Milliman 1

Jasmine Milliman
16, April, 16
Professor Alzen
Research final draft #4
Not many people realize what a big impact mass incarceration has on peoples lives, and
they are ignorant towards the fact that these very people are living in their own neighborhoods
and make up the communities they are a part of. Mass incarceration, as defined by St. Francis
College Library, is the imprisonment of a large number of persons. As stated on the Libraries
website, Because the United States has the highest rate of imprisonment in the world, this has
become an issue of great concern. Our whole punitive system is being re-evaluated. In
Incarceration Matters, it was found that:
Between 1970 and 2010 more people were incarcerated in the United
States than were imprisoned in any other country, and at no other point in its past
had the nation's economic, social, and political institutions become so bound up
with the practice of punishment. By 2006 more than 7.3 million Americans had
become entangled in the criminal justice system. The American prison population
had by that year increased more rapidly than had the resident population as a
whole, and one in every thirty-one U.S. residents was under some form of
correctional supervision, such as in prison or jail, or on probation or parole. (page
1)

In No Cure for What Ails Us The Media-Constructed Disconnect Between Societal Problems
And Possible Solutions, the authors note that Texas has the largest prison system and one of the
highest incarceration rates in the country. It is evident that mass incarceration is a growing
problem in the United States.

Milliman 2
Unfortunately, mass incarceration does not just affect the families of those incarcerated,
but it spreads into the communities, and influences our society as a whole. As said in
Imprisoning America, the U.S. penal population has increased over the last thirty years from
around 300,000 to more than two million, with more than half a million prisoners returning their
home communities each year. Researchers committed to studying the effects of mass
incarceration have revealed this evidence through their studies, statistics, interviews, and
surveys. We will see that there are many social effects brought on by mass incarcerations. From
paternal incarceration effects, leading to community effects, and also to racial discrimination that
is involved in mass incarceration, it is evident that everyone suffers from the effects of
incarceration, not just the families of those involved or who have a member who was
incarcerated. Mass incarceration continues to be a growing problem in the U.S. and negatively
effects the families first, then communities, and finally the society as a whole.
Carol S. Steiker, author of Mass Incarceration: Causes, Consequences, and Exit
Strategies, teaches a Criminal Justice class at Harvard University. She described the revolution
in incarceration that has occurred in the United States the past four decades to her students, and
stated:
The American rate of incarceration has increased more than fivefold since
1972. The current rate is more than 700 per 100,000, yielding a total number well
over 2 million people. The incarceration rate for black Americans relative to
white Americans is higher than it was before the Civil Rights Movement. The
United States has the highest rate of incarceration in the world, many times higher
than most European countries, and higher than even the most violent societies and
most oppressive regimes on the planet. (page 1)

Steiker then referred to Michelle Alexanders words in her book, The New Jim Crow: Mass
Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, and how the racially disproportionate impact of the

Milliman 3
so-called War on Drugs is the policy that single-handedly drove much of the increase in
incarceration rates. Collectively, their view point that mass incarceration, Jim Crow laws, and
even slavery go hand in hand, explaining that the history of mass incarceration goes way back
and the problem can be dated back to this era. In Steikers book, she collaborated with other
professors who noticed paralleled events where mass incarceration started to grow and initially
became an issue. Professor Seidman said it dates back to the responses of European citizens to
the Holocaust, while Professor Harcourt believes it is parallel to the era of the
deinstitutionalization experience of the mentally ill in the 1960s (page 4). When Professor Cole
sought to unearth the causes of this burgeoning trend, he noted that the budgetary crises of the
past few years has led many to question the enormous cost of maintaining such a bloated prison
system, while the fall in the rate of violent crimes and the acknowledged failure of the War on
Drugs has cast doubt on the necessity of imprisoning so many (page 3). Mass incarceration is
spreading throughout the U.S. now more than ever and is a growing problem that affects
families, communities, and ultimately the society.
The first area that is affected because of mass incarceration, are the families themselves.
Specific in focusing on the situation where a family has to live without the father who is in jail,
Coates, the author of The Black Family In the Age of Mass Incarceration, gave the evidence
provided by The National Research Council whose report noted that, more than half of fathers in
state prison report being the primary breadwinner in their family. Incarceration not only effects
the father in prison, putting an emotional toll on them, guilt, and stress, but the mother also
carries a burden, now being the one who takes on the role as the new breadwinner, and then the
child may also feel the need to step up and earn money as well. It is evident that if the family
stays together through incarceration, the loss of income only increases, as the mother must pay

