“Over the past 40 years, millions of men and women of color have churned in and out of prison. The numbers are benumbing, but they bear repetition: 65 million Americans have criminal records. That is one out of every four adults.
“And while people of color make up about 30 percent of the U.S. population, they make up 60 percent of the country’s prison population. African Americans are six times more likely to be incarcerated as whites.
“The poor have borne the brunt of this debacle. It is estimated that an astonishing 60 percent of middle-aged African-American men without a high school degree have served time in prison.”