African Americans today face a systemic crisis of mass underemployment, mass imprisonment, and mass disfranchisement. This comprehensive reader makes clear to students the mutual constitution of these three crises. NEW SERIES ANNOUNCEMENT Critical Black Studies Series Editor: Manning Marable The Critical Black Studies Series features readers and anthologies examining challenging topics within the contemporary black experience--in the United States, the Caribbean, Africa, and across the African Diaspora. Under the general editorial supervision of Manning Marable, the readers in the series are designed both for college and university course adoption, as well as for general readers and researchers. The Critical Black Studies Series seeks to provoke intellectual debate and exchange over the most critical issues confronting the political, socioeconomic and cultural reality of black life in the United States and beyond. This volume looks at the crisis of mass underemployment, mass imprisonment, and mass disfranchisement that African Americans face today. This comprehensive reader makes clear to students the mutual constitution of these three crises.