Milliman 4
for phone time, travel costs for visits, and legal fees. These impacts are corrosive on marriage
and cohabitation, even after the prison time was served, (Imprisoning America: The Social
Effects of Mass Incarceration). All of this can also lead to divorce, which stated in Imprisoning
America, it says that of the percentage of prisoners, nearly 40 percent were divorced. Mass
incarceration affects the whole family, however it hits the children pretty hard. It affects the child
and causes problems for him/her growing up, and also affects the mother in the way that while
she has a lot on her plate, she tries to balance a child or more than one, and tries to figure out
where she stands with the imprisoned partner. In the academic law review, The Effects of High
Imprisonment Rates on Communities, it is stated that the burden continues after the father returns
home, because a criminal record tends to injure employment prospects, the way the society views
him and the family, and even the child and moms views of the once incarcerated father. This
causes an emotional stress as well as an economical and financial stress or burden on the family.
From the Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology, Saral Wakefield says there are important
behavioral, developmental, and attainment outcomes, including mental health and behavioral
problems, substance use, educational attainment, and social inequality that is present within the
incarcerated families, in Accentuating The Positive Or Eliminating The Negative Paternal
Incarceration And Caregiver-Child Relationship Quality. It is obvious that incarceration
damages the relationships and affects the overall mental health of the family.
Following the family effects of mass incarceration, it is undeniable that throughout
research, there is a trend of a much higher number of black prisoners than white prisoners
because it is easy to blame the high rates of black prisoners as the result of poverty, racial
segregation, unequal opportunities, and the presumed realities of the drug market, that most drug
dealers are not white. (Summary New Jim Crow, page 10). Incarceration seems to be a trending

Milliman 5
activity happening in the lives of African Americans, even more so than in the families of Asians,
Caucasians, or any other nationality. So in order to understand the extent of mass incarcerations
effects, we must look at the apparent racial discrimination that is going on within incarceration.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the percentage of Black or African Americans
living in the United States alone, dating back to July 1, 2014, was 13.2% (www.census.gov).
According to Kensicki, Linda Jean in No Cure For What Ails Us: The Media-Constructed
Disconnect Between Societal Problems And Possible Solutions, analyses of social problems in
the media have largely examined stereotypical representations of those affected, and studies
examining public apathy have principally measured attitudes and behavior after exposure to
explicit political messaging. From this, we can gather that racial discrimination can be linked to
stereotypical perspectives and assumptions of people, specifically African Americans.
It is only reasonable to know that the judicial system has flaws in it just like any other
system does, however these resources point out the fact that there is obvious racial
discrimination underlying the decisions made by the courts. In Summary and Analysis of The
New Jim Crow we see that the implications of the drug war are notable and the incarcerations
most striking feature is its racial dimension. Statistics and facts in the book conclude that the
drug war and the penal system in general are a form of social control, one that targets black
citizens. They are the new version of the Jim Crow Laws (page 12). Some cities already have
more than half of the young black men populations in prison or jail or on probation or parole.
This system will continue to because too many Americans are racially indifferent; they simply do
not care enough to incite change. It is obvious that if things do not change, negative effects will
continue to take place and mass incarceration will continue to grow, along with recidivism. The
Milliman 6

black community is challenged with the problem of discrimination through the court system, and
the communities of stereotypical, judgmental people around them.
Moreover, In Incarceration Matters, the author states that the mass incarceration affect
re-cycles itself to the outer community. The affect goes even deeper than we think. Because of
the racial discrimination that goes on the communities as a whole tends to be more racial, people
assume things that are not necessarily true; like assuming that every African American is bad
news and has been in jail or will be in jail, or just profiling other persons, specifically African
Americans. There have been other studies that show the cases in which a verdict was found
based on color. The author of Incarceration Matters said that White Americans use drugs as
much or more than black Americans, but go to prison at a fraction of the rate. This information is
necessary for us, as citizens, to take a step into the political world and understand politics, rules,
regulations, and the corruption of the court system itself, including leaders, judges, witnesses, the
jury, and biased people. As said by Summary Station, Once a person is labeled a felon,
employment and housing discrimination are legal, even expected; furthermore, the right to vote,
educational opportunities, jury service, and food stamps as well as other forms of public benefit
are revoked. The pre-Civil War and pre-Civil Rights Movement discrimination has not ended but
been redesigned, (page 9). The effects of mass incarceration are harsh and hit extremely hard on
communities of color. In Imprisoning America, it was found that nearly one in five black male
high school graduates in their early thirties in 1999 were likely to have a prison record, five times
the figure for white men with the same schooling (page 7). Employers are not allowed to
discriminate, however, they still make judgements of their own while hiring. Not only do people
of color have to fight against the many negative effects of mass incarcerations aftermath that
were previously mentioned, but they also have to deal with and be aware of the racial
Milliman 7

