The ridiculous violence in N.O.
Are you suggesting there's a connection between poverty and incarceration?
Yes, I am.
Here is something else.
Top four states with highest percentage African American population...
Mississippi
Louisiana
Georgia
Maryland
Top four state with highest incarceration rates...
Louisiana
Georgia
Texas
Mississippi
Natioanally, the incarceration rate for whites is 412 and for blacks it is 2290 per 100,000. Now I do not want to suggest anything about these numbers. They are what they are for whatever reason. I am not suggesting that blacks are more prone to crime.
Based on national incarceration rates by race, it would follow that states with higher black population would also have higher incarceration rates. I point this out to show that there are many other factors other than private prisons for the high rate in Louisiana. Education, ethic makeup, income levels and other demographics all come into play.
I will agree that regardless of why there are so many locked up, skill training needs to be improved. Locking up so many in cells will not solve much. There are thousands of state vehicles including cars, trucks, atvs and construction equipment. Our prison system should be in charge of repairing and maintaining these vehicles. It could save the state millions and give job training to thousands.
Thousands of government owned buildings and blighted properties could be repaired and maintained by prisoners. They would learn valuable skills such as plumbing, electrical, HVAC and carpentry.
List of U.S. states by African-American population - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mass Incarceration: Breaking Down the Data by State « Prison Law Blog
http://www.sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/rd_stateratesofincbyraceandethnicity.pdf