Currently......African-American men go to prison at a far greater rate than any other racial group. While African-American now comprised 12% of the U.S. population, they constituted 44% of sentenced inmates in state and federal correctional institutions, the largest group behind bars. Whites, while 74% of the general population, accounted for 36% of state and federal inmates; and Hispanics, who comprise 10% of the population, were 18% of those behind bars. When Hispanics, African-Americans and non-Hispanic African Americans are combined, they constitute 62% of the state and federal prison population, yet only 22% of the total population.



IS THIS ANYTHING NEW?......NO!!!!......TAKE A LOOK AT PREVIOUS YEARS..................

There is no question, as can be seen with this chart from the U.S. Department of Justice FBI (December 1994), that African American men and women ar incarcerated at a rate of 7 to 1 when compared to their white counterparts.

Many whites believe that this static is due to the 'WAR ON DRUGS'......LOOK AGAIN!!!



UPDATE Only 11% of the nation's drug users are black, however blacks constitute almost 37% of those arrested for drug violations, over 42% of those in federal prisons for drug violations, and almost 60% of those in state prisons for drug felonies.
Sources: SubstanceAbuse and Mental Health Services Administration, National Household Survey on Drug Abuse: Population Estimates 1996, Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (1997), p. 19, Table 2D; Bureau of Justice Statistics, Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics 1996, Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office (1997), p. 382, Table 4.10, and p. 533, Table 6.36; Bureau of Justice Statistics, Prisoners in 1996, Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office (1997), p. 10, Table 13.

Fifty-four percent (54%) of blacks convicted of drug offenses get sentenced to prison versus 34% of whites convicted of the same offenses. Forty-four percent (44%) of blacks get prison sentences for possession versus 29% of whites; 60% of blacks are sentenced to prison for trafficking while 37% of whites are sentenced to prison for the same crime.
Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics, Sourcebook of Criminal Justice Statistics, Washington D.C.: Bureau of Justice Statistics (1996), p. 501, Table 5.50.

As a matter of fact our country keeps great records......TRIPP on this............



YET AND STILL.............A COMPARISON OF RACIAL STATISTICS OF PRISON "CHARACTERISTICS" AS DRAWN OUT FOR US BY THE U.S. DEPT. OF JUSTICE, BUREAU OF JUSTICE STATISTICS AND OFFICE OF JUVENILE JUSTICE AND DELINQUNCY PREVENTION COMFIRMS THAT THIS IS NOT JUSTICE AT ALL......


AND THIS IS WHERE IT ALL BEGINS!!!!!!!!!




BACK TO THE TRIPP HOMEPAGE