Political Prisoners in America's Gulag

With around 2.4 million incarcerated, America has by far the world's largest prison system. Two-thirds in it are Black or Latino.

Most held are non-violent. Over half are for drug related charges. Around 75% are Blacks or Latinos. On all charges, many are persecuted political prisoners.

In her book titled, "The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness," Michelle Alexander called today's Jim Crow a modern-day elitist-designed racial caste system. Believing poor Blacks (and Latinos) are dangerous and economically superfluous, America's gulag became an instrument of social control. According to Alexander:

"Any movement to end mass incarceration must deal with (it) as a racial caste system, not (a method) of crime control. We need an effective system of crime prevention and control in our communities, but that is not what the current system is. (It's) better designed to create crime, and a perpetual class of people labeled criminals, rather than to eliminate crime or reduce the number of criminals."

America's most vulnerable are victimized by racism, poverty, judicial unfairness, get tough on crime policies, a guilty unless proved innocent mentality, three strikes and you're out, bigoted drug laws, and advocacy for social justice issues challenging repressive state policies.

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