Poster Child: The Kemba Smith Story by Kemba Smith with Monique W. Morris

I had the pleasure of working with Kemba on this book, which chronicles her unfortunate journey through the federal criminal justice system. Kemba, the only daughter of a middle class family from Virginia, was a college student when she met a drug dealer who changed her life in ways that she could never imagine. After being convicted and sentenced to more than two decades in federal prison even though she never sold drugs herself, Kemba–then pregnant with her first son–became the poster child for all that was wrong with the draconian mandatory minimum drug sentencing laws. Her story reveals many of the problems with the failed war on drugs and will inspire readers and advocates to continue to fight for a fair justice system. Purchase your copy today!

This weekend, I had the opportunity to participate in the Oakland CARES Network, a convening of community advocates, Susan Taylor, and Randall Robinson. The meeting went on for three days and involved a series of dedicated individuals who are committed to mentoring Oakland’s African American youth into wellness. A noble cause, and one that I will continue to support. The safety of our communities is deserved and long overdue.

On another (but related) note, I wrote an article for TheGrio earlier this month that highlighted the safety benefits of diversity.

So many theories of change. If we align them, we just might see progress!

The article below originally appeared on TheGrio on 6/30/11:

More than 850,000 black men and women are currently incarcerated in federal or state prisons, or in local jails throughout the U.S. The conditions of confinement have caused deep wounds for African-Americans, compromising the healthy development of communities and causing collateral damages such as severed family relationships, decreased parental responsibility over children, loss of employability and wages, housing and employment discrimination, and disenfranchisement, among others.

Still, despite the numerous negative effects that have been associated with incarceration, could prison also be associated with a positive life outcome for black men?

A research study published by Vanderbilt University sociologist Evelyn Patterson in 2010 shows state prisons are having a positive effect on the mortality rates of black men. Her study estimates the rates of working-age prisoners and non-prisoners by gender and race, and finds that while prison has a “detrimental health impact on most groups,” incarcerated black males at every age experience death rates that are lower than for black males outside of prison.

Between 1996 and 1998, black men not in prison lost almost twice as many years of life between the ages of 18 and 65 as incarcerated black men. In contrast, there was only a slight difference in the mortality rates of incarcerated white men when compared to their non-incarcerated white counterparts.

The study finds that while female prisoners lost 76 percent more years of life than women in the general population, the same is not true for black men, even when researchers control for deaths related to handguns and car accidents, factors that uniquely contribute to the deaths of non-incarcerated populations.

While the disparity can be partially explained by the fact that in prison, black men have access to immediate health care and nutrition if they are in need of medical care, the mortality rates for black men in the general society remain alarming…

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