Module 3: History
Part 13: The New Jim Crow
The New Jim Crow is often associated with the policies that have resulted in mass incarceration that inequitably targets People of Color. Mass incarceration has ties to the war on drugs and discipline policies that foster the school to prison pipeline.
&1: New Jim Crow
Jim Crow laws were visible policies for the purpose of segregating races and maintaining white supremacy. While Jim Crow laws are no longer apparent, there are practices that continue to reinforce the oppression of People of Color. One example of these practices can be seen in the war on drugs and the resulting mass incarceration that disproportionately affects People of Color. The following resources explore this idea of mass incarceration and the racist underpinnings of the war on drugs.
Incarceration can lead to a loss of rights in society. For example, convicted felons lose their right to vote and even those convicted (or having pleaded guilty) to lesser crimes may be disenfranchised through fines and fees required to restore rights. While some argue this is a logical consequence, Michelle Alexander characterizes this as a caste system that represents a new form of Jim Crow. She more fully explains this in her book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness.
You can read more about Michelle Alexander’s book in the resources below.
Read:
About: The New Jim Crow
https://newjimcrow.com/about
Ten Years After “The New Jim Crow”
https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-new-yorker-interview/ten-years-after-the-new-jim-crow
To learn more about mass incarceration and the war on drugs, explore the resources below.
Read:
Mass Incarceration: New Jim Crow, Race War, or Both?
https://www.peoplespolicyproject.org/2018/01/30/mass-incarceration-new-jim-crow-class-war-or-both/
The Drug War Is the New Jim Crow
https://www.aclu.org/other/drug-war-new-jim-crow
The Drug War as Race War
https://racism.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=820:crime09-1
The National Academies Scrutinizes Mass Incarceration
https://www.prisonpolicy.org/blog/2014/05/02/national-academies-2014/
Watch:
Mass Incarceration in the U. S.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaPBcUUqbew&feature=emb_logo
Incarceration can lead to a loss of rights in society. For example, convicted felons lose their right to vote and even those convicted (or having pleaded guilty) to lesser crimes may be disenfranchised through fines and fees required to restore rights. While some argue this is a logical consequence, Michelle Alexander characterizes this as a caste system that represents a new form of Jim Crow. She more fully explains this in her book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness.
You can read more about Michelle Alexander’s book in the resources below.
Read:
About: The New Jim Crow
https://newjimcrow.com/about
Ten Years After “The New Jim Crow”
https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-new-yorker-interview/ten-years-after-the-new-jim-crow
To learn more about mass incarceration and the war on drugs, explore the resources below.
Read:
Mass Incarceration: New Jim Crow, Race War, or Both?
https://www.peoplespolicyproject.org/2018/01/30/mass-incarceration-new-jim-crow-class-war-or-both/
The Drug War Is the New Jim Crow
https://www.aclu.org/other/drug-war-new-jim-crow
The Drug War as Race War
https://racism.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=820:crime09-1
The National Academies Scrutinizes Mass Incarceration
https://www.prisonpolicy.org/blog/2014/05/02/national-academies-2014/
Watch:
Mass Incarceration in the U. S.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaPBcUUqbew&feature=emb_logo
The Growth of Incarceration in the U. S.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=I-kFNDlzL9k&feature=emb_logo
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
https://www.kzoo.edu/praxis/the-new-jim-crow-mass-incarceration-in-the-age-of-colorblindness/
Explore:
Drake Law: Racial Justice in the U.S.: Mass Incarceration
https://library.spalding.edu/c.php?g=1049767&p=7621533
The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) created a site that explores racial disparities in the legal system. You can explore more in the link below.
Read/Explore:
Racial Disparity
https://www.nacdl.org/Landing/RacialDisparity
Related to mass incarceration is the policing of students in schools and disciplinary policies that set children up for a lifetime in the criminal justice system. This becomes the school to prison pipeline that, like the war on drugs, disproportionately impacts People of Color.
Read:
The School-to-Prison Pipeline
https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/spring-2013/the-school-to-prison-pipeline
The National Education Association addresses the idea of the school to prison pipeline in the article linked below.
Read:
The School to Prison Pipeline: Time to Shut It Down
https://neatoday.org/2015/01/05/school-prison-pipeline-time-shut/
Read/Explore:
Ending the School to Prison Pipeline
https://neaedjustice.org/social-justice-issues/ending-the-school-to-prison-pipeline/
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) has created a resource that goes deeper into the school to prison pipeline. You can access the resource below.
Read/Explore:
Dismantling the School to Prison Pipeline
https://www.naacpldf.org/wp-content/uploads/Dismantling_the_School_to_Prison_Pipeline__Criminal-Justice__.pdf
| dismantling_the_school_to_prison_pipeline__criminal-justice__.pdf |
Reflect:
- What did you learn from these resources?
- How does this learning impact your view of history and of our current society?
- How does this learning inspire you to take action? What are your next steps?
The next part provides closure to the module on history.
