If so, what does that mean exactly? If not, why not?
A few days ago I came across Chris Hedges’ article in Smithsonian Magazine titled Why Mass Incarceration Defines Us As a Society. We’ve covered the need for prison reform from a variety of angles here at The Good Men Project. We’ve tried to unravel the problems through the lens of society, technology, media, race, gender, science, politics, history and religion. Yet the title of this article stood out to me and, as an American living abroad and viewing his country from the outside, something resonated. Of course, America has been and continues to be defined in myriad ways. For some we are the world’s economic powerhouse despite our debts. For others we remain the pinnacle of freedom. The melting pot. Tech innovators. Fashion and art pioneers. Science gurus. But what of the absurdities within our criminal justice system? Has the system’s ugliness been left alone to grow for so long that it can be added to the list of who we are?
In the article Bryan Stevenson, recipient of the Smithsonian American Ingenuity Award in social justice, hearkens back to the days of slavery and Jim Crow for comparison. Here’s an excerpt:
Mass incarceration defines us as a society, Stevenson argues, the way slavery once did. The United States has less than 5 percent of the world’s population but imprisons a quarter of the world’s inmates. Most of those 2.3 million inmates are people of color. One out of every three black men in their 20s is in jail or prison, on probation or parole, or bound in some other way to the criminal justice system. Once again families are broken apart. Once again huge numbers of black men are disenfranchised, because of their criminal records. Once again people are locked out of the political and economic system. Once again we harbor within our midst black outcasts, pariahs. As the poet Yusef Komunyakaa said: “The cell block has replaced the auction block.”
I’ve visited prisons and taught in juvenile detention centers and even have a forthcoming book about the topic – I’m fairly rooted in my views. But I wanted to hear from other voices who come from different sectors and backgrounds. Here are a few insights I found:
Cali Estes, an addiction coach and therapist, said:
The majority of our prisons are comprised of drug addicts, not serious and habitual hard criminals. As a society we tend to arrest and prosecute for everything instead of looking for a solution to the problem. Prisons do not rehabilitate, educate or ‘fix’ the broken individual, they leave them more broken and send them back into society.
In America we have no uniform laws across states, so if you get caught with marijuana in one state, and depending on your prior offenses, you can go to prison for life but in another state you can smoke openly in the street. With our government we have a tendency to ‘throw everyone in jail’ and it is mostly for drug offenses. Once in jail these individuals learn how to do harder drugs and commit even more crazy crimes including and involving violence. The system does not understand addiction and should not be arresting drug addicts and taxing the American people to hold them in jail. If we truly wanted to help our citizens we would overhaul the healthcare system and not simply dump people in prison. I believe that other countries laugh at us because we have such a shoddy system. We change our minds depending on our current leader (strict or lax) and go from a retribution model of prison to a rehabilitation model and then provide some laws that are not uniform for all our people. It doesn’t make sense and it doesn’t address the actual issues.
I have been in the criminal justice system a long time. When I rotated back to criminal court this time, I was amazed at how lengthy the sentences for drug offenses had become: 60-year-sentences for a delivery-of-cocaine charge to young men with virtually no prior record.
Fergus Hodgson is a native of New Zealand now based in North Carolina. He hosts The Stateless Man and is a policy advisor with The Future of Freedom Foundation. Here’s what he had to say:
Mass incarceration, while not necessarily a widely held image of the United States, is an extremely damning symptom of a nation with deep problems. In particular, it reflects a sophisticated and cruel police state, one that ruins the lives of many innocent people. That it has continued for so long and even expanded in recent times suggests a lack of compassion among voters who fail to recognize the viciousness of laws that criminalize peaceful behavior. The many-decades-long “war on drugs” is a prime example that has achieved nothing but destruction, both within the United States and in the many countries plagued by drug cartel violence. It also highlights the enormous hypocrisy of the politicians and enforcers, since many of these people openly admit that they used drugs yet face no such punishment. Further, many states even have taxes on illegal substances, to profit from their sale.
Dr. Carole Lieberman, a media psychiatrist and author who frequently offers her insights on CNN, Fox News, and the BBC, said:
Yes, mass incarceration is indeed a sad commentary on America. The swelling prisons – with ever younger prisoners – signifies their disillusionment with society and their loss of faith in the American dream. It is also tragic that so many of the prisoners are illegal immigrants, who should be sent back to their native country, but languish on our taxpayer dollars instead.
Bob Sherman, Director of the Chicago Chapter of the Parents Television Council and former president of Glenview Art League, had this to say:
Mass incarceration defines us as a society whose social fabric is torn. It’s not hard to understand why. In pursuit of money, the barons of the entertainment industry have created a tragically toxic media environment. Over a thousand clinical and statistical studies have confirmed the results. Broken homes and single parenting are becoming the norm. Children are robbed of a secure nurturing home. Gangs flourish and prisons overflow.
In addition to the human cost of mass incarceration, the economic cost is staggering. But the harm does not stop on the domestic front. Our international image is damaged. We strive to promote human rights, but our own incarceration rate robs our message of much of its moral force.
