Today, Black people make up approximately 13% of the United States, yet they comprise roughly 44% of the total prison population. This is a disturbing racial disparity in the Criminal Justice System of the United States. Racial disparities in the Criminal Justice System means the "gap" between the number of racial minorities and Whites charged for a crime, stopped under suspicion, or imprisoned relative to their total population. The Criminal Justice System needs to be reformed to reduce the racial disparities that have claimed it. Reducing the racial disparities in the Criminal Justice System should be at the center of our country's policing and judicial priorties. Racial justice, which the United States lacks, is essential to a functioning society.
"While the impact of incarceration on individuals can be quantified to a certain extent, the wide-ranging effects of the race to incarcerate on African American communities in particular is a phenomenon that is only beginning to be investigated. What does it mean to a community, for example, to know that three out of ten boys growing up will spend time in prison? What does it do to the fabric of the family and community to have such a substantial proportion of its young men enmeshed in the criminal justice system? What images and values are communicated to young people who see the prisoner as the most prominent pervasive role model in the community?" -Marc Mauer, Race to Incarcerate"