what's wrong with prison? - The Howard League for Penal Reform

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HLM | sep tember 20 0 6 The nonsense of the therapunitive prison for women and men Prof Pat Carlen on why the concept of the therapunitive prison is based on a lie One of the latest absurd twists in the ever-innovative justifications for the prosmiscuous use of imprisonment in England and Wales ironically ends up sending more and more women to prison in the name of social re-integration. But prison doesn’t reintegrate; it excludes. This is not surprising, because punishment by secure containment is what prisons are for. For that reason alone, the social reintegration of prisoners cannot be a function of imprisonment. The logical requirement that prisons keep prisoners in means that security requirements must routinely be given priority over therapeutic or reintegrative needs. However, the characteristics of women’s prison populations suggest that the notion of reintegration via in-prison programmes is especially inappropriate for women lawbreakers. Recent research indicates that a high proportion of women sent to prison had no financial security prior to their imprisonment, had either never worked or had only worked in low-paid jobs with no job security, had no secure accommodation, very little education and had been victims of either physical and/ or sexual violence from family members or non-family male predators. ers and lawabiding; and the most recent research in Australia has yet again demonstrated that young people coming out of prison continue to offend because they find that, in the particular social milieux they inhabit, crime is what works best for them. At the level of common-sense, moreover, it is difficult to see why ex-prisoners should want to be integrated into a society which has never given them much in the way of social goods or citizen respect in the first place. Lastly, why should governments want prisons to add reintegration to all their other functions For if one ignores the official ideology that implies that prisons are primarily for recidivism reduction via rehabilitation, it can be argued that prisons are already very successful indeed. First because they provide iconic harsh punishment in societies loud in their demands both for the punishment of lawbreakers and ‘protection’ from a range of (very ill-defined) deviant ‘others’. Second, because full prisons and rising imprisonment rates can be presented as a visible index of a populist government’s determination to wage war on wrongdoers. Third, because imprisonment continues to be not only an important mechanism in the management of But, if the prison does all that, why does it matter that the flourishing prison business thrives primarily by claiming that, on top of everything else, prisons can reintegrate and rehabilitate It matters because, first, in the case of women and young men, such claims may have led sentencers to believe that the prison can effectively address welfare ‘needs’, and that, therefore, it is legitimate to imprison the poor, the ill and the addicted, even if their crimes are relatively minor. Secondly, it matters because the rhetoric of in-prison reintegration results in a transfer of material resources from community to prison, at the same time as transcarceralism (i.e. bringing the pains of imprisonment out across the prison walls via stiff non-custodial sentences) is resulting in a transfer of privations from prison to community. Finally, it matters because it is certainly arguable that many of the extra resources in prisons, especially anti-addiction programmes, would be more productive if put to social use in a non-carceral setting, than they are when put to anti-social use in a carceral setting. Given these adverse backgrounds, the high degree of mental illness, and the relatively short sentence lengths of most female prisoners, it is difficult to see how prisons alone could ever be expected to provide the majority of women prisoners with effective educational courses, sustainable drugs rehabilitation, emotional support or marketable skills after release. The same goes for many male prisoners. Even if there were no other impediments in the way of prisoner reintegration, there are also strong cultural reasons why coerced attempts at the controlled reintegration of ex-prisoners may well be resisted by the prisoners themselves. Existential philosophers, cultural and subcultural theorists have never tired of telling us that the quest for, and celebration of outsider status is a recurring theme in the autobiographies of both lawbreak- the prison still fulfills its age-old function of catering for the homeless, the mentally-ill, the stranger, the non-compliant poor, the abused and the excluded. poverty and marginality, but also a protective mechanism that is relied upon and appreciated by crime victims with desperate relationship or neighbourhood problems who can no longer depend upon any form of welfare intervention to ease their troubles. Today, the prison still fulfills its age-old function of catering for the homeless, the mentally-ill, the stranger, the non-compliant poor, the abused and the excluded. It also continues to fulfil its other age-old function of conflating issues of crime and punishment with those of social justice - to the detriment of both Overall, then, the concept of the therapunitive prison is based on a lie about both the essential nature of imprisonment and the rehabilatative powers of inprison programming. Sentencers should not be bamboozled by the reintegration industry’s rhetoric into believing that today’s therapunitive prisons can meet the needs of those prisoners whose demographic characteristics are still a reminder that social inequities cannot be effectively addressed by therapunitive measures. Prof Pat Carlen, University of Kent and trustee of the Howard League for Penal Reform
Howard le ague mag a zine | volume 24 | Number 3 | sep tember 20 0 6 Out for Good Anita Dockley outlines the Howard League for Penal Reform’s research aimed at understanding the resettlement needs of young men Every month over a thousand young men are sent to prison at a cost of £35,000 a year, yet our study found that little constructive work takes place in prison or on release to enhance their resettlement prospects, and nearly 70% of those released from prison will be reconvicted within two years. Despite this, the government has failed to target any initiatives to reduce offending by this age group. back down the wrong roads. I want to support my missus and my daughter in the right way … I want to be the best dad ever … But there’s only one way to prove it and that’s to go out there and show everyone that I’m not that drug addict I used to be, in and out of prison. Now I just want to prove them wrong, get a steady job and support them in the right way, and go on from there” (Raymond, aged 20) It was clear that the practical barriers they faced when trying to make a new start after prison, like getting a job, made it harder for them to achieve their dreams. “I started looking for jobs as soon as I got out. One time I rang up the place … I said ‘there’s one thing I’d like to say now, before I even come … and make an application. I’ve just been released from prison, but I’m trying to make a go of it.’ And they put the phone down on me”. (Gavin aged 21) them. Many found it very hard to articulate what they wanted but an overriding theme was their desire to have a constructive, professional relationship with one person. They wanted someone who would listen to them, be on their side and help them through the difficult areas of their lives. They wanted an advocate. This person would help to develop support networks, self-belief and the confidence to recast themselves more positively as young men who can live successful and productive lives in the community without committing crime. Imprisoning young men at this critical stage of their lives – on the cusp of adulthood and independence – can have a hugely detrimental effect on their development and future life chances. The clear message from this research is that sending young men to prison casts a long shadow over their futures and ours too. Sending young men into prison does more to confirm a criminal self-identity than to help build a future that is crime free and lead to desistance. We asked the young men about what would help them to stop committing crime. As with many similar studies they highlighted the need for employment, housing and access to substance misuse services as their top priorities. These are very practical needs, but our work also uncovered a complexity of issues relating to masculinity, families and relationships and the transition to adulthood, which need to be addressed alongside their practical needs. Many young men told us they wished they could lead crime free lives but did not know how they could achieve this. When the young men talked about their future, the crime-free aspirations they identified for themselves included fatherhood, partnership and earning a wage. What the young men seemed to aspire to was a new self-identity that was mainstream and conventional. “When I get released this time I’ve got the will power to stick to it, I’m not going sending young men to prison casts a long shadow over their futures. Experiences like Gavin’s make it hard for young men to move forward. Many seemed resigned to a future that will include crime and prison; their experiences of the social, education and criminal justice systems did little more than confirm and condemn many to a self identity in terms of their offending behaviour. “What might my life be like in the future I don’t know, obviously I hope it’ll be good, you know girlfriend, job and that. But, then I might be back in prison in six months’ (Luke, aged 20) Through listening to the young men, the Howard League for Penal Reform wanted to identify issues and strategies for practitioners to engage more effectively with Anita Dockley is assistant director at the Howard League for Penal Reform Out for Good is available from our website (www.howardleague.org) priced £15
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