What can we do about it? There is no magic answer, but the Parents Television Council seems to be on the right track. The organization was founded by a right wing conservative with the help of a left wing liberal. They put politics aside and worked together to help keep innocent babies from becoming vicious criminals.
Similar sentiments from an astonishing variety of people flooded my inbox when I asked the question. The answer, conclusively, was “yes.” Americans are the top dog in many aspects, and because of this our cliffs are steeper. Now that the fiscal cliff has been averted, it’s time we pour our collective energy not so much into what the problems are within our criminal justice system (we know them) but into how we can fix them.
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–Photo: AP/Eric Risberg, File: In this May 20, 2009 file photo, several hundred inmates crowd the gymnasium at San Quentin State Prison.
Richard…in my view,one cannot,or at least very rarely, can one discuss the present in isolation of the past.Attempting to discuss mass incarsceration and not talk about race is impossible.Just look at sentencing laws.This is why I don’t discuss race with some white people,white privilege colors the conversation.Consistently you act as if rascism doesn’t exists or is ineffectual at best.
…Mr.Aubrey, as near as I can tell,has fixation on exposing all of the bad things that black people do that,in his mind, is central to the destruction of all that is good and holy in America. If you wish to blame someone Mr. Aubrey maybe you should start with the lazy, arrogant, hypocrites who used,maimed,killed,lynched,burned blacks, stole,lied and killed from native Americans after native Americans saved their sorry asses,started a war to steal land from Mexico,etc,etc,etc. To say nothing of America’s poor treatment of almost every immigrant population who landed on these shores. I am feed up with your constant… Read more »
og.
I figure fair’s fair. Get ink in proportion to whatever you do, good or bad. Color should not be a factor.
That said, what about the post and the comments has to do with blacks?
And, lastly, history is very nice. I like studying it. But what about the history you cite is relevant to the subject of the post or the comments?
With the courts’ ultimate leeway and control in sentencing existing as somewhat rogue and unchecked, it is not surprising that mass incarceration is becoming a defining feature of the USA. From the outside it could very easily seem as though the USA is approaching a police state as vicious as North Korea as we too lock up our own people with very few questions asked. Laws exist and they should be heeded. Sentencing guidelines are relevant of course, but allowing any individual the ability to control years of another’s life due to a whim or bad hair day is unacceptable.… Read more »
Unfortunately it defines us. Having spent 5 years in prison for intimidation of a witness, this issue resonates with me.
There are many sexual predators and killers of innocent women and children who belong there. Although I would argue many inmates are doing extremely long sentences for crimes that don’t warrant it. Not only does this have inumerable consequences for inmates once released, but affects the children of said prisoners.
California has de-massed, due to overcrowding. Some thousands of “low-level” criminals are now on the streets. Property crime has risen.
Anybody want to hear from the victims?
Anybody?
Beuller?
If you have a system that demonizes drug use and makes it profitable, you will have a lot of addicts on the street trying to score their next hit. This results in 80% of so called property crime.
Give these addicts a maintenance dose and get them into treatment and this crime will decline to 1950s levels. Stick them repeatedly in jail and things will only get worse.
Not.
I don’t suppose we could insist that some of these folks were committing property crimes just as a way to make a living, could we?
Any, it’s supposedly the first batch of an ultimate 30,000. And until things are set up as you say they should be, and supposing that’s the answer and supposing it works, does anybody want to talk to/about the victims?
Note to self. Check out how the methadone clinic thing worked.
Yes, but how much of that crime is caused by people imprisoned for minor offences, such as canabis possession, meaning that they then become removed from society. On entering prison allot of people lose their place to live, their job, and their support network of friends and family. They are stuck in a harsh environment where violence is rewarded. On leaving prison they are unable to get a job, no means of support and no good place to live as no half way decent landlord wants to take on an ex con with little or no deposit or means of… Read more »
John Smith. I think we should legalize drugs. My primary reason for this is to take the incomprehensibly huge amount of money out of the business that is due to the illegality premium. That funds corruption and murder and subversion of governments, police agencies and society in general. Until that time, however, the law says, don’t mess with grass. So if you choose to mess with grass, you have made a decision to break the law. It’s a free choice. That said, the actual penalty for having only a minor amount in possession is pretty small. When people say “drug… Read more »
Sorry, perhaps the choice of crime was poor on my part. I agree that illigal acts should be punnished. What I am getting at is that we have to question the value of prison when it drives a cycle of crime as I discribed. Without doubt some people ned to be locked up, however I think we need to have a conversation (socioty as a whole) as to wether prison is the best answer for some crimes and if it is driving more crime than it is preventing. I feel that there is to much call to “lock um up… Read more »
You really like to over genrealize don’t you. You are a high minded arrogant jackass that, judging from you comments, has a holier than thou attitude. You have little knowledge of indiviuals that break the law and the metality behind that. I do agree that those who break the law are mostly aware of tthe punishments and see it as a “probably won’t happen to me attitude” or they see it as a risk vs reward However, there needs to be constistency within the justice system. Take, for example, two actual crimes that were committed in the area that I… Read more »