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  5. The Rapid Expansion of the U.S. Inmate Population

President Obama is the First Sitting U.S. President to Visit a Federal Prison, has commuted more sentences than any president since Lyndon B. Johnson, and more than the last four presidents combined

"We want to be in a position in which if somebody in the midst of imprisonment recognizes the error of their ways, is in the process of reflecting about where they’ve been and where they should be going, we’ve got to make sure that they’re in a position to make the turn." President Barack Obama "Our Criminal Justice System Isn't as Smart as It Should Be"

The unfairness in much of our criminal justice system, and highlighting ideas of reform while keeping Americans safe and secure.


pdfRemarks by the President at the 2015 NAACP Conference



pdfReport On The Barriers That Disadvantaged Youth Face and The Enormous Costs This Poses To The Economy

Justice is not only the absence of oppression, it is the presence of opportunity. Justice is giving every child a shot at a great education no matter what zip code they’re born into. Justice is giving everyone willing to work hard the chance at a good job with good wages, no matter what their name is, what their skin color is, where they live.

prisoners

A quick look at the numbers:

  • 2.2 million: The number of prisoners in the U.S. -- which has quadrupled from only 500,000 in 1980.
  • 25 percent: The share of the world's prisoners that are in the U.S., even though we're only home to 5 percent of the world's population.
  • 60 percent: The share of U.S. prisoners that are either African American or Latino. "About one in every 35 African American men, one in every 88 Latino men is serving time right now," the President said. "Among white men, that number is one in 214."
  • $80 billion: The amount we spend each year to keep people incarcerated in America. For $80 billion, we could:
    Provide universal preschool for every 3-year-old and 4-year-old in America
    Double the salary of every high school teacher in America
    Finance new roads, bridges, and airports; job training programs; research and development
    Eliminate tuition at every one of our public colleges and universities

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