History of incarceration in California, including the policies that led to this state's demonization of young people and use of extreme prison sentences. The presentation also covers how legislation is enacted in California - encouraging that all California's residents have the power to change existing laws and create new laws.

1. CALIFORNIA’S WAR ON YOUTH

2. THE WAR AGAINST
“SAVAGES,
BANDITS
& YELLOW PERIL”
1800s

3. 1848 California and the Southwest is annexed into U.S. through
illegal war against Mexico. The Thirteenth Amendment to
Constitution outlaws slavery except ―as a punishment for crime.‖
So-called ―Indian Wars‖ force remaining sovereign nations onto
reservations.
Los Angeles :
Is the only region west of Texas to side with the
Confederacy.
Gains reputation as nation‘s most violent city with one
murder per day by 1870. The homicide rate between
1847 and 1870 averaged 158 per 100,000, which
was 10 to 20 times the annual murder rates for
New York City during the same period. If we
had the same homicide rate today, we’d have
600,000 murders a year. French send troops to
protect their citizens.
By 1871, half of businesses are gambling halls, saloons or
houses of prostitution, most with political or law
enforcement ownership or involvement. Corruption is the
norm in L.A.‘s police force until the Parker administration
of the 1960s. The Marshall‘s Office is funded by
enslavement of indigenous population.
L.A.‘s first jail is established (chain and a log.)

4. L.A.‘S WAR ON GANGS
STARTS IN 1848:
From 1848-1871, L.A. has the highest lynching rate of any region in the country. The victims are largely
Californios - now seen since the war as Mexicans struggling to reclaim land and livestock taken through the
war. First use of gang profiling – ―bandido/bandit‖ – to criminalize groups. Los Angeles had several active
Vigilance Committees during that era. Between 1850 and 1870, mobs carried out approximately 35 lynchings
of Mexicans—more than four times the number that occurred in San Francisco. Los Angeles was described
as "undoubtedly the toughest town of the entire nation.
1871 – Chinese Massacre is L.A.‘s first of many ―riots,‖ all of which are led by law enforcement or happen in
response to police brutality. A shootout between Tong factions leads to the death of a popular white
chicken rancher. A mob of 200-500 Whites and Latinos led by local government and law enforcement leads
to the lynching of 19 Chinese men and the burning down of Chinatown. Vigilante mobs and state sanctioned
murder typifies L.A.‘s ―justice‖ system throughout 1800s and early 1900s.
1881 - The L.A. Times is founded by Otis Harrison, and both he and the paper are a leading voice in L.A..‘s
power structure which establishes L.A. as nearly union free by 1900.

5. YOUTH SEEN AS
REBELS
RADICALS &
REVOLUTIONARIES
1960s - EARLY 70s

7. OUT OF L.A. CAME THE BUILDERS OF SCHOOL DE-FUNDING AND MASS INCARCERATION

8. ’65 Watts Rebellion in response to police brutality in South L.A. FBI and police
surveillance, infiltration and bombing of Panther headquarters in L.A. and Pasadena; leads
to United Slaves shoot out with Panthers at UCLA. (US leader Karenga goes on to found
Kwanzaa and teach at Cal State Long Beach.) Geronimo Pratt (now Geronimo Ji Jaga) is
framed by LAPD and FBI. Crushing of prisoners’ rights movement at Soledad; guards
assassinate George Jackson and his brother. (Jacksons are from Pasadena.) Angela
Davis teaches and organizes at UCLA. LAPD riot on Chicano Moratorium and
assassination of L.A. Times reporter Ruben Salazar. CIA floods L.A.’s neighborhoods with
drugs.
IN L.A. :

9. U.S. POLICIES THAT COME OUT OF L.A.:
Nixon‘s Law and Order backlash and
War on Drugs after 60s movements leads to
mass incarceration of poor people and people of
color. The prison population increases 300% in 20 years;
and 700% by 2005. Cali and L.A. lead the world in
incarceration and harsh sentencing, including creation of
Three Strikes, Prop 21 and Prop 9 - written and/or financed
from L.A. Reaganomics including anti-tax movement and
Prop 13., the escalated ―war on drugs‖ and war on welfare,
and mental health de-institutionalization without
community services, all lead to massive increase in both
incarceration and homelessness. L.A. creates ―planned
Skid Row‖ to force homeless into downtown isolation.
U.S. fuels wars against rebellions in Central America. In the
1980s, LAPD and Sheriffs work with U.S. military to teach
counter-guerilla, interrogation and torture tatics. In the 90s
and 00s, they return to teach gang suppression when
people are deported - (the greatest number from L.A.)
LAPD Chief Parker introduces military-style policing and
brings National Guard into Watts in ‗65. Gates takes
militarization further by creating SWAT, OPERATION
HAMMER, first use of helicopters and CRASH (first gang
units).‘92 Uprising once again reflects L.A.‘s anger over
entrenched police brutality. Gates also created DARE.
2007 - Jordan Downs is first community in the U.S. to get
GPS surveillance system. L.A. and Riverside first to use
GPS monitoring to track people with gang
convictions returning home from prison.

