Report says U.S. jails more blacks than whites for drugs
ATLANTA (Reuters) - Black Americans are 10 times more likely to be imprisoned for illegal drug offenses than whites, even though both groups use and sell drugs at the same rate, according to a study released on Tuesday.
Almost all large counties in the United States showed sharp disparities along racial lines in the sentencing of drug offenders, the study by the Washington-based Justice Policy Institute showed.
There were 1.5 million drug arrests out of 19.5 million drug users in 2002, it said. About 175,000 people were incarcerated for a drug offense, of which half were black, even though blacks account for 13 percent of the U.S. population, it said.
The study looked at data from 198 U.S. counties with the biggest population. Its findings were similar to others on the subject, but it is the first to look at relative incarceration rates at a local level.
"What you keep seeing is this towering drug admission rate for African Americans and a very small rate for whites. In many cases, the admission rate for whites is smaller than the (percentage of whites in the) whole population," said Jason Ziedenberg, the institute's executive director.
No, really?
ATLANTA (Reuters) - Black Americans are 10 times more likely to be imprisoned for illegal drug offenses than whites, even though both groups use and sell drugs at the same rate, according to a study released on Tuesday.
Almost all large counties in the United States showed sharp disparities along racial lines in the sentencing of drug offenders, the study by the Washington-based Justice Policy Institute showed.
There were 1.5 million drug arrests out of 19.5 million drug users in 2002, it said. About 175,000 people were incarcerated for a drug offense, of which half were black, even though blacks account for 13 percent of the U.S. population, it said.
The study looked at data from 198 U.S. counties with the biggest population. Its findings were similar to others on the subject, but it is the first to look at relative incarceration rates at a local level.
"What you keep seeing is this towering drug admission rate for African Americans and a very small rate for whites. In many cases, the admission rate for whites is smaller than the (percentage of whites in the) whole population," said Jason Ziedenberg, the institute's executive director.
No, really?
Your kidding?
I thought we were genetically programed to go from the womb to the jail cell?
This is shocking. You mean all along it was you and not me?
I must say I do not know what to do with the rest of my life.
I mean I have been just dragging my feet in life thinking there is no reason to do anything useful with my life because I am destined for the Industrial complex, (sorry WAOD), that is the prison system.
Damn I guess I have to make something out of myself now.
Back to Planet Earth
I wonder how much they pay idiots like these to tell people things they already knew?
Again, don't tell me they are not out to get us!
Paranoid my ASS!