discrimination going on around them. These real life examples show that these discriminated
people are still a part of our society, and their families make up the surrounding communities. In
this way, the effects of mass incarceration act like a process and trickle down and spread from
the family into the community.
From the families of the incarcerated, to the communities and neighborhoods we live in,
mass incarceration has impacted many lives and continues to do so in a negative way. Certain
mediums have been used, such as the news, surveys, and articles that give the facts about what
has happened through statistics, putting emphasis and revealing how big the problem of mass
incarceration really is. Thankfully, through these mediums, we can be aware of this detrimental
problem. Without these, there would be no tangible, hard evidence to rely on that supports and
gives us knowledge of how mass incarceration truly effects people in the community; people we
know and are close to, and even people who live right next door. Todd R. Clear uses Donald
Bramans findings in The Chicago Journals, where Braman provided detailed descriptions of
how incarceration affected 12 families. From their stories, he found that through his survey,
incarceration breaks families apart, strains their economic resources, weakens parental
involvement with children, and leads to emotional and social isolation. He shows the ways that,
having a male family member go to prison interferes with employment prospects for those who
remain behind, and he concludes that, on balance, the consequences of incarceration borne by
families are a net negative (page 9). The risk factors that affect the lives of families of the
incarcerated impact the development of their lives, and from there, it spreads into the
community. A community can be weakened due to mass incarceration effects, because the social
cohesion, neighborhood solidarity and interaction are all damaged. Included in The Effects of
High Imprisonment Rates On Communities, was information from interviews that were taken in
Milliman 8

poor neighborhoods in Tallahassee, where every family in the sample was touched by prison and
had all reported a family member in prison within the past 5 years, and whatever the effects of
incarceration are on those imprisoned, were also felt by everyone in the sample, not just the
families themselves. The community deals with incarceration differently than one single human
being does, but it is not just the incarcerated families who are feeling the negative effects, it is
also the community.
Our society today is made up of a diverse group of people, many being affected by
incarceration. The negative effects of mass incarceration creeps into families, then the
community, and finally reaching into our society as a whole. An article found that over 25
percent of the adult population has a criminal background (Rodriguez and Emsellem 2011).
Going to show, that the problem is growing and the rate is increasing even now. The article asks
the important question: How does the criminal justice system affect individuals embedded in
groups where members have directly experienced contact with the institution, even when they
themselves have not personally had direct contact? In When The Invisible Punishing Machine Is
Everywhere... : The Mechanism Of Social Control, the authors Negrete and Mabel quote, "When
the Invisible Punishing Machine is everywhere, creeping into my body, life and spaces, it is like
living in a colossal architectural nightmare." This thesis serves first as a testimony of the author's
personal stories and through the personal stories, we see hands-on evidence of these effects
brought about by incarceration. The dissertation interrogates and reveals the work needed to
transform radically the intangible effects of the invisible punishing machine on our bodies, minds
and souls. We are given the metaphor of social control being the invisible punishing machine,
revealing that the growing rate of incarceration leads to social control, and it is like a disease in
itself, spreading from peoples to communities everywhere. Here, we are given a unique
Milliman 9

description and a new perspective in depth of the reasons for incarceration, seeing it as a Social
Control. In return, it shows the results of this social control, and what it does on our society
around us, which includes a larger number of people and categories of people. Professor Cole in
Mass Incarceration: Causes, Consequences, and Exit Strategies, adds to Professor Alexanders
call for a new social movement by noting that the movements goals must extend beyond
criminal justice policy reform and include real investments in poverty alleviation (page 3). In
order to reduce the rapidly growing mass incarceration rate, and the recidivism rate, we must dig
deeper and realize that the solutions will call for a better investment into peoples lives.
When there is a problem as big as mass incarceration, there is an even bigger need for
something to be done. Not everyone is even aware of this problem, and not many people realize
that the people around them are being affected because of it. First, we must address the problems
coverage as a whole, and make sure that the people are informed about it, which can come
through different mediums. As said in What Ails Us, the media helps with the problem of mass
incarceration by providing updates and helps the people to understand social issues and the
situation before them. The news makes it known worldwide that there is indeed a problem (page
2). Of course, not all of us are news reporters, or have a connection to CNN or ABC news and
can tell them what to say on the air. However, social media provides a huge platform in which
we can not only get the word out, but also motivate and encourage people by giving them the
resources to do something about this problem and share the information with others. We can
simply share a website link, explain its importance, and start a vital movement; we must never
underestimate the power of social media. Our friends and followers will retweet, repost and
share our posts, and before we know it, the human race is informed and motivated.

