One School's Missing History - TomDispatch.com

One School's Missing History - TomDispatch.com Tamar Sarai, From Education to Incarceration September 26, 2023 What a criminal enterprise our country truly is. And I do mean enterprise. After all, according to the latest figures, there are... honestly, you're not going to believe this... but, according to PrisonPolicy.org, there are roughly 1.9 million people incarcerated in this country, 803,000 Americans on parole, and a staggering 2.9 million on probation. Imagine that! When it comes to incarceration rates, no other nation compares. In fact, of our 50 states, 24 have rates higher -- if you check this link -- than any other democracy (whole countries!) on the planet. And then consider this: "At least 113 million adults in the U.S. (roughly 45%) have a family member who has been incarcerated, and 79 million people have a criminal record, revealing the ripple effects of locking up millions of people every day." And I doubt you'll be surprised to learn that, in such a country and with our past, Blacks remain distinctly over-represented behind bars. In fact, they make up just 12% of the population, but 38% of the prison and jail populations. In that context, consider Tamar Sarai's first TomDispatch piece, an all-too-symbolic tale of how one institution in Topeka, Kansas, once a vocational college for Black students, became over the decades -- and all too symbolically -- a women's prison. Then consider the remarkable story of one man who tried not just to stem but turn the tide there. Tom