In 1994, the Violent Crime Control and Safe Streets Act, or the Crime Bill as commonly known, was the government’s way of deterring violent crimes. It was supposed to make Americans feel safe, knowing criminals would be punished. What it did was destroy Black America.
While the bill allowed children to be tried as adults, expanded the death penalty, and removed the ability of the incarcerated to receive Pell Grants for education, it also gave $12.5 billion in incentives to fund the expansion and building of new prison complexes.
The Crime Bill gave states an additional financial incentive to be “tough on crime” and to scale back parole for those incarcerated for violent crimes. It’s no coincidence that policing and incarceration of Black bodies increased by 43% over fifteen years.
Incarceration disproportionately affects the Black community, with 1 in 81 Black adults serving or having served time. Simultaneously, households with an incarcerated family member earn just 2.4% of the average Black family without a family member encumbered by the prison complex.
It had the support of most of America’s Black mayors, 58% of Black Americans, and the Black Caucus of Congress. It was supposed to lower crime. Instead, it actually funneled money into a system built to limit Black wealth, autonomy, and power.