Mass Incarceration — Mixtape
The United States has a rich history of being unjust to those they deem unworthy. Since the beginning of time, we have seen the unjust treatment and severe discrimination of immigrants present within the United States. As time went on, immigrants have been migrating to the U.S. for better opportunities. The U.S. handled this situation by creating larger facilities than just detention centers. They built prisons and jails to house those who came illegally. This creation also led to the rise of mass incarceration in the United States. With the issue of mass incarceration it has shown how racism has been implemented into our government and conditions U.S. citizens to view immigrants and foreigners as nothing but criminals.
I cover topics such as mass incarceration, criminalization of people of color, immigrants, and non-citizens, racism, stereotypes, and the trauma this could cause not just those incarcerated but their families. This has been an issue the U.S. has been facing for centuries and instead of finding new solutions, the leaders of the U.S. resort to old methods which remain not only impractical but unjust. I hope to reach my target audience of people who live in the United States yet remain close minded to accepting immigrants and people of color in their society. To hopefully wake them up and see the truth behind the way their country has treated these people who basically made the U.S. what it is today. I want to reach those who view people of color and immigrants as uneducated and uncivilized leading to immigrants, non-citizens, and people of color to continue to be the biggest target of mass incarceration.
My selections all showcase different parts of history with the connection of mass incarceration and racism that has led to unpleasant stereotypes and treatments of people of color, immigrants, and non-citizens. The first selections cover the U.S. laws that sparked the change to more criminalization of immigrants and more arrests. The following sources begin to talk about the makeup of the prison system and how it is compared among the races. The video featured does a great job of explaining the situation throughout the years and how mass incarceration can affect future generations. My next selection is a documentary film that talks about the history of the U.S. and the interconnection of race and mass incarceration. My closing selection is a narrative of a Syrian family living in the U.S. during the time of 9/11 and having to face racial bigotry and the effects it has on their wellbeing and family. With these selections I hope to portray the severity this issue has become in the U.S. for people of color, immigrants, and non-citizens and how nothing has been done throughout the years to better the situation.
Johnson, Dawn Marie (2001) “AEDPA and the IIRIRA: Treating Misdemeanors as Felonies for Immigration Purposes, The; Legislative Reform,” Journal of Legislation: Vol. 27: Iss. 2, Article 10. Available at: http://scholarship.law.nd.edu/jleg/vol27/iss2/10
The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) were both acts that highly criminalized illegal immigrants in the United States during the 90’s. The “AEDPA and the IIRIRA force judges to recharacterize misdemeanors and non-aggravated felonies as aggravated felonies solely for immigration purposes’ ‘(Johnson, 2001). The Immigration Reform Act of 1996 led to the expansion of the definition of aggravated felony and included crimes such as rape and sexual abuse of minors. At the same time the sentencing and monetary value thresholds necessary to consider an alien for deportation were decreased making it easier to pin them with aggravated felonies. Besides aggravated felony the term “conviction” also changed definitions. Instead of only relating to relevant cases making non-citizens and aliens eligible for deportation, the change led to even suspended sentences making them eligible for deportation. Besides them making it easier to classify aliens as criminals, they changed the deportation process as well. The two step process for aliens convicted of crimes included step one where the immigration judge would determine if the alien could be deported due to their crimes. The second step of the process determined if the alien should be deported. There were some exceptions such as if they had already served time for their crimes and if their conviction did not include aggravated felonies. The second step of the process was later eliminated by the IRA leaving the aliens with no discretion to possibly waive their deportation. This led to many more aliens being deported for criminal reasons than in years prior to 1996. This shows how the United States changed their legislature to target non-citizens and illegal immigrants to make it more difficult for them to assimilate to life in the U.S. These laws not only changed the criminalization of immigrants but had effects that trickled into the deportation system overall as well as helped start the issue of mass incarceration in the U.S.
