The Association of Race, Crime and the Justice System

Introduction

Many people think of a prosperous country when the term “America” is mentioned. America, which prides itself on being the most advanced nation in the world, is well known for having a developed sense of democracy that its people enjoy, a highly skilled military that is equipped with effective equipment, and cutting-edge technology that has allowed its economy to flourish over time despite the great depressions experienced around the world. It is known throughout the globe as the country that inspires its citizens to achieve the fundamental goal known as the ”American dream.” But despite all of this achievement, there is a dark aspect that has persisted in casting a negative light on the nation. (United States 1864).

The Historical Context of Racism in America

For over 200 years, America and Americans continue to grapple with one major problem, which is racism. After gaining independence in 1776 so much had to be restructured at the expense of the human dignity. The slavery period characterized by the antebellum era led into the civil war of 1861-1864 (Butler, Paul 1048). However, the contentious issue of racism is worse than it was two centuries ago. This essay is thus going to discuss how race or racism has associated with crime and the justice system in America with a primary focus on legislation, crime and its judicial application about race.

Segmentation of American Society During the Antebellum and Civil War Era

Isenberg (169), notes that America divided into two segments during the antebellum and civil war era. The whites in the North could only be differentiated by wealth and asset ownership while the Southern region characterized by the colored population that comprised of the African- Americans, Latinos, few Indians, and Hispanics (Isenberg, Nancy 158). These were identified by color and considered not part of America’s citizens. In her book, Browne-Marshall (32), indicates that the Republican party mostly consisted of the whites while the Democrats, mostly comprised of the blacks and white sympathizers who saw as human right activists. Most legislators and intellectuals of the time like James Hammond openly argued that the society had to divide along certain lines like the haves and have-nots, the bosses and those to do the handy jobs, the intellect and the relatively low intelligence that have fewer skills. Seward also considered slavery as improved form of development and blaming the negative effects of slavery on whites from other European countries. Before the presidential election in 1861, the government administration confederates and members of Congress openly approved slavery, and it goes without saying that the judicial system at the time allowed for such acts of free labor to be legal among the whites.

Legislation and Its Impact on Slavery

Soon, after the election of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States of America, The National Archives, and Records Administration (2017), came to an agreement that the slaves of American States were to be set free(Browne, Gloria 23). Regarding this, the recently booming business that most whites engaged in threatened to reduction and eventual extinction. DuVernay (2016), in the film ‘Thirteenth,’ portrays a picture of power- hungry Confederates whose primary source of earning a living was the business of slavery. In a bid to legalize this inhumane business, they tried playing a political game of legalizing the business through camouflaged names. With the president’s declaration in 1862 not fully implemented, and the civil war coming to an end, the Confederates hurriedly made specific legislations to boost the slavery business (United States 1863).

The Reproduction of Racism in the Judicial System

The ratification of the 13th amendment of the America’s constitution stated that Many hearts lingered hope of a transformed America where all treated with equal respect. However, not the case as we learn later that the legislators had only bent the laws, not for the colored group and more so the African-Americans. The organization evolved from the first freedman’s bureau, freedman’s aid society, emancipation Bureau, and freedman’s and abandoned lands to the 1965 Bureau of Freedmen, left lands and refugees (Alexander, Michelle 46). In the course of operating these series of bureaus, states that whereas the courts of agencies targeted the whites for punishment, the civil courts in the public limelight continued to propagate slavery of the black people (Alexander, Michelle 46). This evidence shows that the judicial system of the amendment period also reproduced racism in the form of slavery.

