+

(The New)Jim Crow

+RECAP

1. What is “Race”? What is “Racism”? Race:

Race is a classification system of human beings on the basis of culturally-defined biologically-transmitted group characteristics. Typically, but not invariably, these are connected to visible attributes (skin color, physical characteristics, etc.).

Racism: Racism is a set of beliefs and social practices in which culturally-defined racial classifications intersect forms of social oppression. Racism always involves linking evaluative judgments to these classifications – superior/inferior, worthy/unworthy, dangerous/not dangerous, honest/dishonest.

2. Racism in America hurts not only minorities, but whites as well

1.  Racism reduces social solidarity and weakens social

movements for all oppressed groups: “Divide & Conquer”

2.  Racism weakens support for Universal Programs

3. Racism is a form of Oppression: it imposes real harms on people and communities

•  In the original US Constitution, Indians, blacks and other

nonwhites were counted as less than full persons. •  Slaves were denied virtually all legal protections. •  full citizenship for blacks was not enacted until 1964, less

than half a century ago. •  Native Americans have been massively displaced from their

original lands, subjected to murderous repression and marginalization.

•  All of this is not just “ancient history”; it is an on-going reality today

+Historical trajectory of forms of racial domination

n  Genocide

n  Slavery

n  Second-Class Citizenship

n  Semi-Free Labor

n  Discrimination

1. Genocide: A systematic policy to exterminate a particular category of persons, because of their race, religion, ethnicity or some other characteristic.

In US history the treatment of Native Americans was often genocidal.

2. Slavery: A system of social relations in which one person is the private property of another and can be bought and sold on a market.

U.S. slavery was an extreme form of this:

•  Children could be taken from parents and sold

•  Slaves could be tortured and killed with almost no restraint

•  Rape of slaves was never a crime

3. Second Class Citizenship A system of giving different categories of people different citizenship rights on the basis of some attribute.

In the U.S., “Jim Crow Laws” in the South after the Civil War officially gave blacks and whites different rights. In the North, different treatment unofficially conferred different rights.

4. Semi-free labor A system for including non-citizens in a labor market without giving them the rights and protections of citizenship.

In the 19th century this was true for Chinese labor (“Coolie” labor). In the 21st century this is the case for “illegal aliens”.

5. Discrimination A form of racism in which persons are accorded full citizenship rights, but in various ways they face systematic private discrimination in various contexts.

This may be officially illegal, but widely tolerated in practice.

+Discussion Questions in groups

n  Describe your neighborhood growing up. In what ways was it racially segregated or integrated? What was the proportion of homeowners to renters? Was it considered a desirable neighborhood?

n  In what ways were you aware of your racial/ethnic background when you were growing up? How would you describe that background? How do you define race? How do you define ethnicity?

n  What did you think of the reading on The New Jim Crow? Did you find the book section weak? Surprising? Did you connect with it?

+What is/was ‘Jim Crow’?

+War on Drugs

n  Assumption: launched in response to crackn  Racial disparities in convictions and prison population reflected

gov. efforts to address rampant drug crime in poor neighborhoods

n  Truth: Reagan officially announced the drug war in 1982, BEFORE crack became an issue in the media or a crisis in poor black neighborhoodsn  1985 Reagan hires staff to sensationalize crack in the media (as

solely black problem)n  Drug crime declining not rising when drug war was declared

+War on Drugs

n  Truth: The CIA actively supported drug smuggling in Nicaragua, which made way to streets of poor black neighborhoods

n  Truth: The CIA blocked police investigation into illegal drug networks that were funding its covert war in Nicaragua

+War on Drugs

n  Coincidence: an illegal drug crisis suddenly appears in the black community AFTER a drug war had been declared

n  Impact: in less than 30 years à penal population has exploded from 300,000 to more than 2 million n  Drug convictions accounting for majority of increase

+Incarceration: The New Jim Crow

“The current system of control permanently locks a huge percentage of the African American community out of the mainstream society and economy…it functions more like a caste system than a system of crime control” (Alexander, p. 13).

+Incarceration: The New Jim Crow

n  Highest incarceration rate in the worldn  Form of social control

n  Imprisons a larger percentage of its black population than South Africa did at the HEIGHT of apartheid

n  80% of Blacks in the US have a criminal record

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

0

500,000

1,000,000

1,500,000

2,000,000

2,500,000

1925 1935 1945 1955 1965 1975 1985 1995 2005

Rat

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Total in custody in both prisons and jails

In custody in prisons only

U.S. Incarceration rates, 1925-2012

Incarceration rates by race, 2010

+Incarceration: The New Jim Crow

n  Studies show: people of all colors USE AND SELL illegal drugs at almost identical ratesn  However: black men admieed to prison on drug charges 20-50 times

more often than white men

n  In major cities: 80 percent of young black men have criminal records n  Subject to legal discrimination for the rest of their lives

Spending per pupil in rich suburbs and cities, 2010-11 school year

Whites

Blacks

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,400

1,600

1,800

2,000

1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012

Arr

ests

per

100

,000

year

Black and White Arrest Rates for Drug Offenses, 1968-2012

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003

Blacktowhitedispa

rityra

<o

Black-to-whitedisparityinprisonsentencesbyoffencegroup

Drugoffenses

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003

Blacktowhitedispa

rityra

<o

Black-to-whitedisparityinprisonsentencesbyoffencegroup

Drugoffenses

Robbery/Burglary

Violentcrime

Other

TheJ

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

Drug users* Drug offense arrest

Drug offense conviction

Imprisoned for drug offenses

Bla

ck p

erce

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cat

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Drug users Imprisoned for drug offenses

Black share of drug use and punishment, 2011

+ImbalanceinArrests

MarijuanapossessionarrestratesinsomeofCalifornia’s

largestci5es2006-08

Source:“SmokeandHorrors”,op-edbyCharlesM.BlowinNewYorkTimes,October22,

2010BasedonresearchbyHarryLevineandJonGeKman,“TargeMngBlacksforMarijuana:possessionarrestsofAfricanAmericansinCalifornia,2004-08”,(Drug

PolicyAlliance,LA:June,2010)

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Ever used Past year Past month

White Black Latino

Patterns of Marijuana Use by Race, 2007

NumbersofBlacks,La<nosandWhitesArrestedforMarijuanaPossessioninNewYorkCityinTwoDecades

+Legalized Discrimination Employment

Rates of “call backs” in Employment Discrimination audit study

Data from Devah Pager Sociology dissertation, 2002

+

Obama Ban’s the Box Initiative

+Discussion Questions in Groups

n  What are you thoughts about Obama’s initiative?

n  Do you think this will help solve the New Jim Crow? Race Disparities?n  If yes, why?n  If no, why not?

n  Does his new initiative raise any read flags? If so, what red flags?

n  What questions do you have about this new initiative?