a peculiar institution

“A record 7 million people – or one in every 32 American adults – were behind bars, on probation or on parole by the end of last year, according to the Justice Department… Racial disparities among prisoners persist. In the 25-29 age group, 8.1 percent of black men – about one in 13 – are incarcerated, compared with 2.6 percent of Hispanic men and 1.1 percent of white men.”

A 2003 report from the Research, Development and Statistics Directorate for the British Home Office, written by Roy Walmsley, compares world prison populations. The United States has the highest prison population rate in the world.

~ by urbanbricoleur on 30 November 2006.