Mass Imprisonment: Social and Societal Cost
By Charles Gamero
&=
nbsp; Many
themes can be derived from the topic of mass imprisonment. Here I will focu=
s on
two; the first, that mass imprisonment of nonviolent offenders is costly to
society, and the second, society needs to seek out alternative ways of deal=
ing
with criminality.
&=
nbsp; Currently,
there are nearly two million people incarcerated in the
Monetary cost is not all that s=
hould
be measured here. There is also an immeasurable social cost. Nonviolent
offenders are placed in a violent setting, prison, and forced , as in the
California system, to segregate along racial lines to “watch each
others’ back” (Ted Koppel video). This socializes a once nonvio=
lent
offender into a mindset of brutality and violence.
Another social cost that cannot=
be
measured is the detrimental effect imprisonment has on communities.
“…All across
Society and the criminal justice
system (CJS) need to be reminded that its main purpose is not to maintain or
create jobs. The ultimate goal is to put ourselves out of business! The cha=
nges
that must be made to the CJS cannot be fully realized within the current
framework. Crime is a societal problem and must be changed through a
transformation in societal values. The list below outlines how this could
occur:
The public must be educated and=
aware
of alternatives in the CJS. Citizenry must take an active role initiating
change. As the study of Doble and Klein suggest, “support for
imprisonment generally declines substantially when a broader range of
sentencing options are considered (Mauer pg.9).” Society must be awar=
e of
options such as therapeutic communities, drug rehabilitation, Alcoholics
Anonymous, etc. They must also be aware of what these programs mean to an
individual offender, their families and the community as a whole.
Media can play a large role in
bringing these alternatives to the forefront of discussion. More importantly
the media can be a vehicle to initiate change. Changing their program forma=
t to
include more positive aspects of CJS initiatives is one way to have this
accomplished. Also, limiting the amount of crime displayed on evening news =
and
newspapers will begin to alleviate the fear of crime.
An educated more informed publi=
c,
backed with media support, would create an environment more suitable for
politicians to begin making changes. The wind will be taken out of the
“get tough on crime” sails. Politicians will listen to their
constituency and be more apt to implement the policies needed for change. R=
ep.
Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX) has proposed the Federal Prison Bureau Nonviolent
Offender Relief Act of 2007 which calls for a reduction in sentences for
offenders who have served half of their sentence and have never been convic=
ted
of a violent crime (H.R. 261, Jackson-Lee). Rep. Jackson-Lee serves a prima=
rily
inner-city black constituency in
Officials would take note of the
changing environment. Policy changes could be made to support the new reform
movement. Politicians could mandate CJ courses be added to high school
curriculums to continue the flow of support and CJS education. Budgetary
committees could begin directing funds toward therapy programs, prison re-e=
ntry
initiatives, community policing and community courts. Prison parole boards
would begin to identify nonviolent offenders most suited for the new progra=
ms.
The bulk of the prison population would be transitioned into the new
comprehensive initiatives.
The reformed system would call =
for
more specialized, highly trained individuals for these initiatives to take
root. Therapist, psychologist, psychiatrist, social workers, probation and
parole officers would move to the forefront of Corrections. This change will
create a fourth leg in the CJS. The “chair” of CJS would then be
viewed as Police, Courts, Therapeutic Community, and Corrections. Sitting i=
n the
chair would be the benefits to society and the offender.
Societal transformation may be
evidenced in a small example from
Alternatives to the current CJS=
are
plentiful and are proving to be more effective than our current policies. T=
he
cost to society, both financially and socially, of continuing in our current
capacity is too great. It is time to begin giving more consideration to
alternative approaches that help reintegrate nonviolent offenders, improve
family bonds, and reduce the cost to taxpaying citizens in terms of both mo=
ney
and fear of crime.
1)
2) Just and Painful, Gra=
eme
Newman, Ch.5, www.albany=
.edu/~grn92/jp05.html
3) The Causes and Consequences of Prison Growth in the
4) H.R.261, Federal Prison Bureau
Nonviolent Offender Relief Act of 2007, Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee, http:/=
/www.fantasycongress.com/legislation_info?legID=3D509