Home / Quotes / Quote by Michelle Alexander

Quote by Michelle Alexander

“Prison guard unions have become the powerful political forces in some states, particularly California.”

Quote by Michelle Alexander

Author

Michelle Alexander

Michelle Alexander is a distinguished professor of law at the University of California, Berkeley. Born on October 7, 1967, she is recognized for her expertise in criminal justice and civil rights. Alexander has authored numerous articles and books on the subject of mass incarceration in the United States and its effects on African American communities. more

You May Also Like

“For those interested in learning more about corporations and private individuals profiting from the caging of human beings, I highly recommend the book "Prison Profiteers: Who Makes Money From Mass Incarceration."”

Humans Book Individual Human Beings Mass Prison Making Money Corporations Incarceration Mass Incarceration Learning More

Author:Michelle Alexander

“The dramatically different manner in which we, as a nation, responded to the crisis presented by drunk driving and the crisis caused by the emergence of crack cocaine speaks volumes about who we value, and who we view as disposable.”

Different Values Speak Nations Views Crisis Driving Drunk Cracks Volume Cocaine Emergence Disposable Drunk Driving

Author:Michelle Alexander

“In response to the advocacy of groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving, most states adopted tougher laws to punish drunk driving. Numerous states now have some type of mandatory sentencing for this offense - typically two days in jail for a first offense and two to ten days for a second offense. Possession of a tiny amount of crack cocaine, on the other hand, was given a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison.”

“The vastly different sentences afforded drunk drivers and drug offenders tells us who is viewed as disposable - someone to be purged from the body politic - and who is not. Drunk drivers are predominately white and male.”

Different Body White Drug Males Sentences Drunk Drivers Offenders Disposable

Author:Michelle Alexander

“Drunk driving contains a far greater risk of violent death than the use or sale of illegal drugs, the societal response to drunk drivers has generally emphasized keeping the person functional and in society, while attempting to respond to the dangerous behavior through treatment and counseling.”

Persons Use Greater Risk Dangerous Drug Behavior Response Driving Violent Drunk Treatment Illegal Drivers Attempting Counseling Illegal Drugs Violent Death Drunk Driving

Author:Michelle Alexander

“People charged with drug offenses, though, are typically poor people of color. They are routinely charged with felonies and sent to prison.”

People Poor Color Drug Prison Offense Poor People Felony

Author:Michelle Alexander

“Of course it would make far more sense to invest in education and job creation in poor communities of color, rather than spend billions of dollars caging them and monitoring them upon release.”

Jobs Courses Community Poor Creation Color Dollars Billions Release Monitoring Job Creation

Author:Michelle Alexander

“Our system of mass incarceration is better understood as a system of racial and social control than a system of crime prevention or control.”

Social Crime Mass Understood Prevention Incarceration Mass Incarceration Social Control

Author:Michelle Alexander

“We have now spent 1 trillion dollars waging the drug war since it began. A trillion. Those funds could have been used for education, jobs and drug treatment in the communities that needed it most. We could have used those funds for our collective well being, instead those dollars paved the way for the destruction of countless lives, families, and dreams.”

Way Wells Has Beens War Dream Jobs Used Community Needed Drug Destruction Dollars Well Being Collectives Treatment Fund Could Have Been Family Life War On Drugs

Author:Michelle Alexander

“We must build a movement for education, not incarceration. A movement for jobs, not jails. A movement that will end all forms of discrimination against people released from prison - discrimination that denies them basic human rights to work, shelter and food.”

People Humans Ends Jobs Form Rights Movement Prison Human Rights Deny Discrimination Jail Shelter Incarceration Basic Human Rights

Author:Michelle Alexander