Understanding Incarceration

What is prison like for those incarcerated?

Throughout the documentaries, prison was described as being a place of despair and a place of hate by inmates. Although Dortell Williams said that prison can either be a place that makes you go crazy about the things you can not change. Or you accept the situation you are in and do the best with what you are given. While Nelson described the prison as being a “sh*thole” so it can really vary among prisoners depending on their perspectives. Throughout these various journeys and stories from inmates perspective often changed how their life in prison was.

What is prison like for those working in the field?

Prison can be a very stressful place to work. Being surrounded by ‘criminals’ and being immersed in prison culture. This can make the staff susceptible to mental illness and put them in harm's way. Prison can create a situation, for staff, where it is easy to become mean and insolent, especially towards inmates. Mark describes this himself, that the environment of working in a prison puts the staff in a position to be punitive and harsh. Along with the idea given that inmates are garbage just pushes a narrative for staff to be negative.

What is a prison subculture like? What are relationships like between staff and those incarcerated?

The prison subculture throughout the various documentaries was commonly described as violent and hateful. It pushes inmates to become tough and always be on edge for something to happen. The relationship between prison staff and inmates is very distant. Inmates described staff that did not view them as people who can create an even more negative environment. 

What impact does incarceration have on family members? 

Incarceration can have several different impacts on families from psychological to social. It can be very distressing to have a family member be removed and placed into incarceration and getting to see the individual can be a strenuous task. Family members also are more prone to experience anxiety, depression, and large amounts of stress. It can create many financial burdens for a family. If the individual going to prison was the main source of income for a family it is now also removed and financial costs are added for their imprisonment. The stigma of having a loved one in prison extends to the family as well giving them a negative image. Having this stigma can also lead to the family blaming themselves for their loved one's incarceration. 

What did you find most interesting or surprising from this week's material? 

I found it both surprising and interesting that Dr. B came from a family background that was impacted by parental incarceration. The stories of impacted children are never told unless they also ended up on the path of crime and violence. It was pleasant to know that children impacted can break that cycle and be successful, even a Dr! Also hearing the personal perspectives on individuals in Yard A from the Toe Tag documentary was very interesting. Hearing inmates talk about how they have gained acceptance that they will more than likely never live their life outside of prison. 

 

Did the guest speakers relate or expand upon what was learned in the classroom? Why or why not? 

Yes, the guest speakers expanded on information learned in the classroom greatly. Even gave some information that I feel could not just be learned from a textbook. It is easy to read about prison culture, relationships, and day-day day thoughts. Although this does not allow any emotion or experience behind it, they are just words. Hearing people discuss their personal experiences and how they vary and are similar allow students to really grasp the realities of prison and decipher what stigmas they may have been holding prior. 

Was having insider perspectives a valuable educational experience for you? Why or why not? Which perspectives were most helpful?

It was a valuable educational experience, listening to the people that I may one day make decisions for or work to help get better. It is always important to understand the perspectives of other types of people but in this case, it is also eye-opening I personally found the inmate's perspective from the Toe Tag documentary to be the most helpful. They discussed how different prison models changed them and their life while in prison with Yard A. Hearing how much they have changed and grown while in prison and how they look back on their crime and feel remorse, greatly, and understand how and why it was wrong and that they never had the right to do such an act. Although they are much better people then the person who got them in prison they still accept and have come to terms that they will more than likely live another moment of their life outside of prison. It's helpful to understand how people change their prison for the better because of the majority of the time it's only to when it is for the worse.