Analysis details racial disparities among Whatcom County Jail inmate population

Racial disparities in the criminal justice system are not unique to Whatcom County. And to understand why they exist here and beyond, Western Washington University Professor Ceci Lopez said one has to look all the way back to the country's founding.

Lopez, who directs the Center for Law, Diversity and Justice at WWU's Fairhaven College, said the colonization of the U.S. by Europeans "set the tone" for who would and would not have a voice in government and American society at large. Namely, Lopez said that white men were at the top of the "hierarchy of importance."

"The perspectives of who is and who is not a part of the system has a tremendous impact down the road to our present day," Lopez said.