America’s Incarcerated Economy
The US has 5% of the world’s population and 25% of the world’s prison population – about 2.2 million people, five times as many as in 1980. The question America now faces is how to cut the onerous social, economic, and moral costs of imprisonment.
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BERKELEY – The United States has 5% of the world’s population and 25% of the world’s prison population – about 2.2 million people, five times as many as in 1980. One out of every 100 American adults is incarcerated – the highest per capita rate in the world, 5-10 times higher than in Western Europe or other democracies. The social and economic toll is similarly high.