Deliver a Speech on Incarceration

You have been invited to give a short speech on whether incarceration should continue to be our go-to punishment in the U.S. at the upcoming meeting of the American Correctional Association (ACA).

Your 5 minute speech will, at a minimum, address all of the following questions:

1. What percentage of U.S. adults are currently incarcerated? What is their demographic make-up (age, sex, race, class)?

2. What justification(s) for punishment does incarceration meet?

3. Why and how is race an important component of the discussion of mass incarceration? How does white privilege factor in?

4. Why and how is class an important component of the discussion of mass incarceration?

5. Should we continue to utilize incarceration as our go-to form of punishment in the U.S.? Why or why not? Some Questions to Consider: Is it effective? What positive/negative effects does it have? Is it doled out fairly? [Note: This is the heart of your speech! The vast majority of your time and effort should be dedicated to answering this question.]

Feel free to be as creative as you'd like! The use of appropriate visual aide can add a lot to any speech.

Speech Guidelines

- Your speech must be well-written and well-thought out.

- Your speech should be well-delivered meaning that you conform to all the basic rules of good public speaking.

- Your speech should reference at least one sociological theory of deviance covered in the course material.

- Your speech must be through, fully answering all of the questions posed above.

- You must also copy and paste a transcript of your speech into your submission. Your transcript must utilize full sentences with proper grammar, spelling and punctuation.

- The transcript you submit should end with a properly formatted list of your sources. In-text citations in the transcript are not required, but are highly recommended, as this is a good habit to develop.

- Your speech should demonstrate that you have a thorough understanding of the sociological approach to understanding deviance, class and race.