Here’s What Could a Complete Return to Jim Crow Will Look Like

There are eras in American history that Black folks look back on with horror– eras defined not only by law and policy, but by lived experience, fear, and resistance. Among them, Jim Crow stands as one of the most devastating systems of racial control in America.

While Jim Crow is widely taught in American schools as a closed chapter in history, its true impact on Black Americans is hardly understood. From voting restrictions and economic exclusion to segregated schools, housing and public life, its reach was total. And in light of ongoing attacks on civil rights legislation– including the Supreme Court’s gutting of the Voting Rights Act, The Root is taking a closer look at what Jim Crow would look like in 2026… And you may be surprised by how many Black leaders argue that we’re already living in a modern Jim Crow era.

What Was Jim Crow?

The system began with the end of Reconstruction and didn’t end until the mid-1960s, according to the National Park Service. Backed by both local enforcement and federal indifference, it shaped nearly every dimension of Black existence, reinforced by cultural narratives that dehumanized Black people in everyday life.

The system manifested in all aspects of Black American life– which was even evident in mass media routinely and casually referring to Black folks as racial slurs.

Now, let’s compare that system to 2026…

Mass Incarceration

Mass incarceration has been a pressing issue in the Black community since the establishment of the 13th Amendment, which outlaws slavery except in the prison system. Prison reform activists say this manifests into the school-to-prison pipeline, which is the policies and disciplinary practices that push students– especially Black ones– out of schools and into the criminal justice system.

Zero-tolerance rules, suspensions, expulsions and heavy police presence in schools disproportionately target students of color. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, Black students are referred to law enforcement at disproportionately high rates compared with their share of school enrollment. Advocates argue that underfunded schools, racial bias and harsh discipline contribute to higher dropout rates and increased chances of future incarceration for vulnerable students.

School to Prison Pipeline

Michelle Alexander, the author of the 2010 critically acclaimed book, “The New Jim Crow,” outlined issues of the school-to-prison pipeline during a 2012 interview with NPR.

“People are swept into the criminal justice system — particularly in poor communities of color — at very early ages … typically for fairly minor, nonviolent crimes,” Michelle Alexander told Fresh Air‘s Dave Davies. “[The young black males are] shuttled into prisons, branded as criminals and felons, and then when they’re released, they’re relegated to a permanent second-class status, stripped of the very rights supposedly won in the civil rights movement — like the right to vote, the right to serve on juries, the right to be free of legal discrimination and employment, and access to education and public benefits. Many of the old forms of discrimination that we supposedly left behind during the Jim Crow era are suddenly legal again, once you’ve been branded a felon.”

Police Brutality

Modern police brutality and Jim Crow share roots in racial inequality and the policing of Black communities. During the Jim Crow era, police openly enforced segregation laws, intimidated Black Americans and often ignored or participated in racial violence.

Today, segregation is illegal, but critics argue Black communities still face disproportionate police violence, racial profiling and harsher treatment by law enforcement. Cases involving the 2002 killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor reignited comparisons to America’s past. While Jim Crow racism was legally codified, modern disparities are tied more to systemic bias, policing practices and institutional inequalities that many believe continue to harm Black Americans.

Ending DEI

We’ve also told you about President Donald Trump’s push to end all diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts

In an interview with Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights leader slammed Trump’s end to DEI. “They came up– they being the private sector,” he told us, referring to the term DEI.
”They came up with DEI. We never called a DEI. We asked for fairness and equity. They named something. Now they want to end something they named like we asked for it. What we asked is for fairness.”

Targeting HBCUs

In the days following the killing of far-right conservative Charlie Kirk, at least a dozen historically Black colleges and universities received violent threats. Although the FBI later determined the threats were not credible, the incidents still forced several campuses to implement lockdowns, cancel classes and increase security measures, the Hilltop reported.

“HBCUs receiving threats after a white nationalist was killed feels painfully unsurprising,” Alabama State University student Sam Barnett told the outlet. “The threats are likely to continue because many conservatives and Republicans see the incident as a direct attack against them.”

