The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. By Michelle Alexander (New York, The New Press, 2012) 1- 289 pp. Reviewed by (Name), November, 3, 2014>
Introduction
Michelle Alexander is a celebrated civil rights advocate who has been an active participant in the anti- racial profiling campaign in the United States. Born in 1967, Alexander has been persistently advocating reforms in the US criminal justice system. As a law professor and a writer, her name is hugely synonymous to the struggle for racial justice in the United States and has been fighting the war on racial segregation in law enforcement for a long time. Alexander’s strong call to eradicate racial profiling has earned her recognition in the American society, and her work has seen her collect several civil rights awards.
She recently reached an all-time high in her campaign against racial profiling with the release of her book entitled “The New Jim Crow”. Released in 2010, the book’s main theme is centered on criticism of the justice system in the United States that she argues has been plagued by systemic racial discrimination. In the book, Alexander argues that there is no difference between the days of Jim Crow and the current mass incarceration of black men in the US. Michelle’s interest in the criminal justice field is driven by the fact that she is a lawyer by profession. Furthermore, Michelle’s origin is central in the struggle for racial justice since she is also an African American. In “The New Jim Crow” Michelle expresses her belief and hope that the American society will one day be free from race related injustices.
Thesis Arguments
War on Drugs
According to Alexander, Law enforcement agencies are also given the power to conduct crackdowns on targeted communities (102). This is in itself a form of discrimination. According to Alexander, the “stop-and-frisk” rule gives power to local police to search individuals on the simple basis of “suspicion (238).” The police, however, have been consistently abusing this power. For instance, they have a tendency of arresting persons if they find their walking, dressing, driving ability to be suspicious. Alexander states that a huge percentage of the individuals who are stopped and frisked are black.
According to Alexander, disciplinary action is not usually taken on white drug traffickers even though they are in a better position to engage in drug activities. Alexander notes that it pains to see that crackdowns are only severe for white cocaine than the powdered cocaine. Here, white cocaine is synonymous with the blacks while powdered cocaine is associated with the whites. Approaches to dealing with crime are decided on the basis of color and not on the magnitude of the criminal activity (53). This is the reason that black offenders are imprisoned in greater numbers as compared to their white counterparts.
Freedom injustice
According to Alexander, freedom in modern American is not in the same scale for all members of the society (32). The justice system concentrates on certain aspects that benefit elite groups (mostly the whites), and at the same time abandons the welfare of the poor. Here, the “poor” are the marginalized groups, particularly blacks. The social spectrum is biased when it comes to countering social evils. Apart from being controlled, the black marginalized groups find themselves in police custody for fake reasons that also lack basis and evidence. On the other hand, whites are left with ample freedom and are relatively untroubled even when they engage in crime. Alexander provides the evidence for this claim using the case of driving related offenses. An African American is always at a higher risk of being arrested when over speeding as compared to a white driver. This is a suggestion that freedom for the blacks has been significantly compromised.
Alexander writes that freedom for African Americans will remain to be at risk if the situation continues. Although the condition is not as worse as the past, it has not improved that much. Alexander mentioned that civil rights seem to have precedence over human rights in the current society. Human rights are less mentioned when dealing with the problems of the blacks while ultimate measures are put in place to serve whites to satisfaction. Even the election to office of Barrack Obama does not save the situation as Alexander writes, and those who have this opinion are misguided (11). Alexander states that the ideology that “being a criminal” is “being black” has to change as soon as possible.
Evidence
Alexander supports every argument she presents with sufficient evidence. This makes her claims ideal and legitimate. For example, Alexander mentions the case of driving and over speeding with reference to blacks and whites. A white individual is safer because the law favors him. The opposite is true for black men as they are at a higher risk of conviction and sent to jail upon committing the same crime (4). In addition, the issue of drug seems to have more weight for the blacks. Screening is a routine activity in their life while the whites are allowed to walk and lead life freely without irregular and random screenings. A person will definitely end up in jail when found guilty of drug claims if that particular person is black. The situation is different for the whites as most do not serve any jail time even if there is sufficient evidence showing their involvement with drugs. Alexander provides all this evidence to exhibit the reality of the situation that currently characterizes the American society.
With the evidence given by the author, I am of the opinion that her arguments are effective and convincing enough for any reader. It is very clear that the arguments depict reality. The interesting part is the extent to which Michelle puts her communication across the book. Her views are credible, and the message is clear to the public; equity and freedom are yet to be achieved in the American society. To overcome this situation, there is a lot has to be done both from a strategic, as well as political point of view. Community policing should be centered on protecting the lives of civilians regardless of their racial affiliation.
What worked right in the entire book is the use of effective language in sending her message. Alexander chooses words carefully in order to involve all readers regardless of their background. However, what did not work out right for me was the divided idea that the author presented in critiquing the whites. In my opinion, the structural and political aspects of the US society have to carry a huge portion of the responsibility and blame and not just the elite whites.
Conclusion
As discussed above, Alexander’s theme and theses in the book “The New Jim Crow” presents the reality of the American society today. Both historians and politicians will be more than interested in reading the book. The book is perfectly fitted for undergraduate students. It remains a fact that freedom and equality for all races is still to be achieved in America. The justice system has to be reformed to make sure the law is applied equally on all people and fairness is exercised. Alexander is however optimistic that in the near future, racial equality and freedom will be achieved.
