I was asked by a friend of mine to call in and offer my perspective on prison abolition. My hope is that my comments will encourage others being held in bondage to call in and partake in meaningful dialog. This is a topic that is often dismissed as, what I like to call, wishful thinking. Have we forgotten that nothing exists that wasn’t first imagined? As if spaceships, smartphones, cars that park themselves and Alexa aren’t all manifestations of mere thought. Have we forgotten? Apparently, so.
The fact that so many people find the notion of a world without prisons unfathomable is not only alarming, but the consequence of hegemony, thinking that the way things are, are how they ought to be. Which is why people accept prisons as the norm because they are and have been for quite some time. The cycle of socialization has manipulated millions into believing that these modern day plantations are normal. Why have we as a society become so desensitized to the well-being of our fellow man or woman?
I know the opposition, that being those who are in support of warehousing human beings are listening to this saying, but what about crime? Here’s a little food for thought. In order for a person to go to jail or prison, they have to get convicted. Prior to that conviction is criminal charges, right? And in order for a person to be charged, they must first be arrested. But wait, a person isn’t arrested until the police are dispatched and officers arrive on the scene. Typically, the police don’t arrive until the crime has occurred. My point is this, police and prisons alike are not preventative, but rather they are reactionary. Both prison and police are responding from the crimes committed.
So, for those walking around with this fictitious belief that prisons deter crime, I have to respectfully disagree. Yet and still, the looming question remains, what about crime? Well, for starters, we can begin with addressing some of the underlying issues plaguing our society, issues such as the lack of employment opportunities that offer livable wages, underfunded schools with outdated curriculum, and, of course, poverty, which I believe is concentrated, but that’s a conversation for another day. These issues breed crime when left unaddressed. Currently, we have a system that places way too much emphasis on punishment. This, to me, is one of the biggest problems with the way in which crime is resolved in the United States.
Angela Davis, in her book Are Prisons Obsolete, is critical when describing the current criminal justice system as we know it. According to Davis, the word criminal is an indictment of the justice system’s character. In other words, criminal and justice system do not act in concert, but instead, criminal stands alone, overtly stating the current condition of the United States in this whole process. What I suggest is for us to lean into the concept of restorative justice when addressing crime in this country.
With a restorative approach, the focus is on the harm caused and the accountability of the one who caused the harm. The questions posed usually consist of, who’s been hurt, what do they need, who should be involved in meeting those needs, and what is the best way to repair the harm and meet those needs? What this approach does is act as a mediator. Mediation is essential, because in doing so, less and less people experience recidivism. So in essence, restorative justice can be the conduit that leads us to the ultimate goal, that being the abolition of prisons.
Think about it, if we can get to a point where the crime in this country is so low, then the need for these barbaric institutions will be no more. When people think of prison abolition, they automatically assume that we will wake up and prisons will just be torn down. That, to me, is not realistic. However, if crime is reduced to the point that there aren’t enough bodies to fill the vacancies, then there will be no choice other than to render prisons obsolete. Then they can be torn down, which, to me, will be awesome.
As for now, prisons are extremely profitable, hence the prison industrial complex, which is corporate involvement in construction, provision of goods and services, and the use of prison labor. For private business, prison labor is like hitting the lottery. There is no union organizing or health benefits, no workers compensation or unemployment insurance. In short, prisons are one big, multi-billion dollar industry. The government isn’t concerned about your safety, and prisons don’t make your community safer. If that was the case, why does the US continue to build more and more prisons? Because the crime continues to persist. In closing, I challenge my listeners who are in support of prisons to imagine the world without them. I dare you to dream bigger. If we can figure out a way to place human beings on the moon, then we can come together in an attempt to find a better solution to crime. Prisons are harmful, and placing human beings in cages is inhumane.
These commentaries are recorded by Prison Radio.