Intense Incarceration of African American Men

The first bit of Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson serves as a good introduction to the crisis at hand: mass incarceration of African American men and the present inadequacies of the justice system. Despite the incredible progress America has made as far as equal rights for all citizens go, the current problems with our justice system shine a spotlight on areas that could benefit from quite a bit of improvement.

For some, this issue is very literally a matter of life and death, for others a matter of life and living, and for still more, a matter of living and fear. The terror of these categories is unacceptable for any fellow American to live through.

Still, to solve the problems of the justice systems, Americans, be they police or public, attorneys or accused, will need to open their hearts to lessons of empathy. These lessons of empathy must go both ways, though one side needs the schooling a bit more than the other.

To start out with, we must understand the rhetoric from the media and how that alienates the many perspectives on the issue. While the media is an excellent medium for getting conversations started, it tends to be very polarizing as there is much bias and fear-mongering.

The facts deserve attention. More black men than ever are being incarcerated, many unjustly. Police brutality is up as well. And yet, sympathy for those affected by these problems is extending in two opposite directions.

There is an argument that staunchly believes in the legal system, and perceives justice in that way. The attitude of ‘you do the crime, you pay the time’ is understandable to a certain extent. For example, if I am driving on the highway and the speed limit it 65, but I choose to go 73, I am breaking the law. It doesn’t matter if I’m speeding because I’m late to work because I hit traffic earlier or if I had to help my family out with something. I was speeding, and so, the ticket is mine. Regardless of my reasons, even if they were out of my control, I am held accountable for my actions.

The other theory of this is not so simple. It still respects the law but aims to understand the grey areas of the law a bit more. In the speeding example, the officer who pulls me over is given quite a bit of leeway in deciding my punishment. If he is in a good mood, he may decide to let me off with a warning. If, on the other hand, he feels like I have disrespected him or am suspicious in some way, the consequences get much more serious. There are other ways this could go. I do not have a criminal record, but if I did, it becomes less likely that the officer would let me off with a warning. If the officer has any prejudices against the likes of me, it is not hard to imagine that these would bleed into his understanding of the situation.

Class, I believe, may play a massive yet covert role in the incarceration crisis. Perhaps many issues that are classist are perceived as racist, which is why there are so many opposite opinions on what the actual prejudices at play are.

Mass incarceration of African American men is clearly an issue in today’s society, but it is not one I believe society will be able to effectively get over until society stops being reactive and starts being proactive. The issue is clearly multi-dimensional, spinning recklessly through the spheres of class, gender, race, and personal values, and as such, demands a multi-dimensional approach.