Tucker Sr, R. B. (2014). The color of mass incarceration. Ethnic Studies Review, 37(1), 135–149. https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1407&context=esr
Unjust laws created by U.S. officials that target and criminalize people of color and immigrants have led to the issue of mass incarceration. If you take a look at the current composition of the United States prison population you can see that a majority of them are the minority population. The incarceration rate of African Americans is six times higher than that of whites. This reading mentions that mass incarceration looks at the relationship between the prison system and the American ghetto. The two highest numbers that make up the prison population are African Americans and Latino/Hispanics. Often times charged with class D drug charges or robbery charges compared to serious murder charges the white population often face. The fourteenth amendment was made to provide equal protection under the law and due process, yet it has really shown the racial disparities in the criminal justice system that threaten communities of color. Once criminalized, your image often becomes tarnished for life, making it more difficult for life after prison. People of color and immigrants not only have to worry about being detained and deported depending on their legal status, but now have to worry about how a minor traffic violation can lead to more serious consequences solely based on the color of their skin. Comparing the U.S. with other countries, the U.S. holds the world’s highest imprisonment rate. Targeting certain colored and impoverished communities lead to the incarceration of blacks, browns, yellows, and reds. All groups whom were targets of the U.S. government since they first entered the country. Showing the injustice of the justice system, which only supports those whom it deems worthy and preferred. As we have seen in U.S. history, the U.S. government tends to want to maintain this “white image” and by imprisoning everyone who doesn’t fit that image, gets them closer to their ideal America. This reiterates the fact that race has become embedded as a principle of criminal law in the U.S.
“Mass Incarceration, Visualized.” YouTube, uploaded by The Atlantic, 2 Oct. 2015, https://youtu.be/u51_pzax4M0
This source is an animated interview conducted by a sociologist named Bruce Western posted on the Atlantic’s YouTube Page. This video explains the current prison system and it’s demographics. The video uses simple yet effective visuals to portray their ideas and information. Mr. Western mentions how the rate of incarceration is so high and has been socially concentrating on social groups especially groups of people of color. The video also notes how the rate of incarceration now is 5 times higher than it was historically. Looking at a chart featured in the video and displayed above, shows the U.S. prisoners by 100,000 through the years of 1940 to 2010. There is 5 hundred per hundred thousand in prisons and adding jail it’s 700 per hundred thousand. Research has shown that children with parents who have been incarcerated experience more behavioral issues, mental health issues, low academic achievements, and many other negative effects. It can be seen that incarceration can be an inherited trait hurting those within the system and their families. This video further implements the idea that prison is a concept that the U.S. has been using for centuries to control their issue of crime. It has targeted minority groups in the U.S. leading to the U.S. having the highest incarceration rate compared to other countries. Since the creation of the prison system it was made for people who were seen as a menace to society which often targeted immigrants and people of color. Laws were changed and systems were created to target these people and keep them away from the rest of society, isolating them. For a country that bases it’s foundation on liberty and freedom it has been depriving these groups of people of that throughout it’s entire history. Showing that they never really ever had liberty nor freedom in the U.S.
Cacho, Lisa Marie, Nov 12, 2012, Social Death : Racialized Rightlessness and the Criminalization of the Unprotected NYU Press, New York, ISBN: 9780814723777 https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15864015-social-death
This next reading continues to looks at the criminalization of people of color and how that reinforces racial criteria for social devaluation of human beings. Race is another socially valuable idea that can be linked to various aspects such as mass incarceration, criminalization and U.S. citizenship. For people of color stakes are always high, compared to a person of white descent. As we have seen in our history through laws like IIRIRA and AEDPA the people of color are most affected by criminal and immigration laws. The reading mentions acts such as the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 and the DREAM Act which proposed a path to citizenship and exceptions to current immigration law, but no act helped change the vulnerable status of “illegal immigrant” and it remains a permanently rightless status. An example was shown of the Associated Press and Agence France-Presse’s contradictory captions, a photo depicting three people searching for basic necessities after Hurricane Katrina hit. One person photographed is a young man of color and the other two are white people. The caption depicts the photo as black looting and white finding. This is just one example in history when people of color have been racially criminalized. This shows that our analytical frameworks for making sense of race in the U.S. are limited when applied to criminalized people of color. This is something that has been in U.S. history since the beginning of time. It’s still seen in the news today and looking at the ratios of people of color in jail compared to the ratio of whites in jail, you can see the difference. It shows how race has always played a factor and continues to. What might be considered criminal for some, are seen as survival strategies for others. No matter what a person of color or immigrant does, there will always be stereotypes and impairments forcing them to be seen as criminals which has been seen throughout all U.S. history including present day.