The Relationship Between Race and Crime

Crime control is a problem not only in America but the whole world. The American society and the judicial system, however, are still not able to crime and race. In the ‘thirteenth,’ just like in many other movies and videos, a perception espoused that the Blacks or Negros are always the villains and in any case, crime is committed; then it is the black who undoubtedly committed it. The film gives a statistic that one out of every for African-Americans is bound to serve a term in prison in their lives. This fact that discourages the colored families is, however, a business to legislators and associated companies which gain profit through fines, bailouts, and costs of lawyers. Today, the corridors of justice in America are full of an increasing graph of African-Americans imprisoned or under trials. The black, however, complain of injustices and a law that does not allow the black to defend themselves against the whites even at a point of death. Today references made to provincial legislation like the one that provides for severe punishment for black people who beats a white. Similar cases provided that intermarriages between black people and whites were a direct sentence of lifetime slavery of the black person, Browne-Marshall (56). About the case of Dred Scott vs. Sandford of 1857, as presented by Justice Taney and Curtis’s opinion, there has been a perception that by not being natives of America, African-Americans do not qualify to own any property in America (United States 1865). These cases are still important today. When white police mistakenly shot a black, the case is brushed away while a slight mistake by a black person towards a white treated with a contradictory seriousness.

The Future of America and Racism

Race and crime have directly related for the longest period in America. According to Isenberg (67), the whites viewed as perfectionists that can never commit the offense. This continuous disregard for the blacks has led to rebellion by the blacks (Butler, Paul 1054). Due to the failure to change the white’s prejudice on them, some black youths have resorted to engaging in criminal activities and drugs. Butler (80), adds that the consistent discrimination against the blacks by the society, the law enforcers and the judiciary have led to empathy among the blacks and this has made them take the liberty because after all, even without committing the crime, they will still be sacrifice as criminals.

The Impact of Racism on Education

The future of America regarding racism and justice is still unclear. The next generation is threatened with a greater discrimination of racism as the children brought up understanding that there were conflicts between the whites and the people of color. As it was in the 19th centuries, today schools differentiated by color (Browne, Gloria 39). It also states that specific classes meant for the whites, and the painted are not allowed to enroll in such schools. From the kindergarten to higher education levels, the people of color are rated to be less intelligent and unable to perform as the whites. A classic case handled by Justice Warren whereby children from four states viewed to be dominated by blacks are seeking legal assistance to be admitted to public schools without segregation (Isenberg, Nancy 161). In a similar manner, the case of Sweatt vs. Painter point out that the schools for whites are mostly privately owned and given more quality resources compared to the schools dominated by black people yet the parents of both groups pay same taxes to the government. Another case of Briggs vs. Elliot in South Carolina, after the jury determining that the provisions of the ‘negro’ school are inferior it still refuses the plaintiff the opportunity to join the white school.

America’s Divided Nation

Other than the physical facilities and resources being inferior to those in white schools, the teachers and tutors in Negro schools are viewed to be having low-quality training and experience compared to those in the white schools. In Gebhart vs. Belton case, the jury allows the plaintiff to enroll to a white school arguing that the Negro school has instructors of low qualification. The jury does not, however, give any recommendation on how to improve the teaching in the Negro schools to match the level in white schools. This case and many other cases are an explicit evident of how the state and its administration majorly composed of legislators have significantly contributed to the discrimination in the education sector so as to give rise to a new class of Negro children seen as of an inferior to their white counterparts. This negative aspect of a society that ought to be together in fighting its enemies is further encouraged by a rotten judicial system as Alexander (50) calls it by promoting these discriminatory acts by the whites against the people of color without any form of punishment. The result is a divided nation where whites and the colored are in the same country but live worlds apart.

Conclusion

In conclusion, all the analysis and evidence provided in this essay have proven that the legislation and judicial system is to blame for the continued crime in our country. A selfish motive by legislators to perpetuate slavery even in the contemporary America is hindering the objectivity principle in dealing with crime. By perceiving the people of color as villains in almost everything, discourages justice from an already unfair judicial system that continues to use these selfish provisions in the law that were viewed last many decades ago. It is, therefore, imperative that the justice system differentiates between crime and race as anyone is prone to commit a criminal act whether he/she is a white or black.

Works Cited

Alexander, Michelle. The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness. N.p.: The New Press, 2010. Print.

Browne-Marshall, Gloria J. Race, Law, and American Society: 1607 to Present. New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2007. Print.

Butler, Paul. ”One Hundred Years of Race and Crime.” Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology 100.3 (2010): n. pag. Web. 17 May 2017.

http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/dred-scott-v-sandford/

Isenberg, Nancy. White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America. , 2016. Print.

United States. President (1861-1865: Lincoln). The Emancipation Proclamation: January 1, 1863. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2017. Print.