Race and Racial Disparity in American Criminology

Introduction

The objective of this paper is to examine the controversy surrounding race in criminology. Walsh and Beaver (2008), in their work Biosocial Criminology: New Directions in Theory and Research, note that race is "an undoubtedly complex subject that remains in the fringes of acceptable discussion in civil society. Race becomes an even more sensitive topic when it is connected to biology, and especially when biologically based racial differences are connected to differences between races in human traits and behaviors."

Walsh and Beaver additionally argue that the question of whether race is "just a social invention" remains an open scientific question — or, as they put it, a "dead organizing concept." They further identify a "disagreeable tendency to label those who do not follow the party line with respect to race as racists," which has led to an "unproductive mix of controversy and silence" (Walsh & Beaver, 2008).

Current scientific findings on the subject suggest that humans "differ genetically by 10 percent or more," raising the question of whether races also differ in meaningful ways (Walsh & Beaver, 2008). If one were to attempt to assess racial differentials based on available statistical data from the judicial and court systems, the differences would appear astronomically large. However, many scholars argue that today's criminal justice statistics are severely skewed, reflecting disparate and disproportionate treatment rather than underlying behavioral differences.

Garland, Spohn, and Wodahl (2008), in their study "Racial Disproportionality in the American Prison Population: Using the Blumstein Method to Address the Critical Race and Justice Issue of the 21st Century," report that statistics indicate "racial/ethnic minorities, particularly black and Hispanic males, face a disproportionately high risk of incarceration in the United States."

Racial Disproportionality: The Facts

Garland, Spohn, and Wodahl argue that this is the most serious issue facing criminal justice policymakers in contemporary times. That determination was made through an assessment of the "negative impact that incarceration can have on individuals, their communities, and the integration of minorities into the nation's larger social, economic, and political landscape" (2008).

At the end of 2005, there were 1,525,924 persons incarcerated in state and federal prisons; 40 percent of these inmates were Black, 35 percent were white, and 20 percent were Hispanic (Harrison & Beck, 2006, as cited in Garland, Spohn, & Wodahl, 2008). In other words, Black individuals "comprise about 12 percent of the U.S. population but two-fifths of the prison population."

Incarceration Statistics by Race and Ethnicity

Garland, Spohn, and Wodahl note that for Black males the disparities are "even more dramatic," particularly for those in their twenties and thirties. In 2005, 8.1 percent of all Black males aged 25 to 29 were in prison, compared to 2.6 percent of Hispanic males and 1.1 percent of white males. Although the absolute numbers are smaller, a similar pattern holds for females (Garland, Spohn, & Wodahl, 2008).

It is also noted that the offenses for which racial minorities are imprisoned differ from those for which white individuals are incarcerated. Black and Hispanic individuals "were much more likely than whites to be imprisoned for drug offenses" — 24 percent of Black inmates and 23 percent of Hispanic inmates were imprisoned for drug offenses, compared to only 14 percent of white inmates (Harrison & Beck, 2006, as cited in Garland, Spohn, & Wodahl, 2008).

Overall, Garland, Spohn, and Wodahl (2008) state that Black individuals are incarcerated at 5.6 times, and Hispanics 1.8 times, the rate of whites (Mauer & King, 2007, as cited in Garland, Spohn, & Wodahl, 2008). One limitation noted in the research on prison-sentencing disparities is the variation based on geographical location; however, Alfred Blumstein in 1982 introduced a methodology for examining sentencing disparities that accounts for such variation. His approach determines "how much racial or ethnic disproportionality in incarceration can be explained by differences in arrests" (Garland, Spohn, & Wodahl, 2008).

Conclusion

While there are those who deny that racial and ethnic disparities and disproportionality exist in today's criminal justice system, the basis of this work has been statistical reports, and it is certain that the numbers do not lie. There is a significant level of disparity and disproportionality in the contemporary criminal justice system. As noted throughout this paper, this is likely the greatest challenge facing criminal justice professionals today and in the near future. It is critically important that this disparity and disproportionality be addressed, given the negative and wide-ranging consequences that result from the disproportionate imprisonment of individuals from minority racial and ethnic groups in the United States.