Draft 1 - Policy Project Description

DRAFT 1 - Policy Problem Description
Problem
The Criminal Justice System disproportionately and negatively affects people of color; which, in turn, creates additional social determinate barriers and collateral damage.
There is 500% more people in prison now than there was in 1980. 60-80% of women in prison are women of color. There is a need to redefine who goes through the prison institution and how people go through the criminal justice system. Collateral sanctions contribute to an unjust system and should be minimized, if not eliminated altogether. The answer to poverty – which, also, disproportionately affects people of color – is to lock people of color and poor people away. This is social control rather than for the common good of society.

History of Policy Analyzed
The history of United State Policy will be uncovered analyzed in detail which will help understand the astounding facts that uncover why people of color are dis- proportionately incarcerated.
When the founders of he United States wrote the constitution “who” did they have in mind when they spoke of “Men” in The Declaration of Independence, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." They declared these as intrinsic to the individual and without need of proof. The words of The Declaration of Independence are very powerful. Essentially, the Declaration of Independence was created by people who had framed “Men” with many people in the margins and not considered “man;” namely, people of color and women. If the meanings were twisted from The Declaration of Independence and then was codified into the Constitution – from the inception of the United States we have had contradictions. Ideals such as freedom, individual rights, and intrinsic equality are a contradiction to slavery and genocide. These ideals have historically been woven into policy and law in the United States.

Social Determinants and Collateral Damage Analyzed
An explanation of social determinate and collateral damage will be examined and investigate. The issue of social determinate is multifarious and overlapping; but, also, collateral damage is far-reaching and often becomes cyclical.
Worldwide the United States has a disproportionate number of people in prison relative to the world; but then within this country there is a disproportionate number of people of color relative to the country. Imposed sanctions have a negative effect, not only on those incarcerated or re-entering society upon release, but on virtually every aspect of our society. Those caught up in the system and those affected by collateral damage have been affective negatively, in most cases, and simply they trickle not only into their communities and families but into society at large. For example, the non profit organization Justice Now believes that “prisons and policing are not making our communities safe and whole but that, in fact, the current system severely damages the people it imprisons and the communities most affected by it.” Like the cycle of unequal policy there is a cycle of how prisons affect communities; with the overlap of social determinates and the impact of collateral damage.

Alternatives
There are multiple alternatives to the way people are run through the criminal justice system; also, change the collateral sanctions and affect the social determinates.
Justice Now believes “in working toward a society that no longer relies on prisons but instead invests resources in making communities stronger.” But, if there is going to be prisons then looking at more humane options that don’t violate human and civil rights.