Racial Justice
The Sentencing Project’s new report, “One in Five: Racial Disparity in Imprisonment – Causes and Remedies,” examines three causes of racial inequity in the criminal legal system and presents a series of promising reforms from over 50 jurisdictions across the country that can mitigate their impact.
The report is the latest in The Sentencing Project’s “One in Five” series examining racial inequities in America’s criminal legal system.
Key Publications
Challenging Racial Disparities to End Mass Incarceration
This webinar examines the progress made in the 21st century in reducing the U.S. prison population and its racial and ethnic disparities, as well as the ongoing work to achieve justice.
Youth Incarceration
In an era of declining youth incarceration, Black, Latinx and American Indian youth are still overwhelmingly more likely to be held in custody than their white peers.
Black Disparities in Youth Incarceration
Black youth are more than four times as likely to be detained or committed in juvenile facilities as their white peers.
If you want people to change and you want public safety to be paramount, we have to change the way we deal with people who are incarcerated or previously incarcerated and give them opportunities to be successful.
White Supremacy’s Hold on Criminal Legal Institutions
The brutal killing of Tyre Nichols at the hands of Memphis police officers has underscored the urgent need for public safety approaches that protect the humanity and dignity of Black Americans. Reducing criminal legal contact at every stage is a key step towards achieving racial equity. Read more race and justice news in our latest newsletter.
5X
Black Americans are incarcerated in state prisons at nearly five times the rate of whites. Latinx people are 1.3 times as likely to be incarcerated as non-Latinx whites.
Learn moreThe EQUAL Act
The U.S. Senate has the opportunity to pass the Eliminating a Quantifiably Unjust Application of the Law (EQUAL) Act and significantly improve fairness, proportionality, and racial justice within the federal criminal legal system. The EQUAL Act would finally end the federal sentencing disparity between crack cocaine and powder cocaine offenses. Take action now and urge your senators to pass this important piece of legislation.