A Look at BET's "10 Most Important Issues in the Black Community"
Nneka Onu
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Watching an analysis on BET about the state of Black American communities made me once more think about how important this election is. The show called "Ten Most Important Issues 
in the Black Community" was shown on BET (Black Entertainment Television) with narrations and analysis from several activists including Russell Simmons, Jina Johnson, Jeff Johnson, and hip hop artist Nas among others. Watching this show made me want to once again revisit some of what the show mentioned, and what it would mean for all communities not just the Black community, as they look at the candidates stance on these issues.
The issues affecting the Black communities as stated in this BET special are:
Issue # 10 Prison: Incarceration is a big problem in American society, but it is even greater in the black community where one out of every four black men is incarcerated. Once in jail on felony charges, these men lose their freedom to vote. And as large number of them keeps getting put away, the black community loses that part of their voice. The worse thing is that a lot of these men are excessively punished for crimes that may not have warranted such harsh punishment. This is true in black and Latino communities; more prisons than schools are built in a lot of these neighborhoods.
Where the candidates stand on this?
Barack Obama wants early intervention which would prevent young people from engaging in criminal behavior. He also wants to explore alternatives to incarceration for non-violent crimes. John McCain encourages more prisons to be built. He wants total separation of these people from the rest of society. The problem is that prisons are fast replacing schools, and that is not a good image for a nation that prides herself as a model for the rest of the world. Why not control the situation that leads people to commit hideous crimes in the first place; good schools, strong families, etc....
The issues affecting the Black communities as stated in this BET special are:
Issue # 10 Prison: Incarceration is a big problem in American society, but it is even greater in the black community where one out of every four black men is incarcerated. Once in jail on felony charges, these men lose their freedom to vote. And as large number of them keeps getting put away, the black community loses that part of their voice. The worse thing is that a lot of these men are excessively punished for crimes that may not have warranted such harsh punishment. This is true in black and Latino communities; more prisons than schools are built in a lot of these neighborhoods.
Where the candidates stand on this?
Barack Obama wants early intervention which would prevent young people from engaging in criminal behavior. He also wants to explore alternatives to incarceration for non-violent crimes. John McCain encourages more prisons to be built. He wants total separation of these people from the rest of society. The problem is that prisons are fast replacing schools, and that is not a good image for a nation that prides herself as a model for the rest of the world. Why not control the situation that leads people to commit hideous crimes in the first place; good schools, strong families, etc....