Abstract
The research was conducted to investigate the issue of mass incarceration and its prejudice in the United States of America. The main questions that guided this research touched most on the relationship between incarceration and mental health relationship between incarceration and poverty levels, among others. It was found that mass incarcerations had much impact on minority communities compared to the majority communities. Incarceration relates positively to human mental health, poverty levels, education, and wealth status. The research concluded that the issues discussed under this topic cut across other nations, and every government should take the necessary measures to ensure fair services to the citizens. It was recommended that governments lead as an example by showing the citizens the best actions to undertake for a better living. Public awareness was the most effective strategy to engage the citizens in policy implementation for fair community services.
Introduction
Mass incarceration is a punishment where the government detains individuals in prisons. This detaining occurs due to offenses committed or being suspected of assisting someone or a group of people in crimes. Therefore, incarceration precedes trial in most countries and states. The time someone stays in jail before being taken for trial depends on the government’s policies. Again, one can be detained more if the government exercises racism. For instance, if one comes from a minority group in America, they are likely to spend more time in incarceration than the case where the person suspected of committing a crime comes from the Majority group. Prejudice refers to a group’s negative attitudes toward a given person or subject. Prejudice may make one hate other people’s way of life and make social interactions between various groups of people a nightmare. For instance, children from minority groups may develop negative attitudes towards the ones from majority groups due to the oppression experienced. In most cases, prejudice occurs due to historical stories the modern generation received from their ancestors concerning the poor treatment they received from neighboring communities. Sometimes prejudice involves considering the community’s recent experience with one another.
The topic of mass incarceration rings in researchers’ mindsets in the modern world. It raises endless questions about why some countries or states incarcerate people more than others. Everything a country or state does at a high rate must benefit either the state officials or the citizens. Therefore, we can say that incarceration is good on the one hand and bad on the other. This research investigates the possible benefits and drawbacks of incarceration in the united states of America. The findings are organized to tackle the issue concerning the black population vERSUS the whites. The available facts show that America incarcerates people more than any other country.
Additionally, it has the highest number of prisoners. Nevertheless, what do the citizens from other countries say about incarceration rates and the high number of prisoners in America? This and other questions form the base for the current research.
History of Incarceration and Prejudice in the US
Incarceration and prejudice are as old as the 1970s when the US government enacted laws to curb the trafficking and use of drugs (Introduction: Origins of mass incarceration, 2016). Some of the policies enacted during this time include “the war on drugs” policies, and minimum sentence policies, among others. Although these laws were enacted to safeguard the welfare of human beings, they turned out to spread ethnicity. The people incarcerated included mostly people of color. This issue of ethnicity grew its roots as time passed, and now the US has the highest number of incarcerated individuals. Critics argue that incarceration involves very high costs, making it impossible for citizens to lead a good lifestyle (Introduction: Origins of mass incarceration, 2016). There is a need to create awareness concerning the efforts to cobalt the effects of incarceration in the modern world. Notably, this research considers the US because it leads to the impacts of incarceration; this implies that other countries exercise incarceration at a lower rate than the US.
Statement of the Problem
Research shows that the United States of America leads in the incarceration rate globally. More than 2.3 million people are behind bars awaiting trials at different predetermined dates (Introduction: Origins of mass incarceration, 2016). Incarceration heavily affects the marginalized groups who comprise immigrants from developing countries. Most incarcerated citizens are of color, low-income earners, and physically and mentally challenged. Sadly, the incarcerated portray high rates of hopelessness as the incarceration periods may increase at any time, according to the pronunciations of the government.
Ideally, incarceration increases the gap between the rich and the poor, planting the seed of hatred throughout communities. Unfortunately, people face inhuman treatment in the well-up states rather than developing nations. We expect America to lead other nations with good morals depicted by proper exercises of legal proceedings and systems. If not corrected, incarceration will increase poverty rates and deter rehabilitations which may increase evil deeds among the community members. For instance, people of color may organize riots against whites making life unbearable in America. Again, this incarceration may encourage bloodshed, where members from different social classes fight for their security. In this case, security is in the form of poverty reduction and the fight for peaceful coexistence (Fornili, 2018). The blacks fight for poverty reduction while the whites fight for peace. Therefore, there is a significant need to research the relationship between incarceration and the well-being of society. The topic concerns the critical and most-current issues that the government should address for a turn-around in community welfare.
The issue of prejudice is evidenced in various ways in the criminal justice system of the United States of America. In most cases, the officers in charge of prisons treat people of color worse than whites (Fornili, 2018). Again, there are not as many whites as people of color under incarceration; this implies that the rates of prejudice in the criminal system are very high, and there is a need to curb that trend for better interactions.
Questions of Study
The question of the study is crucial in every research. They help the researcher stay focused throughout the research. They also help avoid time wastage in researching items that make no meaning to the research outcome. Therefore, research questions are the roadmap for the research to stay focused. The following questions guide the research concerning incarceration and prejudice in the US.
