Key Issues
We Strive for Effectiveness and Action
We understand that changing any system, especially a government system, is incredibly challenging. Our aim is not to be disruptive but to be resoundingly constructive. Our legal and penal systems are unfortunately necessary components of any society. However, the American Prison system was originally established to obtain forced laborers following the emancipation of slaves by President Lincoln. It continues to be a constitutionally sanctioned form of servitude, benefiting major corporations and politicians financially. As a society, we deceive ourselves by claiming that these systems offer rehabilitation. In reality, they don’t, and they aren’t designed to do so. It’s time to instigate change, to confront and rectify the flaws in the system, flaws that directly contribute to our high crime rate.
Education
In today’s world, education is crucial, yet many inmates lack even a high school education. The current prison education system simply guides inmates through a process to hand them certificates and diplomas, but it falls short of providing a genuine education. Inmates are expected to self-educate, a task few can accomplish. We can’t compel inmates to learn, but we must offer them the opportunity to do so.
Education Advantages
In today’s society, education can be the key to a better life. Having a high school education typically leads to an average increase of $1,000,000 in income over a lifetime. Many inmates have untapped intelligence; they simply never had the opportunity for education. As for others who may need more support, isn’t it worth the effort to transform them into productive members of society rather than letting them remain as burdens on society?
The Education Offered
There’s no denying that we fail to adequately fund and support our educational system, and this shortcoming is glaringly evident within our prisons. Too often, courses are entirely self-taught, with unsupervised inmates serving as “tutors,” while the actual teachers remain disengaged from the inmates’ education. In fact, one head teacher stated it plainly: “My job is to give as many inmates a diploma as possible,” not to actually teach them anything. Education should not be about obtaining a diploma; rather, the diploma should signify that you’ve received an education. It’s a backward approach, and unfortunately, they seem indifferent to it. As a result, both inmates and the public suffer the consequences.
A Quick Example
Here’s a quick example: During the Covid-19 crisis in prison, I enrolled in a Microsoft Word course. However, we didn’t have access to computers at the time. So, I completed the entire course on paper, which, according to their written schedule, should have taken 64 hours. In reality, it only took about 3 hours, and I never once touched a computer. Now, the prison claims I’m trained in Microsoft Word and even gave me a certificate to prove it. Does that sound logical to you? If it does, then perhaps the prison system would like to hire you…
Jobs
The prison system promotes offering job training to inmates for their reintegration into society. However, the stark reality reveals that job opportunities within prisons are exceptionally scarce, with less than 1 in 10 inmates employed. These jobs can be categorized into two types: manual labor positions that demand no skills or training, and skilled labor roles exclusively accessible to inmates with prior experience. It’s essential that our prisons shift their focus towards empowering every inmate to secure jobs that provide training in new, marketable skills, ultimately aiding them in becoming valuable contributors to society.
The Work Schedule
One of the fundamental aspects of a job is the commitment to an 8-hour (or longer) work shift, usually within a regular weekly schedule—your classic 9 to 5 routine. However, many inmates have never experienced an 8-hour shift job, and within the prison system, they are seldom afforded the opportunity to do so. Instead, most jobs in prison involve short shifts of around 3 hours or so. Consequently, this critical aspect of societal expectations is left untaught to inmates, leaving them unprepared for the 8-hour shifts that the world expects from them upon release.
The Opportunities
Over and over, inmates come across job postings on the bulletin boards, only to discover that they can’t even apply due to the strict requirements. “Metal Shop seeks welder. Minimum 5 years of experience required.” “Wood Shop seeks experienced carpenter.” I never once witnessed any proof of the job training opportunities that society claims are accessible to inmates. Consequently, there truly isn’t a chance to LEARN a new trade, to equip oneself for the outside world, or to seize an opportunity to become a contributing member of society.
The Pay
Inmates earn wages for their work, starting at a meager $0.19 per hour! That amounts to just $1.52 for an 8-hour day (if you can even secure an 8-hour shift). When deodorant costs $2.34 (and you can face disciplinary actions for body odor), it means you’d need to labor for roughly 13 hours just to afford a single deodorant! If this same ratio applied in the real world, someone with a $12/hour job would be spending $148 on deodorant! So, what’s the takeaway for every inmate? The lesson is clear: working a job doesn’t seem worth it.
The Consequences
Many inmates struggle to afford life in prison, which leads them to place added financial burdens on their friends and loved ones in the outside world. This places a significant strain on their families, who can often barely manage without their support. When they eventually leave prison, they find themselves with virtually no funds to help them establish themselves in the real world. Moreover, they lack the experience of feeling any sense of pride or accomplishment from work, nor are they prepared for the fundamental job requirement of an 8-hour work shift. It’s no surprise that they often fail to see the value in leaving behind their criminal (yet profitable) activities — they simply perceive no other viable option.
Rehabilitation
A jail sentence is meant to have three key components: punishment, rehabilitation, and reintegration into society. Punishment is straightforward and well-established. However, rehabilitation is often lacking. While there are numerous programs that claim to rehabilitate, the true measure is in the outcomes. The high rates of repeat offenses suggest that rehabilitation is not as effective as it should be. Without successful rehabilitation, ex-convicts struggle to reintegrate into society as productive members.
