Detailed Plan For Enacting Change To Address Discrimination
2detailed Plan For Enacting Change To Address Discriminationstudents
.php#content">The criminal justice system discriminates against black and Hispanic people at almost every phase of the process – from police biases and differential treatment to unequal conviction and imprisonment of black and Hispanic individuals (Lai & Lisnek, 2023). Therefore, eradicating these systems of favoritism calls for a total overhaul of the existing policies. It means that discrimination in stops and arrests, such as racial profiling, should not be allowed. Specifically, annual anti-bias and cultural competency training that will not be compromised yearly has to be provided to all officers in the force.
Proper documentation and follow-up of the racial discrepancies in stops, searches, and arrests, alongside its strict punitive measures, are critical. The policies that allow the police to conduct stops based on mere suspicion – pretextual stops that help in racial profiling should not be permitted. Second, there are still policies for sentencing that are discriminative by essence, leading to the mass incarceration of people of color and other minorities, which must be eliminated, including such phenomena as mandatory minimum sentences for non-violent drug offenses and such laws as ‘three strikes’ laws. Concurrently, pathways have to be provided to review and resent the inmates who have been negatively affected by these discriminatory measures and sentenced to more time in prison than they deserve.
Additionally, statewide funding for public defender offices must be significantly expanded to guarantee that every accused person has competent counsel irrespective of the individual or family's economic circumstances. Other initiatives, such as loan forgiveness, should also increase the number of private legal professionals willing to accept those cases. Lastly, the United States needs to downsize its reliance on imprisonment and instead invest in community corrections, diversion, treatment, and reintegration services. Money should be directed to violence intervention and reintegration services, including education and vocational training, counseling, housing, and revised justice methods, not including incarceration.
Imagine the impact that shifting even a tiny fraction of the $80+ billion spent on mass imprisonment could have on such endeavors. Steps For Implementation, Budget, and Funding Sources The country's reforms must be carried out through a set of measures spread over several years. The first approach is to establish a strong and diverse coalition comprising affected communities, civil rights organizations, lawyers and attorneys, police departments, policymakers, and any other members of society. It can then transform into a group of organizations that can organize awareness campaigns and campaigns on issues of injustice to attract support for change. In a united front, the coalition can pressure the state and federal legislatures to pass Omnibus criminal justice reform bills to enact the policy changes outlined above.
New laws require adjusting budgets to pay for implementing the changes—training protocols, tracking racial bias, enforcing standards, and engaging stakeholders and the public. Currently, the best-case projection to meet the most essential objectives of this plan across all states and municipalities is $10 billion in new federal funding per year. However, a large part of the implementation expenses could be financed by shifting some of the over $80 billion spent on mass incarceration toward community correction, prevention, and reintegration solutions. Additional funding sources include federal and state grants for public safety, violence prevention, free legal services for indigent defendants, etc.
Other relevant university relationships that should be pursued with greater vigor include those with private charities and funders who seek to address race-related disparities. Leadership Skills Needed and Personal Reflections Implementing such changes of this scope and intensity demands superior leadership competencies and capacities. Most importantly, there is the capacity to paint a clear and persuasive picture of a distinctive, transformative criminal justice system that creates fervor and a solid moral call to action for a more profound and fair reform (Martànez-Garay, 2023). Strategic planning skills are essential in charting, implementing, and overseeing the ambitious, multi-year strategic map, which involves policy formulation, coalition building, public enlightenment programs, lobbying, policy implementation, and many other activities.
The process of systemic reform is complex and lengthy. It requires robust, positive character strength. Leaders need the courage to handle this process over several years when facing adversity due to political or other reasons. Involving different stakeholders in such complex ownership for such subtle changes also requires serious leadership and negotiation, the ability to mobilize individuals and groups, and the art of raising a coalition that can be motivated to work toward a shared vision and goal. Experts in the respective fields are also essential in contextualizing the laws, policies, practices, and power dynamics within the context of the CPS and criminal legal system to generate suitable solutions (Burton & McMillan, 2023).
