Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.

Analyze the Challenges of Combatting Racism within the Political and Legal System
Walker, Spohn and DeLone (2011) note that racism, racial discrimination and race, in
form of both legal and political oppression, have been at the pinnacle of the American history
during the slavery, post slavery, civil era and post-civil rights activism age. The US history has
been defined largely, on the one hand, by a history of racial domination and on the other, a
history of a struggle to surmount racial domination. Omi and Winant (2014) asserts that
subsequent white majority authorities instituted racial legislation and racial policies to repress the
black, Hispanics and Asian minorities. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper. There are numerous opportunities for subjective decisions
that influence the racial structure of those who venture into the political and legal system.
Discretion is a crucial aspect of the legal system and is important for efficient flow of the system
(Ferree, 2009). It is neither possible nor desirable to overlook discretion throughout the legal
system – professional judgment is a primary aspect of making daily operations accomplishable.
However, individual discretion can result in racial discrimination. These can be prevented if
discretion is well –monitored and well- informed. What is necessary is to explore the substance
of discretion and establish ways to either prevent unsuitable use through the application of
discretion affirmatively or the development of standards to minimize racial disparity. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.

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It is significant to acknowledge that for the last 35 years, two changes have resulted in
major rethinking about the America’s immigration policy (Collins, et al. 2009). First, the
Immigration Act enacted in 1965 and other events occurring across the globe have dramatically
altered the point of origin for many US immigrants, away from Europe to Asia and Latin
America (Katz & Taylor, 2013). In addition, the rise, growth as well as maturity of scholarship
focusing on Latinos, Asian Americans, and African Americans has transformed the treatment of

ethnicity and race from a peripheral issue to one of core significance in understanding political
and legal system in the US history (Walker, Spohn & DeLone, 2011).
A bizarre federal government framework of ethnic and racial segregation exists which
classifies all people into social groups: Hispanics, Blacks, Asians, Native Americans and
Caucasians (Collins, et al. 2009). The confusion over ethnic and racial identity as well as
nationalistic debate regarding who is and who is not an American continues to split the country. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.
Rhetoric is another issue, but racial struggle between the majority and the minority has become
the primary source of discrimination and prejudice in the US and continues to elicit ethnic
tension (Brewer & Heitzeg, 2008). In a census conducted in 2000, the number of Hispanics
outnumbered African Americans. In the next 3 decades, the population of non- Hispanic whites
will be about 54% (Skolnick, 2011). The addition of migrants to the US populace from many
diverse backgrounds promotes many cultural stereotypes and conflicts. As a matter of fact, racial
conflicts, such as discrimination and prejudice against the minority groups have increased
dramatically in the last 30 years.
The age of post- civil rights activism has been characterized with explosive incarceration
and criminalization based on racial lines. The US prison complexities have been influenced by
the increased international search for cheaper labor as well as profit maximization (Walker,
Spohn & DeLone, 2011). The history of the US society has been designed by a series of political
and legal systems structured to impose White supremacy across all realms of life. New systems
for perpetuating systemic racism have emerged. Today, minority groups, especially African
Americans continue to experience excessive surveillance, unequal protection, incarceration as
well as extreme segregation, all under the guise of controlling crime (Collins, et al. 2009). Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.

White supremacy continues to be executed within the civil justice system entrenched in
the political and economic spheres; as a result it is difficult to come up with political and legal
structural remedies. Civil justice has been at the core of racial enslavement (Brewer & Heitzeg,
2008). It is at the core of segregation, unequal punishments for similar crimes meted against
different racial groups. Historically, racial injustice has been used to propagate white supremacy
in the US. The elimination of white supremacy from the US legal structure did not eradicate
racial prejudice. Instead color blindness structures were replaced with white supremacy in the
law and have been used to propagate racial prejudice. At the core of white supremacy in the US
is anti- black racism. Against this backdrop, African Americans have been overrepresented in the
country’s criminal justice system (Walker, Spohn & DeLone, 2011). In this regard, the legal
systems continue to be used to racially discriminate against the black populace. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.

