People of color have been targets of bigotry, racial discrimination, and oppression since the first European settlers arrived. This is evident in the mass extermination of Native Americans and the abduction and enslavement of Africans in the 1600s. Although slavery was abolished more than 100 years ago, the traumatic effects of this injustice are present in today's society. America's ancestors built this nation with the hands of Black people, and despite their contributions to this country, they continue to be marginalized. Although Black people have made many strides, this long history of oppression has persevered through generations. The entrenched issue of inequality and injustice has infiltrated the social fabric of American society and government as Black people today experience discrimination at every level. Structured discrimination has been the cause of the many disparities Black people face in America. Most glaring is the disproportionate number of minorities in the U.S. criminal justice system. Blacks make up approximately 13% of the U.S. population and whites make up 67% of the U.S. population (Census, 2009); however, of the 2.2 million incarcerated people, 900,000 are Black (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2011). A Brief History of Racism and the Mythology of White Superiority Throughout American history, the ideology of racism has been ever-present. The idea of ​​white supremacy and black inferiority arose from American nationalism. Ironically, the enslavement of African Americans was necessary to free colonial America from monarch rule. As a country founded on the philosophy of individual liberties, black slavery had to be justified. Indentur......halfway through the document......explained that some neighborhoods spend more than a million dollars each year to incarcerate and return these residents, coining the “million dollar” phase (Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2006). Housing a prisoner in 2010 cost an average of $70.56 per day; this number is estimated at $25,754.40 per year. The average cost of attending a public four-year college is approximately $8,000-$12,000; almost half the sum needed to house a prisoner. The oppression of minorities has been happening for generations. Its practices were made political by 1705 with the Virginia Slave Codes. Structured inequality has infiltrated the policies that govern this nation. This is evident in the many disparities that minorities face. The depth of structured inequality goes beyond policy change. Not only must politics change, but people must also be inundated with the message of tolerance.