I know some people must think that infographics are being overused these days, but I’m basically on Team Infographic, and this ACLU offering on the impact of mass incarceration is a good example of why:

massincarceration_20110617_0.jpg

Keep in mind when you look at the statistic regarding the fact that half of inmates in state prisons were convicted of nonviolent offenses, that state prisons house the majority of the prison population, 1,404,053 people in 2010 according to the Pew Center on the states. Federal prisons house about two hundred thousand.

Adam Serwer is a writing fellow at The American Prospect and a graduate of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. He also blogs at Jack and Jill Politics and has written for The Village Voice, The Washington Post, The Root, and the Daily News. Follow @adamserwer