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1-Page Summary of Locking Up Our Own
Overview
The Black Lives Matter movement began on social media in 2013, but the fight against racial inequality in the justice system goes back much further.
The author begins by taking us through a history of judicial decisions that have had a significant impact on the black community in Washington, DC. He then discusses how gun and drug laws contributed to incarceration rates for black men. By exploring past actions and their flaws, we can learn from them so as to better address criminalization issues in the future.
Here are some key points about the history of African-Americans in Washington, DC’s police force; an anti-violence program called Operation Ceasefire; and what “the worst thing to hit since slavery” is.
Big Idea #1: Washington, DC’s black community helped halt a proposal to ease marijuana laws.
In 1975, Washington, DC had a black mayor and city council. Most of the citizens were black as well. That same year, they made a decision that would impact young blacks for decades to come. During this period, proposals were made to soften marijuana legislation due to concerns about racial injustice.
In 1975, 80% of those arrested for marijuana possession were black. This was bad because the arrests would appear on applications to housing, schooling and employment. Therefore, in March 18 that year, David Clarke proposed a bill called Marijuana Reform Act which sought to lower penalties for marijuana possession to fines and citations.
However, the black community opposed the proposal because they felt that it would make it easier for them to succumb to crime and addiction. The opposition was successful in getting the Reform Act tabled.
In order to understand why the reform was opposed, we need to look at the heroin epidemic in DC. This issue became a problem starting in the 1960s and peaked around 1969. The majority of addicts were young black men, who resorted to crime because they needed money for their drugs. They committed an average of more than 300 crimes per year.
There was a spike in crime after World War II. But it wasn’t all equal, because drug use was more prevalent among black communities than white ones. Black people had to deal with drug-related problems such as addiction, and they were greatly upset by the surge of crime that resulted from it. They felt like heroin users turned into slaves for whites who controlled their access to drugs and money because heroin addicts relied on them for these things. As a result, there were posters posted around DC (the nation’s capital) by an organization called Blackman’s Development Center (BDC) which said that blacks are turning into slaves again just like they did during slavery days back when this country was being formed.
Big Idea #2: The gun control laws passed in 1975 had mixed consequences.
The city council was discussing the penalties for marijuana use in 1975. Gun violence had become a problem, and it led to more discussions about gun control.
A politician proposed banning the sale, purchase and possession of all shotguns and handguns as well as increasing the minimum sentencing for gun crimes. He also suggested that more offenders go to jail. This proposal was supported by victims of gun-related crime and citizens who were angered by the fact that 85% of those killed by guns are black.
However, the other councilman opposed Wilson’s suggestions because he believed that guns were important for black people to protect themselves from street crime and racism.
In 1976, the council passed stricter gun-control laws. Everyone except Moore was in favor of them. The new laws banned further sales of guns and required all existing ones to be registered with the government. Many black citizens supported the new laws because they felt that black-on-black crime had become more dangerous than racist violence from white people.
