Mass Incarceration In America

The United States of America promotes itself as the land of the free but, is it truly free? People believe what they see or are told without actually giving it thought, as the saying goes, “See no evil, hear no evil.” The people of today have been brainwashed to believe that what the media portrays is fact and that’s all there is to it. We are aware of what life can be like in other countries, and compare it to the United States to give ourselves the illusion that we are free. Although it may be true that we have more freedom than other nations, it is not true that the United States is an absolutely free nation. The incarceration rates of this country are devastatingly high that the prison system operates more like a business than as a correction …show more content…
The group she mention refers to the minorities of the United States; they are the ones who are targeted and being held in these prisons in order to maintain a lower class. The minorities know that America is not the land of freedom or opportunity because the color of their skin is a determining factor in their freedom. They are judged by what they look like rather than their qualities as a person. There is more than enough evidence that shows the injustices of mass incarceration, so how could the United States of America call itself the land of the free when there are so many oppressed people that the prison system is used as a business rather than a punishment …show more content…
The explain the new lifestyle of the released felons as “the diminished state.” In this condition, Crutchfield and Weeks argue that, “…most returning former prisoners… less likely than others of their age, race, and gender to be involved in a stable relationship or to have been employed in a high-quality job prior to their incarceration. When men and women return from prison, their family life has an even higher likelihood of having been disrupted, and their competitiveness on the job market is even more diminished than it was before they were incarcerated.” (Crutchfield and Weeks 49). This “diminished state” longer be able to attain a job easily, but if they do it is most likely that it is a low paying job that doesn’t truly provide enough financial stability. This forces the felons to remain in these poor communities typically made up of minorities, and there is really no way to escape this community once convicted. This allows Whites to remain in power and control without