“we have not ended racial caste in America; we have merely redesigned it.”
The author of this reading is trying to convey to the audience how social divisions still exist in America today and have not been eradicated, rather they have been modified to seem less strict. Reality can often be misleading and this is what Michelle Alexander is trying to show us. The social systems in the U.S. were made to seem equal but when looked at closer actually resemble and perform many aspects of the Jim Crow time period in South Africa. This quote also shows the corruptness within the powerful officials of this country.
Alexander uses research to back up this statement by using her experience from being a lawyer who had dealt with several class-action employment discrimination-cases. She quickly understood how this form of racial stereotyping had subjective effects on cases and unfair consequences for victims. Alexander also mentions how during her time at ACLU that people who have been incarcerated are denied the right to vote due to the web of laws from a biased social system. Alexander does a good job in setting up the conversation about the role of the criminal justice system for the rest of the book.
I agree with your point that the article highlights how the people of the nation can be misleading about the reality of social constructions. it is clear that the system today still oppresses black people and it is also true that it has just been shaped to seem “less strict” as you stated.
I like how you said ” rather they have been modified to seem less strict”. That’s a good way of defining how the racial caste system was redesigned. What is also making it seem less strict is how it is normally kept secret and undercover.