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Edelman Says Incarceration of Black Men is New Slavery
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by CJaye | November 12, 2008 at 07:26 am
374 views | 28 Recommendations | 15 comments
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I write for Associated Content.com, this morning I recieved a message from another producer.William Edward Thomas. William sent me this link "Incarceration of Black Men is New Slavery". He is the National Community Outreach Facilitator for the National Public Service Council To Abolish Private Prisons. (NPSCTAPP) a very small but determined San Francisco, California “Bay Area” based group. This group has written and is currently sponsoring a very important petition which urgently needs your support. The Single Voice Project is the name of a petition, which seeks to have the United States Congress respond to an initiative that demands Congress act to abolish private “for profit” prisons in the United States. Please join us in solidarity by adding your voice to ours: Sign The Petition! Put the link on your website, on your blog. Tell everyone you know. http://www.petitiononline.com/gufree2/petition.html INCARCERATING PEOPLE FOR PROFIT IS IN A WORD WRONG! They also extend an open invitation to visit thier blog site. There’s plenty of information from various sources to help you learn more about this important issue. http://www.npsctapp.blogspot.com “Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world. It’s the only thing that ever has” -Margaret Mead NPSCTAPP P.O. Box 156423 San Francisco, CA 94115 415.420.3891 williamthomas@exconciliation.com
Marian Wright Edelman has been a foot soldier in the battle to save black children for more than four decades. At age 70, you would think she’d be ready to hang up her boots. But no solider worth her salt would retreat when defeat would mean annihilation.
Are things really that bad? Edelman is emphatic.
“Black children are in a more perilous condition than ever before,” she said during an Oct. 13 visit to the College. “This is the worst condition since slavery. A third of black children won’t do better than the current generation.”
The founder of the Children’s Defense Fund has taken her battle cry on the road, mostly to college campuses as she did at the Leadership Center promoting her latest book, The Sea is So Wide and My Boat is So Small. The book began as a report to Morehouse alumnus Martin Luther King Jr. ‘48 to update him on how well we have heeded his message to conquer the evils of militarism, materialism and racism.
“He would not be pleased,” Edelman said.
As the head of the CDF for 35 years, where she has been a staunch advocate for minority, poor and handicapped children, Edelman has witnessed some improvements, such as accommodations for disabled children in public schools, Head Start, Job Care and expanded health care.
But there is a litany of things Edelman believes are desperately worse, such as the achievement gap. Eighty-four percent of black children cannot read at grade level, and a full 90 percent do not perform math at grade level, she said.
The gravest of all: one in three 7-year-old black boys is in a cradle-to-prison pipeline, Edelman said. And, she added, their removal from society will lead to the demise of the black community.
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CJaye
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Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (15)
at 12:11 on November 12th, 2008
I am not sure what effect switching from private to governmet run prisons will have, other than increasing costs to tax payers. You want to see less people in prison tell them to stop committing criminal acts!
at 14:19 on November 12th, 2008
Hear hear
at 12:20 on November 12th, 2008
Private prisons are still paid for with Tax dollars. What really should be in question is what is the underlying incentive for a private prison?: For them to stay busy & full or empty and looking for work?"
at 12:26 on November 12th, 2008
Corrections is big, big business. The apotheosis of such a business plan is to get as many people incarcerated as possible, since prisons collect tax dollars per inmate, but are privately owned. One effect of "nationalizing" prisons would be to remove the private-corrections lobby. Which other effects would be brought about, though, I'm not sure.
at 12:31 on November 12th, 2008
Jordan, you hit the nail on the head!
at 13:18 on November 12th, 2008
Thank you all for your comments
at 13:30 on November 12th, 2008
Jordan,
For your premise to be valid it would require collusion between police, prosecutors and judges on one hand and operators of private prisons on the other. Do you have any evidence of such collusion? Without collusion prison operators (private or public) would not be able to impact the number of people (black, white, hispanic or otherwise) who are sentenced to prison terms. Also consider that the intesests of corrections unions are exactly the same as those of private prison operators (more prisoners = more prisons = more union members = more union dues for the unions).
at 14:20 on November 12th, 2008
Hear hear hear!
at 13:52 on November 12th, 2008
Eastvanray,
I just posted this, but...
http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_10918033
As for "collusion" between police, prosecutors, and judges. Not needed if someone is arrested legally although unknowingly coerced into crime.
and how about:
http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/special/9712/ch08p2.htm
I don't think it is out of line to assume you are aware of some kind corruption in politics.. I would most likely look into "financers" of local politics campaigns ect for motive and "collusion". I am sure there are more online far more better than I to comment on this.
at 14:18 on November 12th, 2008
Edelman has her foot in her mouth as usual
at 14:24 on November 12th, 2008
If you want to do away with the new slavery of Black people; abolish the crack dealer.
at 14:36 on November 12th, 2008
a foot in mouth disease??
I saw many people are discussing this on the forum of age gap relationship site called Agelessmate.com. You may go there to check it if you are interested.
at 19:32 on November 12th, 2008
Eastvanray,
I just posted this, but...
http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_10918033
Hey JoIM,
"As for "collusion" between police, prosecutors, and judges. Not needed if someone is arrested legally although unknowingly coerced into crime."
UNKNOWINGLY COERCED INTO CRIME?????? Puleese!!!!
and how about:
http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/special/9712/ch08p2.htm
"I don't think it is out of line to assume you are aware of some kind corruption in politics.. I would most likely look into "financers" of local politics campaigns ect for motive and "collusion". I am sure there are more online far more better than I to comment on this."
I know of no such collusion. Do you have any evidence or just conspiricy theories?
at 07:11 on November 13th, 2008
Again thank you all for your comments.
at 10:30 on November 15th, 2008
Market forces do not necessarily serve the common good. An important role of government is to minimize the negative impacts of private business activity. For example, environmental laws control pollution because it is not often in the short-term financial interest of the factory owner to install pollution-reducing devices. Nonetheless, these devices serve "the common good" and government has a legitimate role in requiring them to be installed.
Does the privatization of prisons have similar externalities (the economic term for these negative consequences) which are inflicted upon prisoners? This is not a trivial question, and private organizations that make a profit by running prisons would appear to have no incentive to reduce recidivism, provide safe living conditions, or educational opportunities for prisoners. This does not mean that they do not do these things, just that they have no financial incentive to do so. Government -owned facilities, on the other hand, may serve a broader set of goals that are not limited by the financial requirements of the shareholders. The government, for example, in working to ensure the safety and well-being of the entire population, may be more inventive in designing rehabilitation activities or alternative programs that are not in the financial interest of the private sector to create or adopt.
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