Racial Inequality in the Criminal Justice System
1
Racial Inequality in the Criminal Justice System
Name
Institution
How does racial inequality manifest within the U.S. criminal justice system, particularly in terms
of arrest, incarceration, and sentencing disparities between Black Americans and White
Americans? Discuss the factors contributing to these disparities and the role of racial profiling,
while also addressing potential solutions or reforms.
Word Count Requirement: 1,500–2,000 words

Racial Inequality in the Criminal Justice System
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Racial inequality in the criminal justice system
The most intriguing question to ask is whether there exists a structural inequality in the
criminal justice system. It is evident in the news or in the newspapers that most of the criminals
that are portrayed are mainly African American or are coming from the Hispanic origin. In
addition, being a fan of criminology books, they even demonstrate more black male criminals
than white males. Therefore, the major question to ask is whether more Blacks commit more
crimes than the White males. In addition, it is important to ask what factors are involved for the
Black Americans to be involved in more criminal activities than the whites. On the other hand, it
is important to question how Black Americans stereotypes play a role with possible racial
profiling from the law enforcers (DPIC. (2012). In addition, it is important to question whether
the Blacks are treated equally or fairly in the criminal justice system. Therefore, after considering
more studies on the issue, it is possible to provide answers to these questions in order to
determine if the Black Americans are the race which is really committing most of the criminal
activities when compared to the Whites, or if racism within the criminal justice system plays a
major role than it is thought. In addition, much progress has been made and is currently being
made over history for the laws that concern the equal treatment, but the civil rights crisis seems
like the criminal justice system that does not adhere to its own laws.
Statistics show that there are more Blacks who are arrested and incarcerated that the
Whites of the Hispanic males. In addition, based on the reports by the Bureau of Justice Statistics
in 2010, the rate of the Black Americans imprisonment was approximately 3,000 per 1,000,000
Black Americans in total. In addition, they are incarcerated many times higher than the whites,
which are a website that provides reports that in case the current trends continue, almost one in

Racial Inequality in the Criminal Justice System
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three of the Blacks can expect to be imprisoned and spend time in jail or in prison. On the other
hand, most of the prison population has more Black Americans and the Hispanics. According to
a report by Michael (2011), most of the criminal activities are not committed by the minorities,
and the report also states that most of the minorities are not criminals. Therefore, even when the
minorities are arrested with no conviction, they still undergo the consequences that go along with
the process. These consequences comprise of difficulties in getting jobs, issues with acquiring
education, proper housing, as well as, any other benefit from the government in case they are
poor in the first place. On the other hand, there are also excuses, which are provided especially
when lawmakers are faced with such disparate reports which state that Black Americans are the
most deviant race and are the ones who take part in criminal behavior. On the other hand, the
most prevalent form of racial disparity is racial profiling that most people think is the major root
of the problem.
There are cases when there seems to be drug-sentencing disparities in the Black
American communities. American’s War on Drugs which is war on minorities and the poor.
According to a report by Kain (2000) approximately sixty-two percent of Black American males
are sent behind bars due to drug-related charges and also at a higher rate than the Whites. On the
other hand, based on a report by the National Association for Advancement for Colored People
(NAACP, 2012) demonstrates that approximately 14 million and 2.6 million Black Americans
use illegal drugs. However, most of the Black American males are sent behind bars for illegal
drug-related crimes ten times higher when compared to the White males (NAACP, 2012). Thus,
the shocking truth is that the Blacks serve much more time in jail or in prison on drug-related
charges than the Whites, especially for violent crimes.

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