TIL That today the US is responsible for 25% of the world's prison population. Presumably in 1776 we were on par with Europe. Has the US proclivity for incarceration been a historical trait or only a more recent phenomenon? What laws has the US enacted enabling this increased rate of imprisonment?

by PhilipXD3
miasmical

Someone asked a similar question recently and there are lots of good replies:

Despite representing only 4.4 percent of the world's population, the U.S houses 22 percent of its prisoners. What are the historical reasons for the U.S's incredibly large prison population?

Edit: fixed link to go to full thread rather than auto mod post.