Date
10-2015
Department
School of Divinity
Degree
Master of Arts (MA)
Chair
Philip R. McFarland
Keywords
At-risk, Christian laity, Incarceration, Juveniles, Prison, Young Black Males
Disciplines
Ethics in Religion | Other Religion | Practical Theology | Religion
Recommended Citation
Pierson, Barbara, "How Church Commitment to At-Risk Black Male Youth Helps Prevent Them from Being Incarcerated at Percentage Rates Higher Than Other Races" (2015). Masters Theses. 375.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/masters/375
Abstract
Between the years 2006 and 2014, the percentage of young Black men between the ages of 13 and 21 in Ohio prisons increased more than any other race according to statistics given by the Department of Youth Services (DYS) located in the city of Columbus, Ohio. While the entire Black race only consisted of 12.5% of the population in Ohio, 56.7% of Black males were imprisoned as opposed to 43% of White males, and 3% of all other races that were incarcerated during the same time period. Young people are more involved with the justice system which allows a greater degree of documentation in combination with age rather than by racial or ethnic group alone. By the time these youth are in the 30 to 39 age group, 1 in 13 Black males will be in a state or federal prison, with an additional number being incarcerated in local jails (West & Sabol, 2010).
