Are Prisons Obsolete?

The average person in the USA likely thinks like I did for many decades. Prisons are for sociopaths, most deserve at least their sentence, and the death penalty is possible in some cases. Most of all was a certainty that I was not like the jailed. They were law breakers and I was a friend to many cops, sheriffs, troopers, and federal law enforcement. Over years of doing prison work and being an expert witness jobs and experiencing sadist and criminal law enforcement harming others and that includes quality patients I have a few comments that make this book useful. 1) I believe in capital punishment, but NOT in the USA any longer until all aspects of corruption,money making, arrest rewards and stupidity is removed from the place between the scene of a crime to the execution. In those layers is dirt and trash--and as a believer in USA liberty we have fascist cops, lawyers, attorney generals naive as popcorn, and appeals judges in a space suit. DEATH BY STATES WITH HIGHEST PRISON POPULATION ON EARTH, AND MORE PRISONS THAN PAST HUNDRED YEARS IN A DECADE IN SOME PLACES? We have more inmates than the population of many countries. WE HAVE DEATH PENALTY CASES WITH LESS EVIDENCE THAN HEBREW AND CHRISTIAN BIBLE REQUIREMENTS--MAKES FOR A SOBERING READ THAT THE JEWS WERE BETTER IN LAW THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO THAN THE USA. One needed witnesses and not circumstantial evidence. The witness was the executioner, not someone 300 miles away--this is merely one example. 2) IF YOU ARE A "CHILD" WHO HAS NEVER SEEN A COP LIE OR WRITE A CANNED REPORT MATCHING THE LAST 50, like I was childish and naive, please stop the stupid idealism of my 40's. Some police are dear and loved friends, and some are freaking criminals who deserve jail. If that does not translate, you are not in touch with USA reality. 3) Be honest. Most do not care a dime about jailed people. It will never happen to me. Ha ha ha... We are all a cranky mad cop away from arrest--30 seconds. And I do mean the well off, super educated and very pro-social like me. NO PASS FOR US ANYMORE--WE ARE HATED FOR EDUCATION, INTELLECT, SNOBBISHNESS--REAL OR IMAGINED AND OTHER REASONS. 4) Spend a day in a prison. You will never be the same. You will understand the bill of rights--they do not exist in prisons. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE A DAVIS CLONE TO LISTEN TO SMART POINTS! OR DO YOU FEAR OTHER TV OR RADIO STATIONS ALSO? THAT IS ANTI-KNOWLEDGE, AND A DASH FASCIST. In sum, she was right. We have gone from 20% of world inmates to 25%!!!

Absolutely an incredible and powerful read, just thirty pages in and I am not surprised but appalled by the truth told in this book. Amazing work of journalism and writing that everyone should read.

I believe that this is a very important book. In it, Angela Davis puts forth an extremely compelling case for the abolition of the modern prison system. It was a complete surprise to me to learn that the modern prison system (being locked up as the final punishment) is a fairly recent phenomenon that was considered to be very progressive and humane compared to the former shaming, corporal, and capital punishments that were meted out hundreds of years ago. This book focuses a great deal on the intersection of African American history with prison history, which adds a whole extra layer of horror to the way the system works. I'd be very interested to see how the numbers and statistics have changed (or not) in the past 15 years since it was published, but the book is definitely still relevant and informative. It's also easy to read, not dry or dull at all. Very interesting and flows well which makes the reading enjoyable even while the subject matter is often difficult. As a Quaker, prison reform is an important topic in my social circles, but I had never seriously heard anyone put forth the idea that prisons should somehow be done away with. I finished this book with a new perspective with which I wish more people would become familiar. I recommend this book to anyone who's interested or involved in prison reform, African American history, and/or social justice issues in general.

This was a reasonably quick and compact book on prison reform. The book’s strength lies in the contextualisation of incarceration in its broader history in the United States. The book raised many important issues, including: - The privatisation of prisons in terms of ownership and service delivery, and the perverse incentives this can create. - The vulnerability of prison populations (eg the book gives the example of prisoners who were used for dermatological experiments some of which were deeply harmful to the prisoners’ health) - The link between slavery, convict leases, chain gangs and incarceration. - The gendered dimensions of incarceration. - The racialisation of prisoner populations especially for people of colour who are disproportionately represented in such populations. The last chapter deals with the issue of alternatives to prison. And here, too, the author raises important points, including: - It is too narrow to think of only a single option to replace prisons. We need a multi-faceted approach. - Many think of the alternative to the death penalty as being life imprisonment. But the issues with prisons are so great that it is not necessarily a more “humane” alternative. - Just because it is difficult to imagine society without prisons does not mean it isn’t feasible. There are many things that once seemed permanent and necessarily so — eg slavery. - Horses for courses. Different solutions are needed for different types of offences. Some examples included decriminalisation of drug use, prostitution etc. - We need to address the root cause of criminality, including poverty, failure to provide mental health services, failure to provide services generally to the poor. - We need to think more time terms of reparation than punishment. I think this book did a very good job of introducing some general themes. I think some of its points could have been supported by more research and examples. I think the last chapter was important but it probably covered too much ground. It would have been good to have a longer section on alternatives to prison. This is especially because if you are open to the idea that prisons may be obsolete, the next question is what can either take the place of prison or how would you make punishment for criminal offences (which would otherwise have justified a prison term) no longer necessary? This is eg we can move to reparative models of justice. The author uses the example of the parents of a murdered daughter, who befriended and even came to love some of those who murdered their daughter. This was an enjoyable book given its length but I think it could have benefited from more research and also a more coherent theme to tie the individual chapters together. I thought the book did a good job of explaining why prisons have a lot of problems, but there needed to be more explanation of why the answer is to do away with prisons altogether. I would recommend this book to those who are interested in the US criminal justice system. This was interesting to read given my recent reading of the Sun Does Shine, written by a black man on death row for three decades for a crime he did not commit.

What beautiful writing on an argument that is counterintuitive, but convincing! She has changed many minds on the topic, including my own, mobilizing a social justice movement with huge multiplier effects for many underserved communities.

Really got me to think more about what our criminal justice system could be if it served victims of crime more, rather than corporations who see profit in people who have committed crimes. Even if you think this may not be your cup of tea it will certainly inspire critical thought and some new ideas about how we manage crime in American and the world.

Academic text like this seem to have a tenure’: that is to say, a period of time in which the information is long longer relevant. However, Davis has crafted a text that transcends any “usefulness”. She presents the states of prison at the time, with facts, and serves to make the subjects come alive. This is one of the best comprehensive texts on prison abolition

Pivotal reading for anyone attempting to understand the mess that is our prison industrial complex and the way that racism weaves its way throughout its various structures and dysfunctions. Ms. Davis is accessible but challenging to read stretching us to imagine our approach to "prison reform" much differently. I particularly appreciate the way she shines a light on past practices, like slavery and segregation, and reminds us that we once thought those were "necessary evils" too. Even though she wrote it a while ago, it still has valuable lessons to teach.