MASS INCARCERATION: The New Black Plague

The massive boom in the United States prison population, universally known as mass incarceration, officially began in the 1980's during President Reagan's administration with the War on Drugs. This war continued throughout the 80's and made it's way through the 1990's, creating harsher and crueler sentencing policies and thereby expanding the already inflated prison population.

 

The ever-growing prison population brought about a new form of industry: the prison industry. With the number of convicted criminals on the rise, the demand for prisons increased as well. Then came the rise of privatized prisons, or prisons that make profit off of the number of prison beds within their walls. Soon, the prison industry had expanded into the fastest growing industry in North America.

 

 

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