1. Alexander argues that the main reason why so many people are sent to jail in the U.S today is not because there’s a high rise in crime rates but because most of these people are sent to jail for drugs related issues. She’s arguing that the normal belief that people are sent to prison because they committed a crime is wrong. Alexander is saying the real reason why so many people are sent to prison is because the War on drugs criminalized even possessions of drugs which shouldn’t be considered a crime, because there’s no criminal intent behind it, and this what “ led to a rapid increase in the prison population”.  The war on drug law was passed in 1982 at a time when crime was on the decline but after the passing of the law “ U.S penal population exploded from around 300,000 to more than 2 million, with drug convictions accounting for the majority of the increase”. The war on drugs laws criminalizing the possession of drugs is why so many people are sent to jail, and not because of an increase in crime rates.

2. Racial disparities in the rates of incarceration cannot be explained by rates of drug crimes because drugs are used and sold by people of all colors, and social statuses. The fact that there are more black/brown Americans in the prison populations does not mean that drugs is consumed by that category of people only. When the war on drugs was launched, the black communities was targeted, and the drugs was introduced to the black community, but still drugs is still consumed by everyone(whites, black, brown, rich, poor, etc.).

3. Personally, this means that the American penal system is now being used to push racist agendas, where whites are in control and are treated better and differently even when they commit the same crime as black/brown people. The American penal system is not just about arresting all people who commit crimes anymore.

1. M.Alexander claims that the main explanation of why so many people are sent to jail in the U.S. today is deeply wrong. Explain her argument by referring to the various examples she mentions to backup her point (see p 1-2)

In the beginning , she explained how crack always been an issue way before the War On Drugs, it was founded mostly in the poorer communities. but as the war was declared the spread of crack became bigger. Since as they say the government seemed to see it coming from the poorer communities. That’s where the black neighborhoods was being target into more drug crimes.

2. Why is it that racial disparities in the rates of incarceration “cannot be explained by rates of drug crimes?”

It cannot be explained because it stated ” The War on Drugs began at a time when illegal drug use was on decline”. If it’s on decline there will be no need to be making arrest or putting people in prison. If that was to happen it will be looked as racial profiling on the poorer black neighborhoods.

3. How do you understand the phrase “The American penal system has emerged as a system of social control unparalleled in world history?

Usually to understand a phrase I look up the words individually to get the perfect definition of each word being shown in the phrase. American has social control on us because there’s sets of rules such as laws that we follow as citizens.

1. M. Alexander claims that the main explanation of why so many people are sent to jail in the U.S. today is deeply wrong. Explain her argument by referring to the various examples she mentions to backup her point. (see p. 1-2)

1. She explains this through the war on drugs. Something that came about because of crack and other drugs as she described in the first page. Also, how the media knew exactly how to portray the whole situation by making it into a bigger thing. For example, adding photos of crack babies, crack whores and crack dealers. That went on to not only scare everybody but to give them an image of what’s going on according to the media.

2. Why is it that racial disparities in the rates of incarceration “cannot be explained by rates of drug crimes”?

2. That’s simple to explain and M. Alexander also clarifies it. In the simple fact of the numbers skyrocketing from one day to another. It’s just how drugs started coming about in minority areas, as it goes to show everything was set up as a plan. Numbers in other countries were lower, yet sad how in the U.S it got so high. This clearly proves that it’s never going to match simply because they knew who to target and how to continue to make this the situation it became. Simply knowing these drugs would be a supply and demand for those whom got a taste of it first.

3. How do you understand the phrase: “the American penal system has emerged as a system of social control unparalleled in world history.”?

3. I see it as America has known exactly what it’s been doing to become what it is. This always comes down to numbers, meaning money and how to catch the easiest fish to fry. That’s how things are when it comes to the penal system in America. It’s mass incarceration for situations that may have not even been a big deal but somehow become years that these men have to end up doing serious time for as if it were murder being committed. It’s truly a sad reality but it’s the world we are living in then and even now today.

1. M. Alexander claims that the main explanation of why so many people are sent to jail in the U.S. today is deeply wrong. Explain her argument by referring to the various examples she mentions to backup her point. (see p. 1-2)

In her argument she explains that most people sent to jail are due to unfair reasoning. Within the first couple of paragraphs she explains how during the war on drugs many poor communities were being targeted with drugs creating a propaganda that backed up the war on drugs. Even though crack came out before the war .. After the war started then they targeted these communities as stated below “A few years after the drug war was declared, crack began to spread rapidly in the poor black neighborhoods of Los Angeles and later emerged in cities across the country” And this is around the mid 1960s during those segregated periods of time.

2. Why is it that racial disparities in the rates of incarceration “cannot be explained by rates of drug crimes”? At the time of when President Reagan declared his war on drugs in 1982, drug crime was on the decline it was not on the rise. So they cant explain anything because the rates were declining and also the timing of the war was around intense racist periods of time so that could also be a community to target.

3. How do you understand the phrase: “the American penal system has emerged as a system of social control unparalleled in world history.”? I understand it by looking at the words and defining them all together. Firstly social control is a concept within the disciplines of the social sciences. Social control is described as a certain set of rules and standards in society that keep individuals bound to conventional standards as well as to the use of formalized mechanisms. America has social control on several groups of people and they are all different rules or mechanisms. The war was based off of nonviolent offenders and regular drug defenders and that war created a penal system for the United states.

Michelle Alexander raises a number of important and interesting points. Let’s start a discussion centered on the following questions:

1. M. Alexander claims that the main explanation of why so many people are sent to jail in the U.S. today is deeply wrong. Explain her argument by referring to the various examples she mentions to backup her point. (see p. 1-2)

2. Why is it that racial disparities in the rates of incarceration “cannot be explained by rates of drug crimes”?

3. How do you understand the phrase: “the American penal system has emerged as a system of social control unparalleled in world history.”?

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