FAR TOO MANY BLACK MEN ARE SITTING IN OUR NATION'S AND STATE'S PRISONS

AS I WALKED through a cell block watching prison guards conduct a shakedown at
McCormick Correctional Institution back in March, I heard my name over the din
of yells from inmates, beds being dragged from walls and other noises.

"Bolton!" the voice called over and over. As I continued to walk, I heard a
rapid thud, thud, thud, on the door of a cell I was about to pass. Through the
small Plexiglas opening, I could just make out who it was. It was a friend from
my old neighborhood.

"Bolton, I want to talk to you."

While I looked at him, I didn't speak or go to his cell. I couldn't. I had
promised prison officials I would not talk with inmates.

"I want to talk to you, man!"

I wanted to talk to him. I had not seem him around in years. Now I knew why.

"I'll write you, man," he said as I walked away.

I no longer have to wonder where that young man is. But I wonder about so many
others.

I often hear people talk about old classmates, wondering where they are.
Invariably, someone says, "He's in prison." When young black women complain
they can't find that good single man they're seeking, at some point, someone
will say, "I know where they are; they're in prison."

Of course, most black men aren't in prison. There are a lot of black men who
are good mates, good fathers, good role models, good businessmen. However,
there is an alarming number of black men, young black men particularly, who are
behind bars.

So many that a reasonable person who looks at the racial makeup of our country
and state and the makeup of our prisons would have to conclude that something
is seriously wrong. All of us, regardless of our race or ethnicity, ought to
wonder why our criminal justice system is such that half of all inmates in our
nation's jails and prisons come from a race of people that makes up only 12
percent of the population.

Nationally, one in eight black men in their 20s and 30s are behind bars,
compared with one in 63 white men that age; one in 23 Hispanics that age are
locked up. The chance of a black man going to prison in his lifetime are one in
three.

Last year, the United States became the world's No. 1 jailer, housing more than
2 million inmates in its prisons and jails. Nearly 900,000 of those were black
men.

Of the 23,000 inmates in South Carolina's prisons, nearly 15,000 of them are
black men.

Some say so many black men wouldn't be in prison if they didn't commit so many
crimes. We know it's not that simple.

Without a doubt, there are a high number of African-Americans who commit
crimes. I'm not about to make excuses for people who simply break the law. I've
got problems with black people or any people who steal, maim or kill. I detest
black-on-black crime, which is ridiculously high; I equally detest crimes
against white people and other races and crime committed by white people and
other races.

Still, we can't overlook the disparity that exists when it comes to the number
of black men in prisons as opposed to others.

There are many factors that drive people to commit crime. Certainly, the poor
are more apt to commit crime in an effort to make ends meet. Unfortunately,
being black and poor in America often come as a package. Many criminals also
are often poorly educated -- something South Carolina unfortunately is well
known for when it comes to many of its poor and black children, particularly in
rural areas.

Also, there is still prejudice in this country, and in our criminal justice
system. There are some troublesome inconsistencies in how black people are
convicted and sentenced versus how white people are treated. Black people are
more likely to be stopped or detained by police, and black communities are more
likely to be selected by police for concentration on criminal activity.

The drive in the 1990s to pass more punitive laws to lock up more people longer
didn't help things any. That lock 'em-up-and-throw-away-the-key attitude
overburdened our prison systems and strained race relations.

The way we are warehousing inmates, mostly black men, is shameful. We must
remedy this problem, beginning with providing better education, jobs and
preventive programs.

We must also reduce the numbers going into our prisons. About half of South
Carolina's inmates are nonviolent. Many should be in treatment programs, not in
prison. Fortunately, Corrections Director Jon Ozmint is working with
legislators to develop a proposal that would seek to use alternative sentencing
methods for nonviolent criminals currently crowding his prisons. Part of the
idea would be to promote rehabilitation.

Members of the S.C. Black Caucus, such as Rep. Joe Neal, have grave concerns
about the numbers of black men in our prisons. Rep. Neal has said he wants to
see legislation that would call for mandatory drug treatment for non-violent
drug offenders to help decrease the number of young black men in prison. The
intent is not to set criminals free. It is to address a very real problem in
our criminal justice system.

Think about it: In a state where 30 percent of the people are black, 68 percent
of those in our prisons are black men.

Those numbers don't add up.