Thanks for playing our game! Did you know that it closely resembles the U.S. Prison System? Read on to find out how!
(align: "==>")[[[> ->2]] ]In the 1950s, the prison population was about 70% white. However, the demographics of U.S. prisoners have almost inverted since then.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 3]]] <center>''U.S. Prison Population:''
1970
_________________
357,292
</center>
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 4]]]Crime rates began to increase during the 1960s. In response, President Nixon ushers in the "law and order" period starting in 1970. President Nixon cracks down on crime by doubling federal spending on law enforcement.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 5]]]The idea of "law and order" is extremely popular and is adopted nationwide. President Nixon also coins the term "War on Drugs" and declares drug abuse as "public enemy number one."
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 6]]]<center>''U.S. Prison Population:''
1980
_________________
513,900
</center>
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 7]]]President Reagan strengthened the idea of the "War on Drugs." During his presidency, a new drug comes along: crack cocaine. Crack cocaine was potent, relatively inexpensive, and more commonly used in poor communities of color. As crack rose in popularity, people feared that it might trigger a large drug epidemic.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 8]]]A bill for crack cocaine is quickly passed which imposes mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses. In particular, harsh punishments were put in place for people found in possession of crack cocaine. According to the bill, people with only 1 ounce of crack cocaine were imprisoned for the same amount of time as people with 100 ounces of powdered cocaine, despite them being the same substances. This bill results in the imprisonment of many black and latino folks.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 9]]]<center>''U.S. Prison Population:''
1985
_________________
759,100
</center>
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 10]]]The large rise in arrests leads to an increase in federal spending on prisons and a complete "War on Drugs" crackdown.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 11]]]The media begins to heavily cover arrests due to the "War on Drugs". In particular, the media focuses on the depicting the large influx of black and brown people in prisons. Black people were widely referred to as "super predators" by politicians and the media.
<style> img {
display: block;
margin-left: auto;
margin-right: auto;
max-height:100%;
max-width:100%;
}
</style>
<img src="http://voiceofdetroit.net/wp-content/uploads/Superpredators-400x227.png"/>
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 12]]]Black people continue to be poorly depicted by the media, leading to a fear of black people among many white people. Due to this fear, crime becomes a top priority for presidential candidates, even for Democrats like President Clinton.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 13]]]<center>''U.S. Prison Population:''
1990
_________________
1, 179,200
</center>
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 14]]]A few horrific high profile cases come up, including the murder of Polly Klaas, a 12 year-old girl who was kidnapped from her home. In response to extreme public pressures to be tough on crime, the Clinton administration passes the 1994 Crime Bill which increased funding for prisons and police forces. The bill also had provisions such as the three-strikes provision, which imposes a mandatory life sentence for someone after their third felony and a provision requiring prisoners to serve at least 85% of their sentence.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 15]]]Unfortunately, the 1994 crime bill leads to an exponential increase in the prison population. In addition, the provisions specified in the bill also disporportionately targetted people of color.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 16]]]<center>''U.S. Prison Population:''
2000
_________________
2,015,300
</center>
(align: "==>")[[[> ->17]]]<style> img {
max-height:80%;
max-width:80%;
}
</style>
<img src="https://www.sentencingproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/US-prison-population-1925-2015.png"/>
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 19]]]1 in 3 black men will go to prison in their lifetime compared to 1 in 17 white men.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 20]]]Currently, the U.S. holds 5% of the world's population but 25% of the world's prisoners.
We have over 2.2 million people in prisons.
(align: "==>")[[[> -> 18]]]Today, prisons are less than 30% white - a complete inversion from about 50 years ago.