US PRISON SYSTEM THREAD:
i did some research on the PRISON INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX in the United States. this is what I found.
#BlackLivesMatter

the prison industrial complex is when the government and industry use surveillance, policing, and imprisonment as solutions to social and economic problems

this is a web comprised of prisons, parole services, the police, and courts in order to transport, feed, and provide necessities to prisoners

private corporations and the government saw this as an economic opportunity, which is inherently problematic as this is a social issue (should not be driven by money)

this is a problem because if companies want to earn money they must continue to have prisoners, meaning that crime rates have to go up so that this system can run

this brings me to mass incarceration, which has roots tied to the introduction of the war on drugs by president richard nixon in 1971.

as a result, communities that were largely associated with drugs would be disrupted and criminalized. the drugs that were illegal (including marijuana and cocaine) led to the infiltration and vilification of different communities, especially those of COLOR.

in order to fuel the actions against drugs, there have been many laws created to exercise more policing for minor offenses. one of these is stop and frisk.

the majority of people that are stopped tend to be Black and Latino. the Supreme Court has made it LEGAL for cops to pull people over for any reason associated with minor driving violations or “suspicions.” (just to name one instance)

the police can search people and their vehicles when stopped and if there is refusal, many times cops will arrest individuals.

the problem in addition is when places or things such as homes and vehicles are still associated with a crime, this makes for problems as the government can take them and not return them. retaliation can lead to criminal charges, fueling wrongful arrests and tough situations.

the police are doing this because there is pressure to arrest a certain amount of people in order for units to be funded.

the courts let this happen because more prisoners means more tax money to keep prisons open.

simply put: its easier to get people arrested and in prison if they do not have access to legal resources or money to keep them out.

so, low-income communities are largely targeted.

once in prison, fundamental human and citizens’ rights are violated. some of these rights include voting, traveling outside the us, employment, and access to social benefits and housing.

us prisons are HIGHLY made up of people with drug offenses, compared to people who commit other crimes. this means that crime rates are growing for other offenses. yes, this is relevant to TODAY.

after many years, the us now has the HIGHEST rate of prisoners on the planet. the us prison system is a MULTI-BILLION dollar web.

here are some stats:
fact: African Americans are 3.73 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possesion than a white person.

this is the reality. it is alarming, unjust, and altogether a mess. prisons should not be run by economic purposes. we can do something about this.

thank you for reading!! now, here is what you can do!
1. Get Educated
2. Contact U.S. representatives
3. Donate to important resources
4. Vote!

1. Educate yourself. The information used in this thread comes from three YouTube videos:





There is so much more content out there!

Check out this great documentary on Netflix and NY Times Best Selling Book!

13th & The New Jim Crow

2. Contact US Representatives

3. Donate to important resources
https://nationinside.org/campaign-post/ten-organizations-that-are-fighting-mass-incarceration-and-need-your-support/

Here are just a few to consider! There are so many more out there.

4. Vote!