Mary Church Terrell Papers
These papers are undated, but are detailed letters and written by Mary Church Terrell detailing how the Supreme Court upheld segregation in housing. |
Crime and punishment
Herblock exposes inadequacies in sentencing by comparing lengthy prison term meted out to a criminal involved in a drug use charge, with the relatively short term for the prisoner convicted of murder. The War on Drugs in the late 1980s and early 1990s resulted in harder terms for those involved in drug-related activities. By 1999, prison populations had swelled with those serving long mandatory sentences for nonviolent offenses. The long sentences for the use of crack (cooked cocaine) compared to those for the use of the more expensive cocaine powder illustrate another inequity. The American Bar Association reported that by far the majority of arrests were for possession rather than dealing, and that the stiffer sentences did not deter actual criminal activity. Additional resource for sentencing statistics The Sentencing Project: Racial Disparity |
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Lynching was used to terrorize and intimidate African Americans in an effort to prevent them from exercising their full rights as citizens in the United States. One of the most horrific lynchings is that of Jesse Washington in 1916. Read more about his story HERE.
Today, many innocent African Americans have been shot by police officers and others because they were presumed dangerous simply because of the melanin in their skin. In 2012, Trayvon Martin was a 17 year old child who was shot by a neighborhood watchman with no just cause. Read his biography HERE.
Learn more from the links included in the Additional Resources page.
Today, many innocent African Americans have been shot by police officers and others because they were presumed dangerous simply because of the melanin in their skin. In 2012, Trayvon Martin was a 17 year old child who was shot by a neighborhood watchman with no just cause. Read his biography HERE.
Learn more from the links included in the Additional Resources page.