"IN the 1830s, the civilized world began to close debtors’ prisons, recognizing them as barbaric and also silly: The one way to ensure that citizens cannot repay debts is to lock them up.In the 21st century, the United States has reinstated a broad system of debtors’ prisons, in effect making it a crime to be poor.If you don’t believe me, come with me to the county jail in Tulsa. On the day I visited, 23 people were incarcerated for failure to pay government fines and fees, including one woman imprisoned because she couldn’t pay a fine for lacking a license plate... these modern debtors’ prisons are so punitive that the underlying motivation is to stigmatize and punish the poor. It hurts their families, it doesn’t make us safer, it’s expensive"... what other reason than animosity toward the poor?” Now that's a question!
At www.nytimes.com
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