Vol. 59 Issue 3
The voice of the Spartan community
Oct 5, 2011
Author Michelle Alexander speaks to NSU on “The New Jim Crow” The
Echo Inside
Spartan Sports
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Michelle Alexander
Student Life p. 6
Spike Lee
Activist Michelle Alexander comes to NSU to discuss her book The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the
Age of Colorblindness
ECHO CORRESPONDENT
Professor Michelle
Entertainment p. 8
Spartan Echo TV http://youtube.com/ NSUSpartanEcho
SPARTAN ECHO
PHOTO | ANTHONY GORDON
By KRYSTA RICKS
Alexander, graduate of Stanford Law School and Vanderbilt University, has an impressive resume, but one of her most recent accomplishments is an eye-opener for the African American community. Alexander visited Norfolk State University on Sept. 8 to discuss The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, her first book. Published in 2009, the book discusses the injustices of the racial caste system created by the government which strips felons of virtually all civil rights once released from jail. Alexander did not simply wake up and decide to make a change.
“I have always been deeply interested in the treatment of the least advantaged,” Alexander said. The author explained that she attended three different high schools in four years, and witnessed drug use at each school. The last one, a privileged, predominantly white school, where drug usage was equally prevalent; however, there were no police officers. Her experience at the mostly white school paired with encountering the drug war first-hand while volunteering at a public school in Nashville, was more than enough to give Alexander the push she needed to speak up. Provoked by frustration with the civil rights
community, Alexander researched and found that the justice system functions more like a racial caste system. “The more I learned the more concerned and outraged I became,” she said. Alexander’s research ultimately led to the publication of her first book, something she wished she had read years ago before she became a civil rights lawyer. Throughout the speeches, forums and casual conversations in which Alexander had engaged, she was adamant about the usage of the word “caste” versus “class.” She made it clear that by revoking felons’ civil rights, the legal system is permanently placing them
in a second class citizenship. Felons share a common social position once released from prison, hence the appropriate term, “caste.” Enraged by the fact that organizations expected to lead the charge on this injustice remained largely silent, Alexander set out to fight the system. Her book is a challenge to the civil rights community whom she urges to engage in advocacy efforts. Alexander explained that some people believe the best way to deal with crime in inner cities is to be as tough as possible and put people in jail for as long as possible, but the author strongly disagrees. cont. on page 6
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