Milliman 10

Non-profit organizations also play a big role in helping either financially, or by providing
care, education, or a product, while also getting the news out. The Jacksonville Community
Council stated that non-profits serve, inspire, protect and support, and their involvement is in
analyzing and solving community problems (What Ails Us page 3). Non-profits are very helpful
and serve as one of the solutions for dealing with mass incarcerations effects. Another set of
solutions, as stated by Jeremy Travis in Imprisoning America, was that in order to avoid the
costly vicious cycle of incarceration and recidivism as well as to enhance public safety, there
should be a greater collaboration between prison officials and those in child and family welfare
services, educational and job-training programs, and mental and public health agencies (page
17). Some may say that this will cost too much, however our money as citizens should be going
towards organizations and services that better our own communities anyways, because in the end
it will better society as a whole. In The Chicago Journals, Todd. R. Clear gives a figure that
shows that incarceration tends to reduce crime through incapacitation and deterrence but that it
also tends to increase crime through destabilization of families and by undermining other sources
of informal social control. Some people may agree with the side that incarceration keeps the
crime rate low, but he refutes that by saying, high rates of adult incarcerations, concentrated in
the poorest communities, would lead to weakened supervision by parental or adult supervisory
figures and that this would translate into more juvenile crime (page 27). When weakened
supervision is present, it is easier for children to make mistakes, take action in the form of
violence, or become completely rebellious, and as this happens, the kids turn to crime. Overall it
is clear that incarceration has the effect of actually increasing crime.
In order for mass incarcerations rates to be lowered, along with the rates of recidivism,
and for the negative effects of incarceration to be eased, we need to invest in non-profit
Milliman 11

organizations, and also seek to find how we can make people more aware of the problem and its
solutions. Organizations like Foreverfamily, Alliance for Children and Families, Amachi, Angel
Tree, Broken Bonds, help and mentor previously incarcerated families, while trying to reunite
the families and provide therapy for the children. It is programs like these that mend broken
families together and restore broken bonds in not only the families themselves, but their
communities and our society. In return, I completely agree with Jeremy Travis about the need for
a greater collaboration amongst the prison officials and special programs, even though not all of
us are politicians or people of higher authority who can make that happen. However, we can
definitely take part in spreading the news about this issue, so that people will no longer be
ignorant, but they will instead be informed about the problem and the call for action to go forth
with these solutions.
From a Christian perspective, we must see mass incarceration for what it is; a problem.
When such negative effects are going on in our dark world, we must seek the Lord and pray.
Prayer is an important solution to this ugly problem because it is very powerful. Prayer is our
direct connection to God and He wants us to bring about our requests before Him and stay
connected to Him. Whether we feel as though God is calling us to take part in a specific way, that
is between the individual and the Lord. However, just as it is our responsibility as citizens of
America to be aware of the issues going on around us, it is our responsibility as Christians to
spread the love of Christ, which will make the ultimate positive impact. We are not called to
judge others, or have stereotypical views and assumptions, but rather to love our neighbors as
ourselves as it says in Matthew 22:39. Our neighbors go through trials just as we do because we
live in a fallen world. With this in mind, we must also realize that the problem of incarceration,
and the negative effects that it causes, will never completely go away until eternity comes to a
Milliman 12

reality. But, this does not mean we mustnt sit and watch as these problems go on. Instead, we
should pray daily, as it says in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, and also not be lazy, especially when we
are called by the Holy Spirit to fight for a cause. Colossians 3:23-24 reminds us to, Work
willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for
people. Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master
you are serving is Christ.
While we work hard for the Lord, we must also follow after Christ and imitate Him in
every aspect of our lives, just like in 1 Samuel 16:7, But the Lord said to Samuel, Dont judge
by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesnt see things the way we see
them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. It is important to
notice that Jesus does not judge the outward appearance of people, but He looks at the heart. We
should aspire to be like Jesus, and in that way, we should strive to not judge others according to
their outward appearance, but to look at their hearts. Racial discrimination should be attacked by
love. When the Spirit tells us what to do, and where to go, we must obey. Obedience to Gods
Word is the main focus in a Christians life. Therefore, like it says in Romans 12:6-13, we
ultimately must pursue this:
In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if
God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God
has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher,
teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give
generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility
seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it
gladly. Dont just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong.
Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take
delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord
enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on
praying. When Gods people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager
to practice hospitality.

