Some Are Impacted More Than Others

Racial disparities in family incarceration

There is overwhelming evidence that the criminal justice system produces racially disparate outcomes. Study after study has shown that black and Latino people are disproportionately sent to jail and prison, and the harmful effects of mass incarceration are concentrated in low-income communities of color.

Prior research has shown that the incarceration rate for black people is nearly six times the rate for white people, and one in three black men will be incarcerated at some point in their lifetime. These findings are reinforced by our survey results, which show that black people are far more likely to experience family incarceration, particularly long prison sentences.

• Balko, R. (2018). There’s overwhelming evidence that the criminal-justice system is racist. Here’s the proof. The Washington Post. [online] Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/opinions/wp/2018/09/18/theres-overwhelming-evidence-that-the-criminal-justice-system-is-racist-heres-the-proof/?utm_term=.1f05e1b02672

• The Sentencing Project. “Criminal Justice Facts”. Available at: https://www.sentencingproject.org/criminal-justice-facts/. Retrieved Nov. 1, 2018.

• National Research Council. 2014. The Growth of Incarceration in the United States: Exploring Causes and Consequences. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/18613.

More than six in 10 (63 percent) black people have had an immediate family member incarcerated and nearly one-third (31 percent) have had an immediate family member incarcerated for more than one year. These rates are 42 percent and 10 percent, respectively, for white people and 48 percent and 17 percent for Latino people. Native Americans also have very high rates of family incarceration—six out of 10 (63 percent) have had an immediate family member spend at least one night in jail or prison.

In other words, black people are 50 percent more likely than white people to experience family incarceration, and three times as likely to have had a family member incarcerated for more than one year. Latino people experience family incarceration at rates slightly higher than white people, but they are nearly twice as likely to have a family member in jail or prison for more than one year.

Economic disparities in family incarceration

Survey results also demonstrate that incarceration disproportionately impacts families living in poverty and those with low incomes. In fact, the share of people who have had an immediate family member incarcerated increases as income declines.

People earning less than $25,000 per year are 61 percent more likely than people earning more than $100,000 to have had a family member incarcerated, and three times more likely to have had a family member incarcerated for one year or longer.

Survey results also demonstrate that incarceration disproportionately impacts families living in poverty and those with low incomes.

In fact, the share of people who have had an immediate family member incarcerated increases as income declines. Adults with household incomes of less than $25,000 per year are 61 percent more likely than adults with household incomes of more than $100,000 to have had a family member incarcerated, and three times more likely to have had a family member incarcerated for one year or longer.

Socioeconomic and racial disparities are also intertwined and contribute to differences within and across demographic groups. For white people in the United States, socioeconomic status is a major indicator of exposure to family incarceration. Thirty percent of white adults with a college degree have had an immediate family member incarcerated, compared to 65 percent of those with less than a high school diploma — more than double the rate.

This difference is smaller for black people, who experience family incarceration at higher rates than white people regardless of their socioeconomic status. Even among respondents with a college degree, 55 percent of black adults have experienced family incarceration. The share without a high school diploma is 71 percent, the highest of any demographic group.

Regional disparities in family incarceration

Where we live is a strong determinant of how likely we are to experience incarceration. The seven states with the highest incarceration rates are all in the South, and 14 of the 15 highest incarcerating states per capita are in the South or West. Our research shows that the policies driving high incarceration rates in those states also drive high rates of family incarceration.

Indeed, 49 percent of adults living in the South and West have had an immediate family member incarcerated for at least one night in jail or prison. The share in the Midwest is identical to the national average (45 percent), and families living in the Northeast are significantly less likely to experience family incarceration — fewer than one-third (31 percent) have had an immediate family spend at least one night in jail or prison. In other words, you are almost 60 percent more likely to experience family incarceration if you live in the South or West than if you live in the Northeast.