A Review of The New Jim Crow

In light of the Michael Brown verdict, many members of our student body have expressed frustration and disbelief with the state of our nation’s judicial system. While these emotions are certainly valid, they are largely based on news coverage and social media’s portrayal of the events in Ferguson. When examining the current role of race within the United States, a news reel is not enough to inform us and we should be educated not only on the loss of Michael Brown but on the system surrounding these events. In this situation, social media does not suffice. A better explanation and understanding can be found in The New Jim Crow, written by legal scholar Michelle Alexander. Alexander argues that the targeting of black men through the War on Drugs has created a new system of racial control within our country.

Mass incarceration within the United States has been a fairly recent phenomenon. Alexander includes in her research that “about as many people were returned to prison for parole violations in 2000 as were admitted to prison in 1980 for all reasons.” Once convicted of a felony, a person’s basic rights of citizenship can be stripped—rights including the of to vote or serve on a jury—and this process is perfectly legal. Whether or not you agree with Alexander that it is a form of racial control, race has certainly became a staple of the War on Drugs. As reported by the Human Rights Watch in 2000, “in seven states, African Americans constitute 80 to 90 percent of all drug offenders sent to prison.” Alexander tackles hundreds of years of racial history in less then two hundred pages and for any student looking to form an educated opinion, this book is a good place to start.