Ava Duvernay & Jason Moran. (2016) 13TH . USA. https://www.netflix.com/watch/80091741?source=35
Looking more at U.S. history, this film released by Netflix in 2016 titled The 13th, explores the history of racial inequality present in the United States. Directed by Ava DuVernay the film has won multiple awards such as the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary. In the film she focuses on the intersection of race and mass incarceration, as well as the lack of justice that goes along with it. The film goes through U.S. history, looking back at the time of the KKK and the civil rights movement. Mentioned in the film they state that “if negroes were given their freedom then the U.S. would be repaid with crime.” Automatically connecting the color of their skin with criminal behaviors. Other topics covered that further play on the idea of criminalization is the war on drugs that led to more people of color in jail as well as more funding for law enforcement to help contain said criminals. The merge of the immigration system and prison systems only further emphasized the injustice in the justice system. Creation of detention centers could be seen as early forms of imprisonment which were heavily prevalent in the U.S.’ early history. This shows that throughout our history the product of these racial disparities that we have learned about is people of color get detrimental consequences when whites get a slap on the wrist. This has also led to economic disparities where if you are guilty and rich you’re better off than if you’re poor and innocent. Bills and acts that have been passed in U.S. history have not ended racial imbalance but intensified and redefined it. Racial injustice has led to the creation of stereotypes that play out amongst society. Making people judge each other based on the color of their skin rather than who they really are which can lead to serious and traumatic events.
Bayoumi, Moustafa. How Does It Feel to Be a Problem?: Being Young and Arab in America. Penguin Press, 2018. https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/3142153-how-does-it-feel-to-be-a-problem
This reading talks about the life of a young girl named Rasha who lived in the United States throughout her childhood. Her family and her fled from Syria during times of terror in their homeland, seeking safer living in the United States. After years passed and the family grew accustomed to living in the states, they were apprehended by the law. They were told they were being apprehended for possible terrorism connections as this was during the time of the 9/11 incident. Their house was raided and their family was split up as some of them were born in the U.S. and others were not. Those who were not natural born U.S. citizens were detained and imprisoned as they awaited questioning and deportation. Prisons were filled with immigrants as they continued to be seen as a menace to U.S. society. The readings tell the harsh reality of what detention was like and the ill treatment they received from the law enforcement. She mentioned the filthy and overcrowded nature of the jails at the time filled with other immigrants being held for similar reasons. Rasha questioned why she was being treated as a criminal when she hadn’t committed any crime. It was evident that the U.S. officials had been watching Rasha and her family for some time, knowing their whereabouts and schedules, trying to find a time to detain them. Her family and her were thrown into jail as if they had committed serious crimes and were given no lawyer or protection. It wasn’t till later that an outside friend of theirs found them an immigrant official that would help them fight their case. The family had been living in the U.S. for years and had no criminal history, they were suitable for citizenship but since they were of Syrian descent and immigrants, the U.S. government automatically saw them as a threat. Events like these were even more common during this time as it had been right after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Muslims and those whom appeared to be of Muslim descent were often made targets during this time as they were seen as harmful to society. Another immigrant group targeted by the U.S. government. This family along with many other families in the history of the U.S. were split up for long periods of time. Not knowing what happened to those family members and a mother and father being away from her young children can truly be detrimental to the wellbeing of both parties.
Discriminatory acts such as those that make up U.S. history continue to occur. Looking at court cases that have taken place in recent months will prove that the unjustness of the system against people of color and immigrants remains in full effect. These selections demonstrate the evolution of U.S. history with immigrants, non-citizens, and people of color in relation to mass incarceration. Changing the definitions of laws for the sole purpose of attacking noncitizens, immigrants, and people of color to isolate them from the rest of society and eventually out of the country. Targeting groups of people, usually immigrants and people of color, who are most affected by the issue of mass incarceration. Looking at the numbers and statistics of the people that make up the prison system it is easy to see how the minority population in America really do make up the majority population in the prison system. Numbers don’t lie, and those numbers continue to grow to this day targeting those who don’t fit the government’s image of an ideal American. Even when looking at our history it’s clear to see the amount of racist ideas that were supported such as the Klu Klux Klan, slavery, and unjust treatments of immigrants. Pulling families apart and traumatizing them is another aspect that plays into the mass incarceration and detention system. Having no sympathy for families with young children who are separated from all they know. The U.S. lacks remorse for these children and the trauma it will bring them as they grow up without their family. It goes to show that the United States was built upon racist foundations that they continue to enact.
Things will not change until there is a new system for handling crime other than mass incarceration. Instead of looking to mass incarceration as a solution, it’s time to acknowledge the racial disparities within the system and find a way to fix it. Providing resources such as mental help centers and helping get education for those uneducated could be more beneficial than just sticking people in prisons and starting them off with a life in the system. Through these selections I hope I made my point clear that the issue of mass incarceration was created by the U.S., enforced and practiced by the U.S., to target those who the U.S. deems unworthy and unnecessary oftentimes being noncitizens, immigrants, and people of color.
