Wisconsin’s Rate of Imprisoning Black People Highest in Nation

With Black people representing 42 percent of the state’s total prison population despite accounting for only 6 percent of the total population, Wisconsin imprisons its Black residents at a rate higher than any other state in the country, reports NBC News. A report from The Sentencing Project found that one in every 36 Black people are currently in prison in the state.  The report also found that Black Wisconsinites are also nearly 12 times as likely as their white counterparts to be imprisoned, well above the national average and behind only New Jersey in the rate of racial disparity between Black people and white people.

Years of housing segregation and redlining have contributed to the problem. About 65 percent of Black Wisconsinites live in segregated Milwaukee County, which contributes to the imprisonment rate. Prosecution rates are higher and plea deals are lower for Black residents. Officers in Wisconsin are less likely to arrest whites, and prosecutors decline charges against whites more often. Addressing the disparities in the state’s criminal justice system requires reclassifying some acts so they are no longer considered a crime, disciplining officers for racial profiling, and reducing housing segregation.