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Essay On African American Youth Incarceration

416 Words2 Pages

African-American Youth is More Likely to be Incarcerated than White Adolescents

According to the latest report from the Sentencing Project, results show that although we may see a decline in youth incarceration in the long run, the disparity between black and white adolescents in juvenile facilities is continuing to increase. African-American youth are expected to be five times more prone to being imprisoned compared to the white youth. This is based on the data gathered and presented by the Department of Justice.

Meanwhile, taking a look back in 2001, black adolescents were four times more likely to be arrested than the white kids. As of 2015, juvenile facilities, prisons, treatment centers, and detentions houses more than 48,000 youth. …show more content…

However, the percentage of white adolescents decreased faster compare to black youth. Thus, resulting in a wider disparity between the two races.

On a national scale, the black youth’s placement was at 433 for every 100,000 while white youth was 86 for every 100,000. As you can see, the gap between the two races is very apparent. In fact, it has increased by 22% ever since 2001.

African-American youth are 10 times more likely to be incarcerated as white youth in states including New Jersey, Montana, Wisconsin, Connecticut, Delaware, and Massachusetts. Meanwhile, in Maryland, Connecticut, Delaware, Montana, and Wisconsin, the racial disparity is almost double. In Vermont, New Hampshire, and West Virginia the racial difference decreased by half.

Some of the factors that contribute to the disparity can be attributed to the crime rate influenced by social and economic issues. When it comes to drug and crime arrests in the U.S., 12% of drug users are black Americans while 32% of them represent those who were arrested for possessing drugs. In 2002, black Americans constitute over 80% of those who are sentenced for drug-related offenses even though more than 2/3 of cocaine users are actually white or

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