Collateral costs: Incarceration's effect on economic morbidity

Manifest in the American Dream is the belief that no matter where one begins, with hard work and perseverance anyone can climb the economic ladder. Since the nation’s founding, this dream has served as inspiration for all its citizens. However, research conducted by Pew’s Economic Mobility Project demonstrates that while the American Dream is alive and well for many, it is elusive for others and can be influenced by many factors, including one’s educational and financial assets, as well as one’s race and parents’ income. In particular, many children of parents who begin on the bottom rung of the income ladder are themselves on the bottom rung later in life, including a disproportionate number of African Americans and those without a college degree.

Drawn disproportionately from the poorly educated and the marginally employed, the millions of people in American jails and prisons faced poor mobility prospects before they entered the prison walls. But by the time they leave, this research finds, they face even smaller chances of finding and keeping jobs and moving up the income ladder. The detrimental impact of incarceration on mobility merits particular attention because of the explosive growth of jails and prisons over the past three decades. With so many people and families affected, and with such concentration of the impacts among young, poorly educated men from disadvantaged neighborhoods, discussions of mobility in America must include reference to crime policy and the criminal justice system.