According to an independent study conducted by Labour MP David Lammy for the Ministry of Justice, Black people in the United Kingdom are more likely to be in prison than those in the United States.
In the United Kingdom, Black people make up 3 percent of the total population but make up 12 percent of the prison population, a disproportionality that is even worse than in the United States, where Black people make up 13 percent of the total population and 35 percent of the prison population.
“There is greater disproportionality in the number of black people in prisons here than in the United States,” Lammy said of the report. “These disproportionate numbers represent wasted lives, a source of anger and mistrust and a significant cost to the taxpayer.”
“It is only through delivering fairness, rebuilding trust, and sharing responsibility that we will build the equal and just society so often spoken about,” he went on to say. ”As the Prime Minister said, if you’re Black, you’re treated more harshly by the criminal justice system than if you’re white. Now is the time to stop talking and take action.”
In particular, Lammy pointed to contributing factors such as educational barriers, poverty, and other biases faced by people of color.
Lammy suggested implementing “deferred prosecution,” which would allow low-level charges to be dropped if a rehab program was completed, as well as “Local Justice Panels” that would allow local officials to have a say in how young first-time offenders were punished for low-level charges.