Groups
Prisons offer support through various groups, which could be valuable if these groups were effective. Unfortunately, many fall short. Personally, I was placed in a group led by inmates that began by discussing happiness. Shockingly, every inmate except me concurred that to be happy, one needed a substantial amount of money, hence justifying their illegal activities. Since there were no external counselors or even correctional officers present in the group, all the inmates left with the misguided notion that wealth was the key to happiness—a viewpoint that contradicts the views of most experts.
Programs
Prisons offer numerous programs with the aim of rehabilitation. Unfortunately, these programs lack any form of oversight and, in many cases, have transformed into money-making ventures for private companies. I was involved in a 6-month program that the company extended to 18 months, profiting further by suggesting that all participants required additional counseling. This same company was actually sued by the state for falsifying inmate records to inflate billing, yet the state continues to follow its recommendations. I’ve even had counselors employed by these companies admit that they are pressured to increase revenue through such practices.
An example: Mental Health
An illustrative example of this issue is mental health care. There’s a disproportionately high number of inmates marked as receiving mental health treatment. When they request treatment, they are denied and told it’s unavailable. However, every month, a mental health counselor briefly meets with them for just 5 minutes, merely to check them off as having received mental health treatment.
Mandatory Minimum Sentences
Many of the individuals responsible for drafting and enacting laws don’t need legal qualifications; they just need to be electable. While their intentions are commendable, they can make mistakes, such as implementing mandatory sentencing. Mandatory sentencing is flawed because there isn’t a single situation without exceptions, as evident with soldiers who are trained to kill, despite it being against the law. Every law inevitably gives rise to unexpected exceptions.
Good Intentions along the road...
Mandatory laws are enacted by well-intentioned individuals who aim to reduce crime rates in specific categories. However, history has taught us about the intricacies of justice, showing that no law is impervious to exceptions. Our founding fathers established our justice system, including a jury of peers, because they recognized the necessity of human evaluation in every case. In mandatory sentencing, even judges are prohibited from considering exceptions, thereby eliminating the possibility of justice in situations that demand flexibility. No two situations, people, or crimes are identical. While they may share similarities, differences always outweigh them. Let’s recognize these distinctions, acknowledge the potential for exceptions, and eliminate mandatory sentencing.
Example 1: An open car invitation...
I encountered a young man in jail serving a three-year sentence for reaching into an open convertible (with the top down) and taking a pack of cigarettes from the front seat. In what world does this constitute fair justice, where a man loses three years of his life for a $10 crime? Is it right that society must now bear the substantial costs of imprisoning him for three years, all over a $10 offense? Is this justice, either for the young man or for you and me, who are footing the bill through our taxes to cover the costs of his incarceration?
Example 2: A $30 life sentence...
In Texas, there’s a man serving a life sentence for forging his grandmother’s signature on a $30 check. Yes, you read that right, $30. Even the grandmother couldn’t prevent the sentence. A life wasted over a $30 mistake. Is this justice? Surely this isn’t what lawmakers had in mind when they enacted the law?
Example 3: A willing and consensual crime..
Let me share my personal situation as another example. Take a look and judge for yourself. I’d even delved into the law and was convinced I wasn’t breaking it. The past is behind me now, a part of history. But it wasn’t fair. If you happen to disagree (after reviewing all the facts), I’d genuinely like to hear your opinion. However, I suspect that, like most others, you’ll find that what transpired in my case wasn’t fair, and the fact that I’m now labeled for life because of it only adds to the injustice.
Recidivism Rates
Our recidivism rates are alarmingly high, with approximately two-thirds (67%) of released inmates being rearrested within just 3 years of their release. This figure is staggering, particularly if we want to believe that our justice system effectively rehabilitates individuals. Why aren’t we taking steps to change this? It’s crucial to uncover the truth about our justice and penal systems, including why a majority of our inmates are Black and who profits from their incarceration. Did you know that American prisons were established after the Civil War as a means to keep the Black community working on plantations and in their designated roles? Shockingly, these systems still constitute a form of legal slavery, allowed by the Constitution!
Recidivism dangers
Why should we care about recidivism? It’s crucial because it directly impacts the crime rate. When ex-convicts repeatedly engage in criminal activities, it puts the public at greater risk with each inmate release. Our societal objective is clear: understand the root causes of their initial crimes, rehabilitate them, and provide the chance for them to transform into productive members of our community.
Stopping recidivism
To put an end to recidivism, we must demonstrate a new path to inmates—one that leads to success in a legal and constructive way. This requires us to be truthful about what strategies work and what doesn’t, focusing on the positive while removing the negative. We need to educate them on how to enter the workforce and provide training for them to secure decent employment. When a person has nothing to lose, they have little to deter them from engaging in criminal activities.
