Disturbing Racial Statistics

A new government census report indicates that black and Latino people are more likely to live in a prison cell than a college dormitory. I think early education is the source of the problem. It is statistics like these, which contribute to racism.  People who fail to understand that some of this crime is the result of historical discrimination and lack of education assume there is an inherently criminal nature of minorities.  Here is the basics of the article:

More than three times as many black people live in prison cells as in college dorms, the government said in a report to be released Thursday. The ratio is only slightly better for Hispanics, at 2.7 inmates for every Latino in college housing. Among non-Hispanic whites, more than twice as many live in college housing as in prison or jail. The numbers, driven by men (men are 90% of the prison population), do not include college students who live off campus.

Black students are more likely to attend segregated schools with high concentrations of poverty, less qualified teachers, lower expectations and a less demanding curriculum, she said. Nearly 40 percent of inmates lack a high school diploma or the equivalent, according to the census data.

Blacks made up 41 percent of the nation’s 2 million prison and jail inmates in 2006. Non-Hispanic whites made up 37 percent and Hispanics made up 19 percent. About 9 percent of prison inmates were immigrants last year, up from about 4 percent in 1980. Immigrants made up about 13 percent of the total population in 2006. Non-Hispanic whites made up about 73 percent of the 2.3 million people living in college housing in 2006. Blacks made up about 12 percent, Asians about 7 percent and Hispanics about 6 percent.

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