will lastly draw on the criticisms of feminist criminology and how the different types of feminist perspectives lessons the relevance of this theory in Australian society. Outlining the theory Feminist criminology first developed in the 1960’s and 1970’s which was closely associated with the emergence of the Second Wave of Feminism (White, Haines & Asquith 2012, p. 143). The Second Wave of Feminism saw the advent of many issues such as social, political and material inequalities (White, Haines & Asquith 2012, p. 143). Because men were mostly privileged as a group...
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... Mental health plays a significant role in the criminal justice system. Many individuals who are incarcerated struggle with mental health issues, and the system often lacks adequate resources and support to address these needs. This can perpetuate a cycle of incarceration and exacerbate the challenges faced by individuals with mental health conditions. Psychology plays a crucial role in understanding criminal behavior, rehabilitation, and the effectiveness of interventions. Psychological factors such as trauma, addiction, and cognitive development can influence an individual's risk of engaging in criminal activities and their ability to reintegrate into society after...
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...Senior Capstone in Criminal Justice Introduction to the Problem Racial profiling, the practice of targeting individuals for police or security detention based on their race or ethnicity, is a deeply troubling and pervasive phenomenon. It is a form of discrimination that not only undermines the basic human rights and civil liberties of the targeted individuals, but also erodes trust in law enforcement agencies and stigmatizes minority communities. Despite the progress made in civil rights, racial profiling remains a significant issue that demands our attention and action. This paper aims to delve into the complexities of racial profiling, exploring...
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...Public Policies. Racial inequalities from the past continue to live on in several public policies today, often concealing hidden agendas that maintain segregation and economic inequality, especially against African Americans. Kevin Kruse’s “Traffic” and Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness” offer important perspectives on how. Historically, seemingly beneficial laws have excluded African Americans, and increased segregation and economic disparity. Kruse reveals how creating the US interstate highway system, to expand economic growth, disrupted black communities and restricted their access to better jobs, healthcare, and education. Furthermore, Alexander’s...
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