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The US rising levels of incarceration and criminalization has its origin in the war against
drugs and emergence of compulsory minimum convictions for drug offenders. It is undisputable
that the colored people and the poor, especially African Americans are overrepresented in the US
criminal justice structure. It is important to note that a significant number of these convicts were
unemployed individuals. Surprisingly, there is no dispute as to extend of these practices and
policies on the colored populations. In addition to mass incarceration and criminalization there
are additional consequences associated with racial prejudice decimated to colored people either
socially, economically or politically (Walker, Spohn & DeLone, 2011). The present mass
incarceration and criminalization of the colored populace in the US is associated by additional
laws that curtails the economic and political opportunities of former convicts and convicted
inmates. In the US, 14 states have had a record of disenfranchising felons (Brewer & Heitzeg,
2008). The African American population is the most disenfranchised former felons. In addition, occupational bans have been expanded for convicted inmates, forbidding them from child care
work, law enforcement or teaching. Existing literature reveal that employment ratios are
negatively correlated with explosion in incarceration of Black males. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper. Felons convicted of drug related charges are barred permanently from accessing public assistance that includes Medicaid,
supplemental security income or food stamps. The violation of parole or probation leads to
permanent disenfranchisement (Brewer & Heitzeg, 2008). Drug related criminals are prohibited
permanently from accessing student aid. Legislations that have been enacted in the recent past
have also created challenges for convicts. Additionally, incarceration period also contribute to
physical illness, injuries, and mental disorders that continue to characterize the life of former
convicts and their families on release. Women of color have not been spared in this racial
discrimination based on entrenched racial discrimination. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.
The present problem of racism is enshrined in the US history. The principles of the US
constitution were construed with a narrow view on citizenship that at the time of writing it
recognized only the Caucasian populations (Brewer & Heitzeg, 2008). This drew racial gaps
between free people and slaves and had already determined that the white population were free
people while the blacks as slaves. The age of abolition movements could not surpass this legal
hurdle deeply rooted in the legislative structure of the country. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper. Those states that heavily
dependent on slaves did not wish for their emancipation since their political and economic
interests were tied to slavery (Katz & Taylor, 2013). The end of slavery at the height of
independence in the US did not lead to the collapse of racial laws – it further led to the
entrenchment of legal methods that safeguarded white supremacy and property rights. Whiteness
was a crucial determinant of property interests since after the end of slavery, un-propertied
Caucasian men were entitled to vote, according to Ferree (2009). Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.

According to Skolnick (2011), the period after slavery was accompanied by white
supremacy which was characterized with a number of segregationist legislations – blacks were
not granted equal rights before the law under the pretext that nature and not power, violence and
man influenced their inferior status. The criminal justice system clearly demonstrated biasness
by supporting the attendant property rights and purity of Caucasians. The segregation in public
transport denied the black population equal protection before the law (Ferree, 2009). Blackness
was highly devalued and at their expense whiteness was enhanced. Most states in the US, where
slaves inhabited quickly established penitentiary institutions after the abolition of slavery that
could, by law, restrict the chances of freedom for the freed black population. Legislations were
enacted quickly that justified the restrictions linked with criminalized activities and slavery if the
culprit was an individual of black decent (Brewer & Heitzeg, 2008). Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.

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The period following after the collapse of legal racial prejudice, efforts were intensified
with the sole objective of controlling African Americans through the justice structure as Brewer
and Heitzeg (2008) reveals. White supremacy was enforced through state apparatus and the
criminal justice system had turned into an avenue to continue white supremacy. This practice
gained foothold in the last 35 years as essentialist racist structures paved way to a new form of
racism based on color, in which racism and race are apparently absent from the legal structures
(Skolnick, 2011). The judicial system offer a convenient platform for propagating the previously
legal racial segregation based on skin color as African Americans are disproportionately
persecuted, disenfranchised, imprisoned, convicted and policed (Katz & Taylor, 2013).
In brief, The American constitution was drafted with Whiteness as a core aspect that
defined citizenship and the right to own property. The ensuing events due to abolitionist
movements made many former slave territories to rethink policy in order to include measures that continue racial segregation against the black population. The criminal justice system
provided the much needed avenue that the white population required in order to propagate racial
discrimination against minority groups. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper. The post- slavery age was characterized with
discrimination based on law, where even the judges explicitly expressed bias towards the black
population as far as equality before the law is concerned. The post – civil activism age brought a
sigh of relief to the minority population in the US, but this did not last for long since a new form
of segregation emerged – segregation based on color blindness. The war against drugs has been
at the center of discrimination against the black people. . It is undisputable that the colored
people and the poor, especially African Americans are overrepresented in the US criminal justice
structure. It is important to acknowledge that a significant number of these convicts were
unemployed individuals charged on drugs related crimes. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.

References

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justice, color-blind racism, and the political economy of the prison industrial complex.
American Behavioral Scientist, 51(5), 625-644.
Coates, R. D. (2008). Covert racism in the USA and globally. Sociology compass, 2(1), 208-231.
Collins, P., McLaughlin, A., Higginbotham, E., Henderson, D., Tickamyer, A., MacDonald, V.
M., … & Williams, L. F. (2009). Emerging intersections: Race, class, and gender in
theory, policy, and practice. B. T. Dill, & R. E. Zambrana (Eds.). Rutgers University
Press. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.
Ferree, M. M. (2009). Inequality, intersectionality and the politics of discourse. The discursive
politics of gender equality. London: Routledge, 86-104.
Katz, P. A., & Taylor, D. A. (Eds.). (2013). Eliminating racism: Profiles in controversy.
Springer Science & Business Media.
Omi, M., & Winant, H. (2014). Racial formation in the United States. Routledge.
Skolnick, J. H. (2011). Justice without trial: Law enforcement in democratic society. Quid pro
books.
Walker, S., Spohn, C., & DeLone, M. (2011). The color of justice: Race, ethnicity, and crime in
America. Cengage Learning. Racism within the Political and Legal System Paper.