Racism By Michell Alexander s Book, The New Jim Crow Mass...

Racism is very much alive in modern day America. Although African Americans are no longer enslaved or segregated, after reading this book I do believe that they definitely have a harder time than a white person does in society. In Michell Alexander’s book, â€Å"The New Jim Crow Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness† she touches on the many injustices that African Americans face in everyday life. While she makes good points throughout the book, there are some things that I did not completely agree with. Michelle’s book was published about fifty-five years after the Jim Crow laws were abolished. The Jim Crow laws segregated blacks and whites and were enforced by the state and towns. This segregation meant that most if not all†¦show more content†¦Another topic she brings to light in her book is that society uses the legal system to deny basic civil rights to those of color and has happened continuously since the years of slavery. She goes into d etail about how there are higher levels of poverty, crime and imprisonment for people of color, with most individuals being black. While I agree that there are higher levels of poverty, crime and imprisonment for people of color, I do not believe that society using the legal system to deny rights is the only cause. Yes, stereotyping does exist in this country but there is a reason for that. Not saying that it is right, or justified but a lot of the time people do end up fitting a certain stereotype. Whether is be the way that person was raised, or how they believe that they should act based on what they think people will think of them anyway are also important factors to think about. If someone grows up in a society where bad things are happening around them and with the people they interact with, it is easy to conform into the same way of life. It becomes a cycle and it continues throughout the future generations. It is not completely impossible for someone to break that cycle, and this is where I think she makes a good point. She talks about how they do not have the same advantages based on their skin color. If skin color does play a role, there are also