- Is there any significant relationship between incarceration in America and the criminal justice system?
- If there, how does the interplay of incarceration and prejudice increase the mistreatment in the criminal justice system of the United States of America?
- Is there a positive relationship between incarceration and human well-being?
- How do incarceration and prejudice impact the rehabilitation of individuals with mental disabilities from minority groups?
- Is there a positive relationship between incarceration and the poverty cycle?
The Population of Study
The study population involves individuals with similar characteristics concerning the topic under study. In this case, the study examines the American population that is positively or negatively affected by incarceration deeds. This population cuts across the minority groups, the Black Americans, and the physically or mentally challenged. Minority groups in America include all individuals who have experienced instances of discrimination. Most of these individuals are immigrants who came to the US to find settlement and improve their economic well-being. They are highly stigmatized, making them lose hope in the US criminal justice system. Since they come from various nations, they speak diverse languages making it hard to share social resources effectively. Hence, there are high rates of disagreements among the members of this group. Therefore, it is important to study how incarceration and prejudice affect this group’s interactions.
Data Collection Methods
The main data collection method used in this study involved secondary analysis. This analysis calls for the researcher to look into the various data written and stored in electronic or library forms. Since the topic deals with the study of a current issue, online sources helped compile various data for analysis. This method is very fast since it involves just a click of a button, and one gets all the information relevant to the topic under discussion. The statistical information used in the study came from the government website and other scholarly sources. This data collection method is cost-effective because it involves simple procedures (Schoenfeld, 2012). Again, it can be a group of researchers. For example, only one researcher can effectively carry out all the elements quickly. Since American citizens are very busy carrying out business activities, it is impossible to conduct interviews and surveys. Therefore, the best option left for this study was to conduct online research. The data on incarceration and prejudice is already calculated and analyzed online. Therefore, the research was easy since one needed to pick the information and relate it to the topic discussed. For example, online graphs show the relationship between incarceration and prejudice over the years. In this case, the researcher observed the trend and concluded the current study.
Relationship between incarceration and the criminal justice system
There is a significant relationship between incarceration and the criminal justice system in America. The criminal justice system involves various activities, including prosecuting criminals, enforcing the law, and formulating policies, among others (Bennett, 2013). These policies dictate the length and harshness of conditions in jails.
On a different note, the various rules and regulations may be hard for people to adhere to. For example, policies on mandatory minimums make it hard for people to lead a free and fair lifestyle. This tempts citizens to commit crimes to maneuver their way into difficult economic situations. The war on drugs is another area where policies are hard to follow for many individuals. People break the law as they try to use drugs, saying they want to keep themselves happy. Scientific research shows that mass incarceration is mainly due to the policies put forth to regulate human behavior. For example, in 1981, the government of the United States of America put up policies that helped minimize the use of drugs (Bennett, 2013). In this regard, the policymakers instituted a minimum sentencing period. These minimum sentencing policies increased the number of people involved in mass incarceration.
The policies on drugs affected the blacks and the Latinos because they had a history of using and trafficking drugs. This did not mean that the whites could not traffic drugs, but due to financial disparities between the blacks and whites, the blacks depended on drug trafficking for income. Therefore, the policies seemed to be set as a trap for the minority groups who could not access other sources of income (Bennett, 2013). This implied that, although drug use was common in America, the traffickers faced the law more harshly than any other person.
On top of drug trafficking, the government of the United States of America set laws that regulate the consumption of various drugs. If a drug is not curative, then it is against the law. According to the 2020 data on drug use, approximately 46% of individuals in the US are incarcerated due to the misuse of drugs (Simpson et al., 2020). Among these inmates, the majority are Black Americans. This number and composition of the inmates suggest that the law enforcers are ethnic. Likely, the whites did not face the law in the same measures the minority communities did.
Incarceration and Prejudice
The whites’ negative attitude toward blacks makes life uncomfortable for the inmates. The incarceration period is sometimes longer for black inmates than for their white counterparts. On the same note, if two people are caught guilty of a given offense, the law prescribes that the two should face equal punishment. However, this is not the case in most cases; the judiciary will conclude that the blacks are the perpetrators of the given crime (Prejudice in the US in the 20th century, n.d.). One may mostly say that marginalized communities are prone to committing crimes to earn a living.
Historically, the criminal justice system of the United States mistreats people of color and people living with disabilities. There may be no reasonable argument for this mistreatment, but whenever one is found to come from these marginalized groups, they may not receive excellent judicial services. To American citizens, coming from marginalized groups is a curse and is associated with evil deeds, including murder, and theft, among others.
Mass incarceration poses a great threat to the lives of the inmates. Overcrowding is one of the bad situations that affect these inmates. These inmates are prone to airborne diseases as there is no free flow of air in the jail. The little air that enters the jails finishes very fast due to high demand from many inmates (Prejudice in the US in the 20th century, n.d.). The inmates may sometimes suffocate and face untimely death due to poor ventilation. Furthermore, the minority groups in jails do not access healthcare facilities.
