When dealing with those who are “a threat to our safety and
security”, I feel as though incarceration and the prison (as an institution)
does not provide a solution to address these social issues – if anything, it
would only re-individualize a potentially political problem. Perhaps this is
why Angela Davis’ suggestion for a prison abolition movement intrigues me so
much. Especially as she goes on to explain that the prison, as a means to
contain and control violence, is itself a space of violence that functions as a
racist repression of gender and sexuality. Looking at the prison as a
“gendering apparatus,” it takes into account the violence that is inflicted on
people who are different and refuse to subscribe to the gender binary or to
compulsory heterosexuality such as trans*, lesbians, gay men, and so on... “so
that you might say that the prison is this institution that is grounded, in so
many ways, in violence.” It is ultimately still about (gendered) power, and
therefore nothing has been solved, and nothing has been changed – except of
course, that violence has been perpetuated and reinforced through such a
“solution.”
Again, I find that having to use violence against violence can be
problematic – nobody should have to perpetuate such a destructive cycle that
never ends. As an intervention into this cycle, Davis highlights the importance
of engaging in a national conversation on true alternatives, which can help
de-individualize and politicize these social problems. As pointed out by Davis,
I truly believe that education can be a powerful tool for change and as a form
of intervention within this cycle of violence. And I see this within my CSL
placement with the GBVPP’s gender inclusive bathroom initiative, where we
educate others (especially those who are unsupportive or unaware) about the
gendered violence that can potentially happen within these gender segregated
spaces and how we can then interrupt this “script” by creating a space that
does not tolerate or perpetuate the cycle of violence. So far, education as a
tool has been a very empowering experience for myself (so much so that we
were able to make an impact, no matter the size, on people's
responsiveness to the initiative).
I know that we must also be skeptical of a complete
abolition of prisons, but there is value in what this movement stands for. And
the question that we must consider is "what does this mean for those
who do in fact perpetrate violence?" Part of my answer is that I hope that
by providing alternatives such as education can help serve as an early
intervention before people become perpetrators of violence.
But I do not have an answer – and though I cannot wish away
the violence that does happen day to day nor can I entirely change world we
live in, what I do believe in is “a movement for a better world, for a different
society, for a world that does not need to depend on prisons, because the kind
of institutes that provide – that serve people’s needs will be available.”
Thank you!
Goodman,
A., & Gonzalez, J. (2012, October 19). Angela Davis on the
Prison Abolishment Movement, Frederick Douglass, the 40th Anniversary of Her
Arrest and President Obama’s First Two Years. Democracynow.com. Retrieved November 16, 2013, from http://www.
democracynow.org/2010/10/19/angela_davis _on_the_prison_abolishment.
Hi Tony,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that using violence against violence, as occurs through the cycle of incarceration is problematic. The violence that occurs within the prison system perpetuates a vicious cycle of violence, which results in the maintenance of violence rather than addressing social causes that cause perpetration of crimes. I can see this in my CSL placement with the Elizabeth Fry Society’s Courthouse program, where we regularly see repeat offenders in the courthouse. For these repeat offenders (of which there are many) incarceration and the legal processes do nothing to end this cycle of violence, and perpetration of crimes continue. And I agree, addressing the root problems of why people may commit crimes, de-individualizing and politicizing these social problems may further help intervene in this cycle of violence and reduce repeat offenders.
Some promising work in the Provincial court to interrupt the process of incarceration (and in effect the cycle of violence) is its drug treatment program. Within the drug treatment program, the offenders must be drug tested every couple of weeks, must regularly meet with drug treatment counselors, and every week (or two weeks, depending on the person), rather than facing incarceration, offenders must meet in court with a judge and two lawyers to discuss the offender’s progress in the program. At first, this may seem like a typically individualization of perpetrating crimes as the fault of the offender rather than addressing larger social programs. However, having attended drug treatment court two weeks ago, this program attempts to address larger social issues, such as poverty, racism, etc. which may influence causes of perpetration as well as drug use. Addressing issues such as poverty through future planning, money management, and connecting people to schooling or employment help provide people with the opportunity to raise themselves out of poverty and give them other options rather than violence. In addition, unlike the typical patronizing court system, wherein the judge controls all of this power of you, creating a powerless and humiliating experience, the people in the program are humanized, everyone knows each other, and the judge and the participants are on a first name basis. This relationship creates a space that admonishes the domination of privilege and underprivileged that perpetuates the cycle of violence in our society.
I think the drug treatment program is a progressive move of the court system that interrupts this “script” by creating a space that does not tolerate or perpetuate the cycle of violence, and addresses underlying power structures that may cause the committing of crimes and the use of substance—an interesting alternative to incarceration that will hopefully move our society to a world that no longer needs prisons to address social problems.