Exposing Racial Inequality In The Criminal Justice System

Words: 1011
Pages: 5

Exposing Racial Inequality in the Criminal Justice System by Grace Aina.

The criminal justice system has been affected by racial inequality, which places a negative impact on people of color that leads to an endless chain of discrimination and injustice in the courtroom. Despite the presumption that everyone should be sentenced equally based on the severity of the crime, without facing any discrimination. Studies have shown that people of color or nonwhites are sentenced more severely than a white individual that has committed the same crime. From jurors being biased and inflicting a heavier punishment on people of color, it is hard to not notice the racial discrimination all around the world. The existence of racial inequality in the justice system is a major issue that needs to be addressed and corrected in order to ensure
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This statement alone proves that people of color are more likely to be targeted by law enforcement. Additionally, individuals with darker skin tones are faced with harsher sentencing than their white counterparts. Tanya McDowell, an African mother, faced a five-year prison sentence for enrolling her son into the wrong district, but Felicity Huffman, who had her daughter’s SAT scores corrected, was sentenced to 14 days in prison. To know this information and still not feel outraged and disgusted by the racial inequality in the criminal justice system is appalling because how can a homeless African American woman be sentenced 130 times more than a white woman who committed a college admission scandal? This act of racial discrimination in the courtroom needs to be addressed because how can someone be wrongfully convicted by the color of their skin, something that they couldn’t control? Which puts this into question: do jurors look at the severity of the crime or does it depend on the color of the skin entering the courtroom doors? Another contributing factor that