B. Incarceration of African-American Males
The numbers of African-Americans under the jurisdiction of the criminal justice system is almost too startling to state. The U.S. Justice Department reported in 1990 that more than 1.5 million African-Americans were then either in jail or prison, on probation, or on parole. Other reports which focus specifically on urban cities find that black males fare even worse. For example, in Baltimore, Maryland, 56% of black males between 18 and 35 are under the supervision of the criminal justice system. Ironically, black males in the United States are incarcerated at a rate four times that of black males in South Africa: 3,109 per 100,000, compared to 729 per 100,000. The high rate of incarceration of African-American males is having a devastating impact on African-American communities and families.
The high incarceration rate of African-American males is a direct result of factors, i.e., sentencing practices, selective enforcement, judicial biases, etc. discussed within this article. Unfortunately, many lawyers who represent African-American males in criminal cases, and judges who hear these cases, perceive African-American males, particularly black youth, as dangerous and not worthy of rehabilitation. Thus, jail is where they should be--away from society. If the trend continues, half of all black men will have criminal records by the year 2000. Race plays a major role in how justice is administered in most state justice systems. A number of states have finally taken initiatives to study where and how racism and ethnic bias impact the justice system. For example, in 1989, the Chief Justice of the Florida Supreme Court issued an order creating the Racial and Ethnic Bias Commission to determine whether race or ethnicity was a consideration in the administration of justice in Florida. The Commission determined, in part, that minorities are underrepresented as judges and attorneys, minorities are subjected to police brutality, and minority juveniles are more harshly treated than non-minorities. The Commission also found that the typical criminal court session, where the defendant is a black male, involves predominantly white juries, judges, prosecutors, and defense counsel.
The Florida Commission also discovered what has appeared evident to activists for decades. Specifically, racial disparities exist in the enforcement of laws and regulations which are disproportionately affecting young African-American males. A number of states are establishing similar commissions to study the impact of racial bias on the justice system. As a result of the 1992 riots in Los Angeles, the American Bar Association organized a task force on minorities in the justice system “to examine the prevalence of racial and ethnic bias in the American justice system, to ascertain whether concerns about the seriousness of racial and ethnic bias in the justice system are justified, and if so, to propose an ABA agenda for future action.”
