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If we only had more rain

 Everybody that was looking for more rain got their wish this week. I'm sure those folks whose water bills were climbing higher than the length of women's skirts in the '60s were glad. Anyone that watered their lawn was just foolish, in my opinion.


This last week, I heard a discussion on racism in the Criminal Justice system. Many of us have no doubt that this attitude exists, and the statistics back this up. First, it's a fact that more blacks and other people of color are involved in the system. Several problems make the situation worse for these folks than it does for white people.

Bail money is often more difficult to raise for poor people of color; therefore, they sit in jail awaiting court proceedings. Many lose their jobs because of this, and then if they are allowed to go free after their hearing, they have no job, and it will be difficult for them to find one. 

If they are a single parent, it is problematic for them to find someone responsible for taking care of their kids and lose custody. Often, the best defense they can get is from an overwhelmed public defender, as opposed to a private attorney. If found guilty, the sentences for people of color are harsher than for whites for the same charges.

An example was given that shines a spotlight on this situation. A white person ran a red light, struck a car, killed a black man, and injured his children. He received a light sentence with probation. The very next day, in the same courtroom, hearing similar charges against a black man, the sentence was twenty years in prison. One point that bears looking at. In the first case, the white man was an off-duty police officer.

This example fleshed out the claim that there are three forms of justice in the system; one for white people, one for people of color, and one for police officers.

We have a huge problem with racism in this country. One place to start changing this would be to work on a revised justice system that fulfilled the promise of reform instead of revenge. We have seen the success of drug and alcohol courts and mental health courts that work with offenders to reform their lives and become good citizens without felony records standing in their way to rebuilding their lives.


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