The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander Essay - 1334 Words

As Elie Wiesel once stated, â€Å"I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented† (â€Å"Elie Wiesel Quote†). Michelle Alexander’s book The New Jim Crow, which discusses criminal justice and its role in mass incarceration, promotes a similar idea regarding silence when America’s racial caste system needs to be ended; however, Alexander promotes times when silence would actually be better for â€Å"the tormented.† The role of silence and lack of silence in the criminal justice system both contribute to wrongly accused individuals and growing populations behind bars. The first†¦show more content†¦In this case, speaking up should not be feared; those under surveillance need to render the courage to stand up and tell police officers that they cannot unreasonably search belongings because these actions lead to unprovoked arrests and loss of fourth amendment rights. Following through the process of the criminal justice system, after being stopped by police officers, many individuals remain innocent of committing any crime and walk away from the situation without further questions asked. However, at this point, silence is not the answer. Alexander notes regarding the unreasonable searches, â€Å"Hardly anyone files a complaint, because the last thing most people want to do after experiencing a frightening and intrusive encounter with the police is show up at the police station where the officer works and attract more attention to themselves† (Alexander 69). Therefore, these countless searches remain unheard of by many because the innocent are too scared to come forward and tell their stories. Perhaps if the silence is broken, word of mouth would prevent others from being unlawfully searched and arrested based on no suspicion. This is not the case though; nevertheless, it is known that â€Å"the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) trains police to conduct utterly unreasonable and discriminatory stops and searches† (Alexander 70). The use of such searches and methods to determine whomShow MoreRelatedThe New Jim Crow By Michelle Alexander1313 Words   |  6 Pages The New Jim Crow Michelle Alexander’s the new Jim Crow Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness examine the Jim Crow practices post slavery and the mass incarceration of African-American. The creation of Jim Crows laws where used as a tool to promote segregation among the minority and white American. Michelle Alexander’s the new Jim Crow Mass takes a look at Jim Crow laws and policies were put into place to block the social progression African-American from the post-slavery to the civilRead MoreThe New Jim Crow By Michelle Alexander1316 Words   |  6 Pages The New Jim Crow Michelle Alexander’s the new Jim Crow Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness examine the Jim Crow practices post slavery and the mass incarceration of African-American. The creation of Jim Crows laws were used as a tool to promote segregation among the minority and white American. Michelle Alexander’s the new Jim Crow Mass takes a look at Jim Crow laws and policies were put into place to block the social progression African-American from the post-slavery to theRead MoreThe New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander960 Words   |  4 PagesThe New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander tries to advance intellectual dialogue regarding mass incarceration in the United States. 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She even describes that thoseRead MoreThe New Jim Crow By Michelle Alexander1253 Words   |  6 PagesThe book, The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander is about the mass incarceration of African Americans in the criminal justice system. It depicts individuals who were arrested on drug crimes. Because these individuals are labeled as criminals, it becom es difficult for them to find work, housing, and public assistance. (Alexander, 2010) The themes in this book include denial and ignorance, racism and violence, and drugs. Denial and ignorance is a common behavior noted in this book. Many times peopleRead MoreThe New Jim Crow By Michelle Alexander1666 Words   |  7 PagesDuring the Civil Rights Era, many black power movements strived to prevent the New Jim Crow from happening. The black man was being oppressed during segregation and treated like animals. The white supremacy, only visualize African Americans as slaves, people who should not be a part of the United States. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X drove men and women to fight for his or her rights. However, that was not enough to stop the white supremacy from oppressing African Americans. The Civil RightsRead MoreThe New Jim Crow, By Michelle Alexander Essay1511 Words   |  7 PagesRacism is a thing of the past, or is it? Michelle Alexander’s, â€Å"The New Jim Crow,† main focus is on mass incarceration and how it occurs in an era of color blindness. Alexander also focuses on the social oppressions that African Americans hav e suffered throughout the years, until now. In this essay, I will discuss how the system of control was constructed, Alexander’s compelling historical analysis, and if the current system would be easier to dismantle. I would like to start by delving into howRead MoreThe New Jim Crow, By Michelle Alexander929 Words   |  4 Pagescriminal on record causing them to struggle in society. REVIEW OF LITERATURE Michelle Alexander author of The New Jim Crow, whose specialty, are racial profiling, racism in the United States and race in the criminal justice system, revealed how the government incarceration system is set up for failure, especially for the oppressed minorities in society. â€Å"Observers have referred to the advent of mass imprisonment as â€Å"The New Jim Crow† because the devastating racial impact of imprisonment effectively isolatesRead MoreThe New Jim Crow By Michelle Alexander2184 Words   |  9 Pages Paola Gonzalez Professor Maroney The American Experience May 6, 2015 The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander The New Jim Crow book written by Michelle Alexander and Michelle McCool addresses the racial dimensions of the War on Drugs. The book disputes that the federal drug policy purposefully targets lower minority groups and communities of color to keep black people incarcerated and off the streets. The book starts of disproving the idea that racism no longer exists by proving that racism is stillRead MoreThe New Jim Crow By Michelle Alexander Essay2059 Words   |  9 PagesIn the book The New Jim Crow author Michelle Alexander argues that a racial caste system still exists in the United States. Furthermore, this caste system is set up by the social control that is created by the discriminatory practices of the War on Drugs. The War on Drugs and mass incarcerations create a racial â€Å"undercaste† of African-Americans, by marginalizing ex-offenders in America. Within her arguments she describes the racist practices of, and policies surrounding, the War on Drugs. These extend