Sex Offenses
Sex offenses are undoubtedly among the most serious crimes in our society, and I’m well aware that there are truly monstrous individuals in this world—I’ve encountered some in prison. However, we’ve taken things to an extreme, living in a society where even a drunk person urinating in public can be forever branded as a threat to society. Punishments are severe, with no distinction between the truly dangerous individuals and those who commit serious but unintended errors. We differentiate between planned, intentional, and accidental killings, but we fail to do the same for sex crimes. Even consensual acts are often punished in the same manner, and it’s time to reevaluate this approach.
Recidivism of Sex Offenders
The overall recidivism rate for sex offenders stands at a mere 5.3%, which is just 1/13th of the 67% rate seen among other offenders. When we focus on first-time sex offenders, the figure drops even lower, hovering around 3% in Delaware. So, in reality, the risk of sex offenders re-offending is extremely low. Yet, these individuals often face far harsher treatment compared to other offenders.
Consider this: You can easily find all the registered sex offenders in your area on a map, but there’s no similar system for released murderers. This means that a neighbor who may have previously committed heinous crimes like child murder could be living next door, and you would never be notified. On the other hand, if another neighbor got drunk and urinated in public, you’d receive a notification when they moved into your neighborhood, and they’d carry the label of a sex offender for life. Now, ask yourself, which piece of information is more important for you to know about your neighbor: their past as a murderer, or an incident of public urination while intoxicated?
The Scarlett R.S.O.
In the classic novel “The Scarlet Letter,” we read about a time in America when a woman named Hester Prynne was compelled to wear a scarlet letter ‘A’ in public as a mark of her shame for committing adultery and having a child out of wedlock—a serious sex-related offense at the time. Fast forward to today, and registered sex offenders (R.S.O.s) find themselves on public and legal lists for life, essentially wearing the electronic equivalent of that scarlet letter.
The burden of being an R.S.O. is far-reaching. You’re required to register everywhere you go, and your name, status, and past crimes are made known to the public. When you move, your neighbors are notified. There’s no concept of serving your time and moving forward. Even after your release from prison, you must continually register with the police, and your status is indicated on your driver’s license. Essentially, you’re never allowed to put your crime behind you, reintegrate into society, and be considered a contributing member again. You carry the label of an R.S.O. indefinitely.
Now, it’s important to acknowledge that sex crimes are undeniably heinous. However, it’s equally important to recognize that most R.S.O.s end up on these lists not because they are the monsters we fear but because they got caught in the nets intended for those monsters. Our society needs to draw a distinction and treat them differently.
The Photo Dilemma
A friend of mine recently confronted a troubling situation at his son’s middle school. It came to light that some young girls had taken explicit photos of themselves and shared them with certain boys, who, as typical immature kids might, circulated these images among their friends. Understandably, parents were upset, and the sheriff was actively responding to their complaints.
My friend was deeply concerned, so he sought advice from his lawyer to understand what steps he should take. To his surprise, he learned that, according to the way the laws are written, he was legally responsible for his sons’ cell phones because they were minors. This meant that he could potentially face arrest and be labeled as a sex offender or even a child pornographer, all due to the deliberate actions of some young girls. It’s a clear example of the kind of absurdity our society has inadvertently created.
Drug Offenses
Drug offenses are undeniably a significant driver of our prison population, and the drug problem is indeed a pressing issue in our society. However, our legal system often lumps all drug-related cases together, regardless of the circumstances. As a result, we now find ourselves in a situation where thousands of individuals are behind bars for using marijuana—an act that is no longer considered a crime in many states. Yet, these people remain incarcerated.
Society has evolved, and there’s a growing consensus that most marijuana use should not be deemed criminal. So, the question arises: Were these inmates wrong for doing something that society has since come to accept? Is it fair for them to continue serving their sentences in a world that has changed its stance on this issue?
Racist Drug Laws
The laws surrounding drug offenses and their corresponding punishments have long been marred by a troubling undercurrent of racism. This bias has its roots in history, with notable examples like the discriminatory treatment of Chinese immigrants and their association with opium use during the construction of railroads. Unfortunately, this pattern has persisted over the years, and even today, we see disparities in penalties.
For instance, the penalties for using crack cocaine, a substance often associated with African Americans, are disproportionately harsher than those for powdered cocaine, which is more commonly associated with Caucasians. The consequence of this disparity is that Black individuals are more likely to be incarcerated for drug use and face more severe sentences.
This is an uncomfortable and well-known truth—one that society is aware of, yet it continues to persist. The question we must confront is: Why do we allow this injustice to persist? Are we really a racist society?
Society's Drug Problems
It’s undeniable that drug-related issues persist in America, and the impact of drug use on our society has been significant. Surprisingly, many people are unaware that hospitals didn’t even have emergency rooms until drug use escalated in America. However, we are witnessing a profound shift in our social attitudes toward drug use, and our drug laws are evolving rapidly, becoming increasingly lenient.
In light of these changes, there’s a valuable lesson to be learned from our approach to alcohol. States and countries that adopt more lenient attitudes, allowing younger people to use alcohol responsibly and accepting their responsible behavior, tend to have lower rates of alcoholism and related problems. Perhaps it’s time for us to take this lesson to heart and apply it to our evolving approach to drugs.