prisons

5Dec

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

Journalism, SOCIAL JUSTICE

Where Racial Disparities Are Shrinking Fast … In Prisons

A big decrease in the incarceration rate of Black adults may lead to parity in the near future. By Tracy Matsue Loeffelholz Tracy Matsue Loeffelholz is the former creative director at YES!, where she directed artistic and visual components of YES! Magazine, and drove branding across the organization for nearly 15 years. She specializes in infographic research and design, and currently works with The Nation, in addition to YES! She previously worked at The Seattle Times, The Virginian-Pilot, Scripps Howard Newspapers, Rocky Mountain News, The Denver Post, The Connecticut Post, The San Diego Tribune, The Honolulu Advertiser. She lives on Bainbridge Island, Washington, and currently serves on the board of the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial Associat...

During Heat Waves Conditions In Prisons Pose Deadly Threats To Incarcerated People And Prison Staff

24Aug

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

ENVIRONMENT

During Heat Waves Conditions In Prisons Pose Deadly Threats To Incarcerated People And Prison Staff

Extreme heat is taking an increasing toll across the U.S. in summertime. People who are incarcerated are among society’s most vulnerable groups and have been especially affected. More than a dozen states do not have air conditioning in all of their prison units, including Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. In Texas, where I work, only about 30% of prisons are fully air-conditioned. Many of these states also face some of the highest heat risks in the U.S., according to recent studies. Prisons concentrate hundreds or thousands of people in buildings that were designed without planning for extreme heat and heat waves. Prison building materials and designs can increase exposure to heat...

Men Have Access To Significantly More Higher Education Programs In Texas Prisons Than Women

11May

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

EDUCATION, Journalism

Men Have Access To Significantly More Higher Education Programs In Texas Prisons Than Women

Alexa Garza has been out of prison for three years, but she still remembers how confining it felt. “I was surrounded by walls,” said Garza, who was incarcerated for two decades starting when she was 19. “I found that reading was an escape for me. I was able to read and learn and grow, and I knew that education was the key for me.” Already a high school graduate when she entered prison in Texas, Garza set out to obtain a higher education behind bars. That goal took the better part of her sentence to achieve. After a decade, she had earned two associate’s degrees. It took her five more years to earn a bachelor’s degree. Now a justice fellow for the national nonprofit Education Trust, which works toward education equity, Garza is raising awareness about the challenges of accessing post-seco...

What’s Driving The Pandemic In Prisons – Correctional Officers

18Aug

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

COVID-19

What’s Driving The Pandemic In Prisons – Correctional Officers

COVID-19 Danielle Wallace, Arizona State University Prisons and jails have hosted some of the largest COVID-19 outbreaks in the U.S., with some facilities approaching 4,000 cases. In the U.S., which has some of the highest COVID-19 infection rates in the world, 9 in 100 people have had the virus; in U.S. prisons, the rate is 34 out of 100. I study public health issues around prisons. My colleagues and I set out to understand why COVID-19 infection rates were so high among incarcerated individuals. Using data from the Federal Bureau of Prisons, we discovered the infection rate among correctional officers drove the infection rate among incarcerated individuals. We also found a three-way relationship between the infection rate of officers, incarcerated individuals and the communities arou...

More Than 550,000 People With Intellectual Disabilities In US Prisons Face Exploitation, Harsh Treatment

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

IN OTHER NEWS

More Than 550,000 People With Intellectual Disabilities In US Prisons Face Exploitation, Harsh Treatment

Prison life in the U.S. is tough. But when you have an intellectual, developmental or cognitive disability – as hundreds of thousands of Americans behind bars do – it can make you especially vulnerable. In March, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the federal agency tasked with gathering data on crime and the criminal justice system, published a report that found roughly two in five – 38% – of the 24,848 incarcerated people they surveyed across 364 prisons reported a disability of some sort. Across the entire incarcerated population, that translates to some 760,000 people with disabilities living behind bars. Around a quarter of those surveyed reported having a cognitive disability, such as difficulty remembering or making decisions. A similar proportion reported at some point being told ...

As the coronavirus rages in prisons, ethical issues of crime and punishment become more compelling

3Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

SOCIETY

As the coronavirus rages in prisons, ethical issues of crime and punishment become more compelling

Across the United States, prisons and jails have become hot spots for COVID-19. Governments at the state and federal level are being pressed to release inmates before the end of their sentence in order to minimize the spread of the disease. So far more than 100,000 of them have been infected with the coronavirus, and at least 802 inmates and several correctional officers have died. New Jersey’s correctional facilities have been hit particularly hard. With 29 deaths for every 100,000 inmates, they have the highest COVID-19-related death rate in the nation. In response, New Jersey has already released more than 1,000 inmates, and Gov. Phil Murphy on April 10, 2020 authorized a case-by-case review of prisoners who are at greater risk. Additionally, the state legislature is considering a bi...

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

IN OTHER NEWS

America’s Prisons And Higher education

There is growing political interest in providing higher education to those behind bars.In 2020, I’m going to take you to prison. At least that’s my plan as education editor, since there’s a growing interest among lawmakers and others in education behind bars. As a former crime reporter, I have a keen interest in this topic. That’s because back when I was covering crime in my native Milwaukee in the 1990s and 2000s, I wrote quite a few articles about young men who turned to street crime – and lost their lives as a result. A common theme in their lives is that they didn’t do well in school. Research shows that providing education to such young men – and young women – when they become incarcerated makes them less likely to return to prison. A number of scholars, including several who have wr...

11Sep

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

Journalism

What to Build Instead of Prisons

In Oakland, social justice groups are fighting the prison industrial complex through renovated space dedicated to restorative justice and community building. It’s a midweek summer afternoon, and staff and supporters of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights are standing in a room newly furnished with cubicles, desks, and chairs. They are enjoying snacks, chatting easily, and posing in a space designated as a photo booth for the day. The open house is a precursor to the late-summer grand opening of Ella Baker’s permanent new home and a celebration of this new chapter for the restorative justice organization. The space is Restore Oakland, a 15,000 square foot, two-story building Ella Baker shares with a half-dozen local organizations involved in social justice-oriented work...

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

CULTURE

“What Does the World Beyond Jails and Prisons Look Like?”

Detroit Justice Center helps returning citizens navigate the red tape that comes with re-entry and avoid landing back in jail. Roger Stone was just released on a $250,000 personal assurance bond. He does not have to put up one penny. Just to promise to pay that amount if he does not return to court. Meanwhile, my clients are held in jail on $500 bail they cannot afford for stealing a bar of soap. —Rebecca J. Kavanagh @DrRJKavanagh Talking to Damian Black under any other circumstance, you’d have no reason to believe he was only three months out of prison after serving more than 20 years. His smile is infectious. And as he shares his story—including his time and experience in solitary confinement—the smile and the brightness in his eyes overshadow what he’s saying. “I’m ...