The Jailer's Reckoning: Mass Incarceration in America

The United States incarcerates more people than any other industrial democracy in the world. Why is this the state of America, and what are the social, economic, and political costs? Today's guest is Kevin B. Smith, author of The Jailer's Reckoning: How Mass Incarceration is Damaging America. He will share in-depth perspectives from his research, ranging from the differential treatment of inmates to the extreme impact on individuals, communities, and states. In this landmark book, Kevin B. Smith explains that the United States became the world’s biggest jailer because politicians wanted to do something about a very real problem with violent crime. That effort was accelerated by a variety of partisan and socio-demographic trends that started to significantly reshape the political environment in the 1980s and 1990s. How did serving time behind bars become a normalized social experience, affecting a majority of Americans directly or indirectly? Join us for this candid, revelatory discussion on the realities of incarceration in America.