The Rights Of Punishment Essays - Punishments, Criminology

The Rights Of Punishment Wake Up Call Is this a hellish nightmare that I have to awaken from? Caged and confined, thinking and pondering, I wonder what human is this that he should be subjected to imprisonment that neither improves nor corrects his soul? Is there no compassion for restoring a man to contribute to this nation? Or does the dark side of humanity see offenders of the law as utter undesirables unworthy of aid and therapy? Society, I have been tried and sentenced. Serving time for violating the law is not supposed to be a picnic. But demoralizing and dehumanizing a man to the dust of the ground does not correct behavior that got him incarcerated in the first place. This only fuels the fire, a fire which, if not handled properly, will in time burn everything in its path. Now who is the real criminal? Cell 52514 Block 2-229 Crescent City Penitentiary Everyday, the American prison system becomes more crowded and over-burdened. Prison bed space cannot keep up with the prison population. While presidents and governors call for a ?tough stance? on crime, the infrastructure is inadequate to contain all offenders. However, even if there were enough room to fit every individual that commits a criminal act, would this be the best move for the community and the offender? Placing an individual into a prison removes them from the general population, thus making the society they live in safer. But, separating individuals in a community does indirectly injure the community as a whole. These individuals obviously are no longer contributing to the local economy, but on a basic level, their absence places a hole into a community. Offenders have been shaped by the values and practices of their community. So, even though an individual may have acted in a way that is unacceptable to their community, that person is still the product of his community . Therefore, communities must hold some of the burden for making people into who they are. So, prisons must do more then just contain offenders. A responsible society must make the effort to rehabilitate these individuals and make strides to re-connect them with the community. As Bill McKibben says, ?Isn't it time to focus harder on substantive problems, such as how do we build a society that doesn't destroy the planet by its greed, and doesn't ignore the weak and the poor (McKibben, p. 720).? Much attention has been given to issues of big business versus the environment. People can sympathize with this cause. Though it may not be as glamorous, it is just as important that society's addresses the needs of the less fortunate. Even though criminals who commit the most heinous crimes receive the majority of public attention, most offenders are not intrinsically evil or irreversible. Often they are weak individuals who may not have received the best upbringing or have instilled in them a set of values incompatible with the community. McKibben feels that it is important not to ignore these unfortunate individuals, and give them an opportunity to re-engage with society in a mutually acceptable way. Therefore, prisons need to train offenders to exist with the rest of society. In the book, C-Unit, the authors suggest that prisons fulfill a certain role. The modern prison is asked to perform three tasks: (1) to make explicit in action that the community will not tolerate certain destructive behaviors; (2) to protect the community, for at least temporary periods of time; and (3) to prepare such persons to be responsible members of the community when they are released from prison. (Studt, Messinger and Thomas, p. 3) By containing prisoners within the confines of a jail, they are removed from the community at large, thus protecting the community. In addition, by making this prison stay punishment, inmates, for the most part, realize that they acted in a way that was unacceptable. Preparing individuals for re-integration into society is where the role of a prison becomes complex. A prison stay is unlikely to reform any criminal if it only means that they are separated from the community and there is no drive to change. The first change that needs to be addressed is on the value system of an inmate. Without this, it is only superficial to urge