To be ensnared in America’s mass incarceration system means being in prison, on parole or probation. After three solid decades of rising arrest rates, there are now approximately 7,163,000 people in the penal system: nearly 10 percent of the population over the age of 18.
It’s not just drug charges that have landed people in jail or on probation; laws criminalizing innocuous acts have proliferated across the country, and people find themselves locked up for crimes like smuggling flowers or jaywalking. Cash-strapped municipalities and states have hardly been able to keep up with ballooning arrest rates. Where public funds have fallen short, private corporations have readily picked up the tab, with generous compensation assured by our elected leaders.
Leave a Reply