Marijuana and Race in Southern and Non-southern States: Exploring The New Jim Crow

• In Event: Substance Use Criminalization and Public Policy

Abstract

Disparities in arrests for marijuana have resulted in higher rates of African American than white incarceration despite racial usage rates that are proportionate to their presence in the population. In her description of the “new Jim Crow,” Michelle Alexander argues that mass incarceration was birthed by southern governors and law enforcement officials to mobilize the criminal justice system in opposition to civil rights as a means to perpetuate racial inequality. This study explores whether the implementation of mass incarceration in southern states has resulted in greater racial disparities in marijuana arrests than has occurred in non-southern states. Using data from the Uniform Crime Reports and National Survey on Drugs and Health we investigate the question: To what extent, if any, do southern states arrest African American adults for marijuana offenses at a greater rate than whites and out of proportion to both groups reported usage of the drug?

Authors

• Stephen T. Young, Old Dominion University

• Richard James Stringer, Old Dominion University

• Caitlin Grace Lynch, Old Dominion University

• Mona Danner, Old Dominion University