By Brian Carnell

Tuesday, September 3, 2002

In August the Justice Policy Institute generated a lot of headlines and broadcast news college with a study claiming that there were more black men in prison than in college. But a close look at the numbers finds the study doesn't add up.

In a press release summarizing their findings, the Justice Policy Institute said,

Cellblocks or Classrooms? also reports that in 2000, there were an estimated 791,600 African American men in prison and jail, and 603,000 in higher education.

But as Iain Murray noted in a column for TechCentralStation.Com, the Justice Policy Institute's estimate of the number of African American men in college is too low. According to the Census Bureau, there were an estimated 804,000 African-American men in college in 2000. So, in 2000, there were (barely) more black men in college than in jail or prison.

Of course the comparison is of little use since people of all ages are sent to jail, whereas college students tend to be 18-24 year olds. Murray tracked down the respective figures for those age groups and found that for African American men 18-24, there were 480,000 in college and 180,000 in prison or jail. An young African American male is, in fact, two-and-a-half times as likely to be in college as prison or jail.

The figures are even more impressive when African American women are included. Murray notes that there were 747,000 African American women 18-24 in college as opposed to only 9,000 in prison or jail in 2000. So, in total, there were 1,216,000 young African Americans in college compared to 189,000 in jail or prison.

As Murray sums it up,

What is perhaps most annoying about the way the Justice Policy Institute chose to present its figures is that it helps perpetuate the stereotype that a young African American male is likely to be a troublemaker or jailbird. In fact, as a careful look at the figures shows, he is much more likely to be carrying books than a gun. Tremendous advances have been made in crime reduction in the African community . . . which should not be hidden by presentation of statistics that, however well intentioned, show that community in a negative light.

Source:

Behind Books, Not Bars. Iain Murray, TechCentralStation.Com, September 2, 2002.

Discuss (0 Replies) | Printer Friendly