Research shows that people with mental disabilities are many in United States jails. This implies that the law enforcers do not mind checking the mental soundness of the individuals suspected of committing certain criminal offenses. Again, the high influx of the Black-Americans in jails makes the inmates overthink, making them lose memories. The law requires that people with mental disabilities be placed in jails with special equipment to take care of the disabilities. For instance, jails should have rehabilitation facilities to enhance the recovery of the mentally-challenged individuals (Jouet, 2017). However, this is not the case in most jails in the US. Consequently, incarceration and prejudice hit more people with mental problems than the ones with a normal mind-functioning state.
Summarily, the interplay between incarceration and prejudice has led to the great mistreatment of minority groups. It is likely that if things do not change soon, minority groups will stop existing in America (Prejudice in the US in the 20th century, n.d.). Incarceration and prejudice cause physical and mental torture to black inmates and people with disabilities.
Relationship Between Incarceration and Poverty Cycle
The research shows a positive relationship between the incarceration rate and the poverty level. The higher the rate of incarceration, the higher the poverty level. This relationship is because of several factors. Firstly, incarceration deprives people of the time they could spend working. Most of the inmates are in the age of adults implying that they are mostly the breadwinners in different families. Incarceration deters these inmates from providing food and other basic needs to the family members. in this case, the families in the minority groups continue suffering from poverty (Prejudice in the US in the 20th century, n.d.). To worsen the situation, the people taken to jail do not have huge salaries and therefore do not save. Therefore, the families of the inmates do not have anything they can withdraw from their breadwinners’ saving accounts.
Incarceration comes with huge court fees. The fees are a financial burden to poor communities. Most poor people live from hand to mouth. Therefore, imposing court fines on them is against their financial freedom (Wagner & Sakala, 2014). These fines drain the little the poor had earned for the given day. The fines may also be too high that the incarcerated individuals rely on their family members for clearance. In this case, individuals work not to support their family needs but to have the court fines settled.
Incarceration is an enemy of education. Once taken to jail, individuals will stop their education for an unknown period. By the time one comes from jail, one may not think about going back to education; this is partly because their fellow learners have gone to the next level in the education ladder by the time one completes service of their jail sentence. Again, if a parent is incarcerated, the young ones may not continue with education due to a lack of financial support. This is more so in cases where the learners are at lower education levels (Wagner & Sakala, 2014). At the lower level, the learners need financial support and parental or guardian support. If this support misses, one may not continue with education.
Summarily, incarceration deters education. This, in turn, increases the poverty rate since people who lack education may not get well-paying jobs. Again, if one has the education, one may have excellent skills for self-employment (Prejudice in the US in the 20th century, n.d.). Poor access or lack of education contributes to an endless poverty cycle.
Incarceration and Human Wellbeing
According to research, there is a positive relationship between incarceration and human well-being. Human well-being refers to the health and wealth status of human beings. Incarceration affects human health in different ways. For instance, due to overcrowding in jails, one may develop communicable diseases (Schoenfeld, 2012). Again, one may develop pneumonia and other related illnesses due to the cold conditions of the jails in which they are incarcerated. The poor conditions in the various jails threaten human health to the extent of causing untimely deaths.
Incarceration also affects the wealth status of the incarcerated due to the inability to access job opportunities. Wealth creation is for people with good health. If one comes from jail with poor health, they are likely to fail to work effectively, hence getting little earnings (The contours of mass incarceration, 2020). Notably, most people in minority communities do not earn salaries. Instead, they earn wages. These wages follow the principles of piece rate. This implies that if one works at a lower rate than they used to before their health deteriorates, the wages will also go down.
Conclusion
Mass incarceration and prejudice affect minority groups more than the majority. As seen from the findings, the US greatly perpetuates the idea of prejudice, making the citizens experience moments of mistreatment across families in marginalized communities. People from these marginalized communities pay it dearly when the criminal system puts them in jail or fines them. For instance, a jailed parent will not effectively support the young ones, contributing to physical and mental poor growth. Much money may be used to settle fines charged by law courts for crimes committed by various individuals.
Recommendations
The US government will continue to experience a great disparity between the rich and the poor if the right measures are not implemented. Some of the possible actions to take are establishing a system of services that considers human rights irrespective of bias or prejudice. The government should be t the frontline to show its citizens that all the soles are equal and should be treated fairly at all times. The government can establish a policy allowing citizens to follow the proceedings in law courts and compare the punishments extended to people from various ethnic groups. If there are favoritisms in the court proceedings, the concerned individuals can request another hearing for better service provision. Above all, public awareness is key to awakening the citizens to understand their human rights and stand up to safeguard them.
References
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The contours of mass incarceration. (2020). The Punishment Imperative, 17-46. https://doi.org/10.18574/nyu/9781479829026.003.0005
Wagner, P., & Sakala, L. (2014). Mass incarceration: The whole pie. Prison Policy Initiative, 12.
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