WATERLOO - County attorneys and area judges were "put on notice" Friday night that some members of the community will no longer stand for black men being given a life sentence for drug charges.

More than 50 people gathered at the Talk Shop Cafe to discuss and condemn the practice of enhancing a charge because of a previous conviction. Those who spoke said the system unfairly targets African American males.

"How can you have faith in system where a child molester get less time than a man who sells drugs?" asked Michael Muhammad, a Nation of Islam minister and panel member.

Blacks in Iowa are incarcerated at a rate of 13.6 to 1, as compared to whites, putting Iowa behind only the District of Columbia, according to a 2007 study by The Sentencing Project. The national average is 5.6 to 1.

David Goodson, an activist with Social Action Inc., urged everyone to join the fight by attending upcoming meetings of the Coalition for Fair and Just Sentencing of Black Men, which will meet at 6:30 p.m. the first Monday of every month at the Talk Shop Cafe.

The coalition hopes to pull together examples of injustice from across the county that can be presented to local, state and national leaders to help bolster their case for prison sentencing reform. They also plan to attend court hearings for black men facing prison time for drug charges to voice their disgust with the system. A similar effort was organized in August after Goodson's nephew, Tony Goodson, was sentenced to life in federal prison for his third felony drug conviction.

"Almost every penal system across the country realizes the draconian drug laws are simply wrong, simply sinful. Yet, in Waterloo, they still want to enhance them," Goodson said. "These sentences are racist and target black men."

Muhammad said he also would like to see a concerted effort to vote Black Hawk County Attorney Thomas Ferguson and most judges out of office.

Pastor Faye Scott with Ambassadors for Christ has sat through several court hearings and said she was appalled by how the judges acted.

"We need to check these judges out. No matter what is being spoken, they are looking around like this," she said, leaning her elbow onto the table and placing her head on her hand. "We need to get to know them because some just don't care."

Sen. Bill Dotzler, D-Waterloo, and Rep. Deborah Berry, D-Waterloo, both attended the community forum. Dotzler said it's sometimes hard for legislators to tackle the issue of sentence discrepancies for fear of appearing soft on crime.

"But there's plenty of evidence to show there (are) sentence discrepancies," he said. "Certainly, minorities tend to get more severe sentences than the white population."

Berry, vice-chair of the House's public safety committee, said prison sentence disparities will be discussed when the Democrats convene for their majority caucus in December to decide budget priorities.

"I think we need to take a look at it now," Berry said. "The fact that we have a new president saying communities need to step up, making the places we live in better … it's going to take a partnership between everyone."

Staff Writer Amie Steffen contributed to this article.

Contact Emily Christensen at (319) 291-1570 or emily.christensen@wcfcourier.com.