Economic Decline

Black unemployment is rising at a faster rate than the national average, raising concerns among economists who view the trend as a warning sign for the broader labor market. Data from the Labor Department shows an increase in the unemployment of Black workers while overall unemployment remains relatively stable. We previously told you, analysts said Black workers are often the first affected during hiring slowdowns because they are disproportionately employed in sectors such as federal government, logistics and entry-level service jobs.

Federal workforce cuts spurred by Trump’s effort to make the government more efficient, cuts to diversity initiatives and broader economic uncertainty are all contributing factors. Economists describe the trend as a “canary in the coal mine,” suggesting it may signal a weakening job market that could eventually affect all workers.

Slashing Black Voting Power

We spoke to Alanah Odoms, the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in Louisiana, who called the Supreme Court decision to gut Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act “a real assault and a demolition.”

She added, “Racial gerrymandering basically looks like Black people being packed into a district so their power across surrounding districts would be limited or being cracked across districts, so that they would never be able to have enough power to elect a candidate of their choice.”

While civil rights leaders are warning Black Americans of the ongoing effort to slash Black voting power, we’re reminded of past Jim Crow efforts, which re

Segregated Housing

Housing segregation was outlawed with the passing of the 1968 Fair Housing Act. But fast forward to 2026, and racial disparities remain

We previously told you all about the “white-only” settlement in Arkansas. Return to the Land (RTTL) is a relatively new whites-only “private membership association (PMA) for individuals and families with traditional views and European ancestry,” according to its website.

To gain membership, applicants must complete an extensive screening process that includes a video interview intended to confirm their ethnic background and family lineage. Ultimately, only white Americans are accepted into the organization and its Ozarks-based community. As a result, Black people, Jewish individuals, LGBTQIA+ people and those of mixed-race backgrounds are excluded from joining.

Small Number of Black Congress Members, SCOTUS

A key marker in the Jim Crow era was an overall lack of Black representation in Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court. Thurgood Marshall became the first Black person to ever serve on the Supreme Court in 1967. Since then, only two Black people– conservative Justice Clarence Thomas and liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson– have been confirmed to the court.

Within the Republican Party, all four Black representatives are set to leave their positions by 2027, which only emphasizes a racial gap now left within the GOP. We’ve also kept you updated with ongoing redistricting efforts in the South that aim to slash and dilute Black voting blocs. As a consequence, several Black leaders have been axed from their historically Black districts. Ultimately, this opens the door for fewer Black representatives in Congress.

Department of Education

The Trump administration’s education policies are already having a massive impact on Black students and civil rights protections in schools. Advocates say the Office for Civil Rights has failed to adequately address racial discrimination complaints involving Black students. Staffing reductions, office closures and efforts to limit federal oversight in education have also disproportionately impacted Black students, who historically have been at a disadvantage.

As Trump’s mission to shut down the ED continues, Black students are now at risk of less funding and needed focus, which could have detrimental consequences we’ve seen in Jim Crow.

Lynching Concerns

During the height of the Jim Crow era, lynchings were a routine practice used to terrorize and punish Black men, women and children. References to historic lynchings often depict Black people hanging from trees while onlookers smiled and posed for pictures. But in truth, Black people were also beaten, tortured, shot and burned– sometimes at the hands of law enforcement.

In 2026, civil rights activists argue that Black people are still being lynched. Data from the FBI also found Black Americans are disproportionately targeted in racial hate crimes compared to other ethnic groups. Within the past five years, concerns that modern-day lynchings continue have been revived with repeated police brutality cases and the deaths of Black men like Javion Magee and Trey Reed.

Modern-Day Examples

Miss. Rep. Bennie Thompson spoke out following the death of Reed, a 21-year-old student in Mississippi, who was found hanging from a tree. “While the details of this case are still emerging, we cannot ignore Mississippi’s painful history of lynching and racial violence against African Americans,” Thompson said, according to the People’s Dispatch.

Another Black man, Robert Brooks was beaten to death by New York correctional officers back in 2024. Of the 10 guards charged with his murder, seven pleaded guilty to manslaughter or lesser charges. Two were acquitted in a trial, while the final officer was convicted, Corrections 1 shared.