10. LA’s NEW “WAR ON GANGS”

11. YOUTH SEEN AS
SUPER
PREDATORS
1980s - 1990s

12. 1. 1982: GEORGE L. KELLING AND JAMES Q. WILSON
PUBLISH THEORY OF “BROKEN WINDOWS POLICING” IN
THE ATLANTIC
2. 1992-1996: JOHN DILULIO, POLITICAL SCIENTIST,
AUTHOR OF BODY COUNT POPULARIZES TERM “SUPER-
PREDATOR.” APOLOGIZED IN 2001.
3. 2000: Proposition 21 passed by voters allowed
for direct file without a fitness hearing.
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13. Los Angeles County built the nation’s first comprehensive gang suppression policies:
[1] Gang injunctions - first in 1983,
the ability to lock down a
neighborhood and arrest people if they are
on the street with another alleged gang
member, out past a curfew, or carrying a cell phone.
[2] Gang databases in 1987 -
computerized lists that label
people as “gang members”
without their knowledge, without
any chance to appeal, and without a
clear way to get off.
(3) The statewide STEP Act in 1988 that provided the nation’s first law targeting street
gangs, first gang definition, first language referring to gang members as “terrorists,”
first gang enhancements in court, and took database statewide [Cal Gangs Database].
[4] In 1985, L.A. established CLEAR I[Community Law Enforcement and Recovery].

14. THE SCHOOL-TO-JAIL TRACK

15. PRESIDENT REAGAN APPOINTS
WILLIAM BENNET AS U.S.
SECRETARY OF EDUCATION.
Zero
Tolerance
policies include requirements for
suspension, expulsion and arrests; the
takeover of school discipline by police
departments; and relationships in
schools replaced by metal detectors,
locker searches, drug-sniffing dogs,
and security gates.

17. 1. Police
Departments
take over
school security
2. More Probation
Officers than
Counselors
3. Schools look
and run like
prisons; some
have the same
architects
4. Searches, metal
detectors, gang
profiling
5. Leads to
massive push-
out and arrest

18. CALIFORNIA’S ADDICTION TO INCARCERATION

19. IN THE EARLY 80s,
CALIFORNIA STARTED TO
RAPIDLY EXPAND THE
BUILDING OF PRISONS AND
CUT THE BUDGET TO
EVERYTHING ELSE.

41. BY 2010, CALI HAD 176 THOUSAND STATE
PRISONERS. 40% FROM L.A. COUNTY.
2010
With realignment, 135,000 people in prison. The question remains
whether we will just shift bodies from state cages to county cages.

42. DURING THAT SAME
TIME, CALIFORNIA
BUILT ONE
UNIVERSITY AND
TWO CAL STATES.

43. The Truth
About Youth
Crime

45. Drug Use/Abuse
School Shootings
Mass Shootings
Domestic Terrorism
Hate Groups
Drug Manufacturing
Gun Manufacturing

46. Drug Use/Abuse
School Shootings
Mass Shootings
Domestic Terrorism
Hate Groups
Drug Manufacturing
Gun Manufacturing
ALL HAVE MANY MORE WHITE
PEOPLE INVOLVED THAN YOUTH
OR ADULTS OF COLOR.

47. By 2,000,
all teens had the
lowest violent
crime rate since
the mid-60s.

48. Reframe the issue.

49. L.A. LOCKDOWN
#1 worldwide: Incarceration (Prison Spending and Prison Population); Pornography
Production/Export; Gangs Creation/Export; Meth Production/Export; Import/Export of 5
Illegal Drugs; Hand Guns; White Supremacy Gangs and Orgs
#1 nationwide: Gap between rich and poor, Homelessness, Youth in Foster Care -
many were “orphaned” by the prison system, “Riots,” Children and People Living in
Poverty, Immigration and Deportation

50. The largest numbers of
youth contacts with the
police and Probation are
for:
(1) Tickets that can turn into arrest
warrants or holds on Drivers’
licenses when families can’t afford
to pay them. The #1 “crime” fare
evasion - riding train or bus
without paying.
(2) Curfew Violations
(3) Routine stop and frisks, gang
database adds on the street.
(4) Graffiti related tickets and
arrests including minor acts such
as posting slap tags, tiny throw
ups, carrying a marker, or having a
graffiti-covered back pack,
(5) Small possession of weed or
alcohol for individual use.
(6) Minor Probation violations -
such as missing school or arguing
with family - can get youth lock-
down placement or camp time.

52. California used to be #1 in school spending
and had one of the best school
systems in the world.
Now, California is #1 in prison spending,
and with this year’s budget cuts,
dropped from #47 to #50
in school spending!
South and East L.A. lead the
nation in school overcrowding,
low test scores and
drop-out/push-out rates
with only 40%
of students graduating.

53. Costs: Each Murder Costs $1 Million to Investigate and averages $16 Million
More in Jail, Court and Incarceration costs. With drastic decreases in
homicide, should the saved money be reinvestment in our schools and
communities?

54. Just
1%of L.A.’s Courts,
Police, Sheriffs’
District Attorney’s,
Probation’s and City
Attorney’s Budgets
would pay for: 500
full-time gang
intervention workers; 50
youth centers open from
3pm - midnight, 365
days a year; and 25,000
youth jobs!