Milliman 13

From this verse, we are commanded to many things; use our gifts for His glory and do our job
well, show genuine love, hate evil, hold tight to what is good, be patient, keep on praying, help
those in need, and always be eager to be hospitable! So whatever God has called you to do,
whether that be to pray, spread the word about mass incarcerations negative effects, or even
donate and become a part of an organization, do it well and fight with the strength of the Lord.
Love everyone around you and always be praying because this truly change lives. Although we
live in a fallen and imperfect world, we must not sit by and watch as these problems go on, but
instead we must do something about it, and help those who need it, doing what Jesus would do,
and practicing hospitality.

Milliman 14
Bibliography

Clear, Todd, Kevin Drakulich, and Grant Duwe. "Incarceration Matters. Issues In Science &
Technology 32.2 (2016): 5-9. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Mar. 2016.
Clear, Todd. R. The Effects of High Imprisonment Rates on Communities. Crime and Justice,
Vol. 37, No. 1 (2008), The University of Chicago Press. March. 1. 2012.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/522360
Coates, Ta-nehisi. "The BLACK FAMILY In The AGE OF MASS INCARCERATION.
(Cover Story)." Atlantic 316.3 (2015): 60. MAS Ultra - School Edition. Web. 11 Mar.
2016.
"Imprisoning America: The Social Effects of Mass Incarceration." The Journal of Politics 2005:
943. JSTOR Journals. Web. 11 Mar. 2016.
Kensicki, Linda Jean. "No Cure For What Ails Us: The Media-Constructed Disconnect Between
Societal Problems And Possible Solutions." Journalism & Mass Communication
Quarterly 81.1 (2004): 53-73. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 11 Mar.
2016.
Lynch, James P. "Assessing The Effects Of Mass Incarceration On Informal Social Control In
Communities [Comments]." Criminology & Public Policy 2 (2003): 267. HeinOnline.
Web. 11 Mar. 2016.
Negrete Alfaro, Mabel Alejandra. "When The Invisible Punishing Machine Is Everywhere... :
The Mechanism Of Social Control (Mass Incarceration, Institutionalized Racism, Slavery
And Repression) In The USA Shapes The Individual As Well As The Social Space."
(2011): Networked Digital Library of Theses & Dissertations. Web. 11 Mar. 2016.
Milliman 15

Pattillo, Mary E., David F. Weiman, and Bruce Western. Imprisoning America : The Social
Effects Of Mass Incarceration. n.p.: New York : Russell Sage Foundation, c2004.,
2004. Webcat Library Catalog. Web. 11 Mar. 2016.
Phillips Nickie, Wasserman Mona, Definition of Mass incarceration. 2013 St. Francis College
Library.
Steiker, S. Carol, Mass Incarceration: Causes, Consequences, and Exit Strategies. Volume 9.1.
2011.
Summary Station, Summary and Analysis of Michelle Alexanders The New Jim Crow: Mass
Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindess. 2015. Summary Station, Unites States of
America First Printing.
Tonry, Todd R. Clear Edited by Michael. "The Effects Of High Imprisonment Rates On
Communities." Crime And Justice 37.(2008): 97. LexisNexis Academic: Law Reviews.
Web. 11 Mar. 2016.
United States Census Bureau, Quick Facts United States. U.S. Department of Commerce.
http://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045215/00
Wakefield, Sara1. "Accentuating The Positive Or Eliminating The Negative? Paternal
Incarceration And Caregiver-Child Relationship Quality." Journal Of Criminal Law
& Criminology 104.4 (2015): 905-927. Social Sciences Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 11
Mar. 2016.

Milliman 16

Walker, Hannah L.1. "Extending The Effects Of The Carceral State: Proximal Contact, Political
Participation, And Race." Political Research Quarterly 67.4 (2014): 809-822. Social
Sciences Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 11 Mar. 2016.