To Be Young, Black, and Powerless: Disenfranchisement in the New Jim Crow Era

This article examines the challenges of being young and black in America. In the United States, African Americans have historically suffered from systemic discrimination. Such discrimination deprived them of fundamental rights such as the right to vote. Although African Americans are no longer denied the right to vote based solely on race, the future of the black vote remains threatened by the criminalization of African American youth. African American youths are increasing alienated from systems that are supposed to help them. They are excessively disciplined in schools and disproportionately incarcerated, resulting in the New Jim Crow. This article recounts some of the reasons why and what can be done to address these problems.