A First Impression

 Hello everyone, and welcome to my blog. I've recently begun The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander, and will be using this space to document my thoughts on the book while I read it. Hopefully, you'll find some interest in my inner monologue; so please, join me on my journey of self-education and growth.

So far, it appears that the book revolves around the idea that while they were abolished many years ago, in spirit, the Jim Crow Laws are still present in our society; we've simply gotten better at disguising them. In this country, race has become quite the important topic. It certainly seems as though we've made significant progress, and have taken corrective steps in terms of equality, discrimination, and racial stereotyping. This was what I thought, at least. I live in a small town, and because of this, I've rarely witnessed any blatant displays of racism. As a result, it took me a while to realize the extent to which this behavior regularly occurs. 

Alexander's "exposé" on racism in America has been quite the eye-opener for me. She argues that while it may seem as though we've left the Jim Crow era far in the past, society has actually resorted to other more subtle ways of controlling people of color. Inequality, discrimination, and racial stereotyping all still exist....just not in the ways you would think. 

Alexander argues that the black population is being controlled in ways similar to Jim Crow through the criminal justice system. At first, I was quite skeptical of this- in fact, I still am. However, Alexander uses the fact that she herself was originally dubious of her own thesis to establish a sense of credibility (which, yes, did work on me). 

The book starts with a semi-brief introduction, and begins discussing the War on Drugs- allegedly, it began in response to the crack-cocaine crisis in inner-city neighborhoods. However, oddly enough, the war was announced in 1982, two years before crack even became an issue in poor black neighborhoods- in fact, the war began when illegal drug use was on the decline. This fueled many conspiracy theories, as the War on Drugs ended up leading to many racial stereotypes- the media began portraying the black population as "crack whores" and "crack dealers." While they were dismissed as outright insane, people began to wonder whether the odd timing was a piece of something bigger. When in 1998, the CIA admitted to smuggling drugs into the U.S from Nicaragua, it only added to the mystery- could the government be intentionally fueling racism? Personally, I'm unsure. It does seem like a pretty outrageous claim to make. I'd like to do a bit more research and get farther into the book before I make any internal determinations. However, the apparent evidence is both fascinating and horrifying. The book claims that this War on Drugs was a stepping-stool for mass incarceration....and it makes sense. After the war, the U.S penal population boomed from 300,000 to 2 million. The U.S now imprisons a greater percentage of its black population "than South Africa did at the height of apartheid." After you've been imprisoned, you can legally be denied "employment, housing, and public benefits"- it's quite possible that the criminal justice system has turned into American's very own caste system.

(The image above depicts a protest in response to the War on Drugs.)

After its introduction, the book pieces itself into sections. It begins with a detailed history of the rise and fall of slavery. Then, it transitions into the birth of Jim Crow, and discusses its supposed "death." I find this context to be both helpful and necessary- it outlines parallels between our current society and our past society, and the subtle similarities go a long way in strengthening Alexander's thesis. Perhaps racism is still as prevalent as always- it just presents itself in less dramatic and obvious ways.