DEINDUSTRIALIZATION AND CRIMINALIZATION

BY STUDENT

According to Justice Strategies, Arizona has become the incarceration capital of the South West. The rate of prison population growth in 2002 was twice the regional average and the state incarcerates women, Latinos and African Americans at higher rates than its neighbors. Arizona has mandatory sentencing laws, which have severely impacted people of color ("Arizona Prison Crisis: A Call for Smart On Crime Solutions"). Arizona has also been known for their harsh immigration laws such as SB1070. How does the racialization of Latinas/os in US society and its criminal justice system help to promote establish a system premised on biases that continues to empower Whites over people of color? In this blog I argue that the media’s harsh portrayal of the immigrant and minority experience correlates to the unfair treatment given to Latinas/os  in the criminal justice and correctional system in the United States.

As Jose Luis Morin states in Latinas/os and US Prisons: Trends and Challenges, in regards to the media portrayal of Latinas/os, 66% of network news stories about Latinas/os in 2002 focused exclusively on three topics: crime, terrorism, and illegal immigration (Morin 1-24). The evidence presented by Morin shows us the negative impact the media has in portraying Latinas/os as automatic criminals and lawbreakers. Not every Hispanic in this country is illegal, just as not every Hispanic is a criminal. Take into example Arizona’s case with minority. Arizona is a diverse state with multiple generations of U.S. citizens. Three out of every 10 Arizonans are Hispanic, 1 out of 10 is American Indian, and 13 percent are foreign born (Hudson). Arizona law has been known for essentially legalizing racial profiling. It does not prohibit police officers from relying on race or ethnicity in deciding whom to investigate. Local government workers are now given the authority to determine if a person is illegally in the United States based on a “reasonable suspicion” ("Fast Facts on Arizona’s Immigration Crack Down"). Morin makes a compelling argument regarding stereotypes used to describe immigrants, he states, “ While it is assumed that factors such as low education levels and low average wages would predispose immigrants to engage in criminal conduct, in the main, immigrants tend to come to the country highly motivated to use their skills to forge a better life, and are not interested in run-ins with the law that would thwart this goal” (Morin 1-24). I agree with this argument because undocumented immigrants come to this country with the fear of running into problems with the law. Even when in need of help from police they never speak out because they tend to believe that they will be ignored since they have no legal status within this country.

The Justice Strategy makes the point that under Arizona's mandatory sentencing system people convicted of nonviolent offenses make up the majority of state prisoners. One in four is serving time for a property offense, one in five for a drug offense and one in 12 for driving under the influence ("Arizona Prison Crisis: A Call for Smart On Crime Solutions"). When Arizona governor, Jan Brewer was asked by the Biz Pac Review her opinion on illegal immigrants she responded by stating, “We believe in the rule of law, and we can’t afford it, and we certainly can’t afford the criminal element, with Arizona having to deal with the drug cartels” (Dorstewitz). The government is conflating the war on drugs with undocumented immigrants. They label immigrants as  either smuggler or drug users. It is ironic that evidence from Latinas/os and US Prisons found that the overwhelming majority of incarcerated Latinas/os are convicted for relatively minor, nonviolent offenses, and/or are first-time offenders/ Latinas/os are more likely than Whites to be arrested and charged for drug offenses even though they are no more likely than other groups to use illegal drugs, and less likely to use alcohol (Morin 1-24). I write this blog with the same purpose that Morin wrote Latinas/os and US Prisons, that broader acknowledgment of unfair impact of the criminal justice and correctional system could be an important first step toward ending some of the most detrimental facets of the Latina/o experience and media stereotypes.

 (Oliver)

"Arizona Prison Crisis: A Call for Smart On Crime Solutions." Justice Strategies. Justice Strategies / A Tides Center Project, 11 May 2004. Web. 24 Feb 2014. <http://www.justicestrategies.org/publications/2004/arizona-prison-crisis-call-smart-crime-solutions>.

Dorstewitz, Michael. "Jan Brewer: Sorry it offends you, ‘to me they’re illegal immigrants’." Biz Pac Review. BizPac, 25 Apr 2013. Web. 24 Feb 2014. <http://www.bizpacreview.com/2013/04/25/jan-brewer-sorry-it-offends-you-to-me-theyre-illegal-immigrants-64456>.

"Fast Facts on Arizona’s Immigration Crack Down." American Progress. Center for American Progress, 23 Apr 2010. Web. 24 Feb 2014. <http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2010/04/23/7551/fast-facts-on-arizonas-immigration-crack-down/>.

Hudson, David. "The Top 5 Reasons Why S.B. 1070—and Laws Like It—Cause Economic Harm." American Progress. Center for American Progress, 25 Jun 2012. Web. 24 Feb 2014. <http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2012/06/25/11677/the-top-5-reasons-why-s-b-1070-and-laws-like-it-cause-economic-harm/>.

Morin, Jose. "Latinas/os and US Prisons: Trends and Challenges ." Latino studies. 6.1-2 (2008): n. page. Web. 28 Feb. 2014. <https://blackboard.albany.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=/webapps/blackboard/execute/launcher?type=Course&id=_56994_1&url=>.

Oliver, Gary. Racial Profiling . 2010. Graphic. Tikkun Daily, Berkeley, CA . Web. 28 Feb 2014. <http://www.tikkun.org/tikkundaily/author/davebelden/page/7/>.