Last, practical political insight is required to strategically maneuver and build sufficient influence with key decision-makers and policymakers to create profound policy transformations. Throughout my leadership process, I have endeavored to enhance critical skills, including vision, strategic thinking, and resilience. However, I understand that acquiring all these skills and experiences necessary to build a coalition and design and implement professional and efficient policies needed to advance such reforms would require new learning for me. The obstacles are vast and varied, but the responsibility to eradicate racism and inequality cannot be ignored. Thus, the best is dictated to rise to this great leadership challenge.
Evaluation Plan and Data Requirements The broad goal is the eradication of racism and prejudice as well as unfair treatment to ensure that all races in the criminal justice arena receive the same results. Evaluating progress requires tracking quantitative and qualitative metrics spanning: Evaluating progress requires tracking quantitative and qualitative metrics spanning: · For the latter, proportional arrest rates corresponded to known racial and ethnic representation in the population. · The concept also deserves equal charging, sentencing, and incarceration outcomes, free from discrimination. · Expansion of pre-trial release and nonviolent alternatives to detention. · Sufficient number and appropriate funding of public defenders to guarantee that clients receive competent advocacy. · This means that actual budget reallocations to shift the focus from prisons towards prevention and community-based interventions. · More individuals returning to society and a low reformation/rehabilitation program participants' recidivism rate. · Benefits in terms of community trust and relationship with the police.
Data collection must also entail criminal justice agencies’ collecting detailed demographic data on arrests, charges, plea agreements, convictions, and prison occupancy. Defender offices must provide and exchange information on funding, staffing, case volumes, and program performance. Qualitative tools such as community, interviews, and focus group research investigate the public experience and knowledge. EMR requires more program data regarding the utilization of services, outcomes, and recidivism of prevention and re-entry services. Ethical sensitivity is one of the most crucial elements in nursing practice that should not be compromised.
As in any research involving data collection from individuals, strong measures must be taken to address issues related to informed consent, data security, and data privacy. The sampling techniques should reduce bias and include individuals from different demographic backgrounds. Engaging with academic institutions and community oversight bodies yields significant benefits, including gaining credibility from knowledgeable third parties. Finally, it is imperative that the data collected and analyzed be shared at large for validation and de-identified results to ensure that reforms address the issues ailing the Black community. Mechanisms of independent evaluation and public reporting respect the justice purposes for these systematic adaptations.
References
- Lai, C. K., & Lisnek, J. A. (2023). The impact of implicit-bias-oriented diversity training on police officers’ beliefs, motivations, and actions. Psychological Science, 34(4), 567-580.
- Martànez-Garay, L. (2023). Evidence-based sentencing and scientific evidence. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1234.
- Burton, A. O., & McMillan, J. (2023). How judges can use their discretion to combat anti-Black racism in the United States family policing system. Family Court Review, 61(2), 215-230.
- Smith, J. (2022). Racial disparities in the criminal justice system: Causes and solutions. Journal of Criminal Justice, 78, 45-59.
- Williams, R., & Johnson, E. (2021). Community-based alternatives to incarceration: Effectiveness and implementation. Criminal Justice Review, 46(3), 350-369.
- National Institute of Justice. (2020). Strategies for reducing racial bias in policing. NIJ Journal, 283, 24-31.
- American Civil Liberties Union. (2019). Racial disparities in the criminal justice system. https://www.aclu.org/issues/racial-justice/race-and-criminal-justice
- Alexander, M. (2010). The New Jim Crow: Mass incarceration in the age of colorblindness. The New Press.
- Sentencing Project. (2022). Trends in U.S. correctional control. https://www.sentencingproject.org/publications/trends-in-u-s-correctional-control/
- Harvard Law Review. (2021). Legal reforms to address racial bias. Harvard Law Review, 134(7), 1900-1925.