Download or read book The Ex Prisoner s Dilemma written by Andrea M. Leverentz and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 2014-03-20 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When a woman leaves prison, she enters a world of competing messages and conflicting advice. Staff from prison, friends, family members, workers at halfway houses and treatment programs all have something to say about who she is, who she should be, and what she should do. The Ex-Prisoner’s Dilemma offers an in-depth, firsthand look at how the former prisoner manages messages about returning to the community. Over the course of a year, Andrea Leverentz conducted repeated interviews with forty-nine women as they adjusted to life outside of prison and worked to construct new ideas of themselves as former prisoners and as mothers, daughters, sisters, romantic partners, friends, students, and workers. Listening to these women, along with their family members, friends, and co-workers, Leverentz pieces together the narratives they have created to explain their past records and guide their future behavior. She traces where these narratives came from and how they were shaped by factors such as gender, race, maternal status, age, and experiences in prison, halfway houses, and twelve-step programs—factors that in turn shaped the women’s expectations for themselves, and others’ expectations of them. The women’s stories form a powerful picture of the complex, complicated human experience behind dry statistics and policy statements regarding prisoner reentry into society for women, how the experience is different for men and the influence society plays. With its unique view of how society’s mixed messages play out in ex-prisoners’ lived realities, The Ex-Prisoner’s Dilemma shows the complexity of these women’s experiences within the broad context of the war on drugs and mass incarceration in America. It offers invaluable lessons for helping such women successfully rejoin society.

Download or read book Female Offenders and Reentry written by Lisa M. Carter and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-07-20 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Often, research concerning the female offender is scarce. This book adds to the criminological literature on the topic of reentry for women, focusing on the barriers women face as they return to society and adjust to life after incarceration. Each chapter addresses specific issues, challenges, and obstacles affiliated with the hindrance of successful reentry processes associated with female offenders, as well as data-driven empirical studies. While corrections has often misunderstood or overlooked the needs of returning offenders, the shortcomings of the institutions have a greater impact on women than on their male counterparts, particularly regarding the occurrence of social and medical problems, especially those related to mental health and substance abuse. Female Offenders and Reentry helps criminal justice students and practitioners see the full picture when considering the challenges faced by female offenders reintegrating into society.

Download or read book Making It in the Free World written by Patricia O'Brien and published by State University of New York Press. This book was released on 2001-02-01 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the first study to address the important but neglected topic of how women return to the "free world" after single or multiple experiences of incarceration. It uses first-person narratives and a comprehensive review of contemporary theory to provide useful suggestions for practitioners and policymakers concerned with responding to the increasing number of women in the criminal justice system. Patricia O'Brien provides an in-depth description of the experiences of women with a variety of criminal histories to elucidate elements that contributed to their desistance from crime. The book challenges practitioners to be more proactive in recognizing the needs of this population and more responsive to these needs. O'Brien suggests policy changes, especially related to alternatives to incarceration. The first-person narratives of non-recidivist women provide concrete and powerful examples of the crucial mix of ingredients any woman needs to remain free and empowered in a context of powerlessness and increasing social control.

Download or read book Breaking Women written by Jill A. McCorkel and published by NYU Press. This book was released on 2013-08-05 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Since the 1980s, when the War on Drugs kicked into high gear and prison populations soared, the increase in women?s rate of incarceration has steadily outpaced that of men. This book draws upon four years of on-the-ground research in a major US women?s prison to uncover why tougher drug policies have so greatly affected those incarcerated there, and how the very nature of punishment in women?s detention centers has been deeply altered as a result." -- Publisher's description.

Download or read book Analysing Women s Imprisonment written by Pat Carlen and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-01-11 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In both the UK and the rest of the world there have been rapid increases in the numbers of women in prison, which has led to an acceleration of interest in women's crimes and the social control of women, and women's experience of both prison and the criminal justice system is very different to men's. This text is concerned to address the key issues relating to women's imprisonment, contributing at the same time to an understanding of prison issues in general and the historical and contemporary politics of gender and penal justice. What are women's prisons for? What are they like? Why are lone mothers, ethnic minority and very poor women disproportionately represented in the women's prison population? Should babies be sent to prison with their mothers? These are amongst the issues with which this book is concerned. Analysing Women's Imprisonment is written as an introductory text to the subject, aiming to guide students of penology carefully through the main historical and contemporary discourses on women's imprisonment. Each chapter has a clear summary ('concepts to know'), essay questions and recommendations for further reading, and will help students prepare confidently for seminars, course examinations and project work.

Download or read book Mean Lives Mean Laws written by Susan F. Sharp and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 2014-09-20 with total page 189 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Oklahoma has long held the dubious honor of having the highest female incarceration rate in the country, nearly twice the national average. In this compelling new book, sociologist Susan Sharp sets out to discover just what has gone so wrong in the state of Oklahoma—and what that might tell us about trends in female incarceration nationwide. The culmination of over a decade of original research, Mean Lives, Mean Laws exposes a Kafkaesque criminal justice system, one that has no problem with treating women as collateral damage in the War on Drugs or with stripping female prisoners of their parental rights. Yet it also reveals the individual histories of women who were jailed in Oklahoma, providing intimate portraits of their lives before, during, and after their imprisonment. We witness the impoverished and abusive conditions in which many of these women were raised; we get a vivid portrait of their everyday lives behind bars; and we glimpse the struggles that lead many ex-convicts to fall back into the penal system. Through an innovative methodology that combines statistical rigor with extensive personal interviews, Sharp shows how female incarceration affects not only individuals, but also families and communities. Putting a human face on a growing social problem, Mean Lives, Mean Laws raises important questions about both the state of Oklahoma and the state of the nation.

Download or read book What Works With Women Offenders written by Rosemary Sheehan and published by Willan. This book was released on 2013-05-13 with total page 346 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The number of women prisoners has been growing rapidly during recent years and in many places has more than doubled in the past decade, significantly outstripping increases in the number of male prisoners and with particular consequences for minority ethnic, black and aboriginal women, who constitute disproportionate levels of prison populations in many countries including Canada, the United States, the UK and Australia. What Works with Women Offenders provides a comprehensive analysis of the issues relating to work with women offenders. Chapters are written by academics and professionals with a high degree of expertise in their specific field, and its practical focus is designed to make it relevant to those working with women offenders. Imprisoning women offenders does not solve the problems that underlie the involvement of women in the criminal justice system, and a particular concern of this book is to identify and develop alternative responses that offer appropriate support and intervention to address womens underlying problems and reduce re-offending. The increase in womens imprisonment is very much an international phenomenon, and the book also aims to share knowledge and experiences from different jurisdictions to be shared more widely, and for the lessons learnt from good practice to be more widely disseminated.

Download or read book Resistance Behind Bars written by Victoria Law and published by PM Press. This book was released on 2012-10-05 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1974, women imprisoned at New York’s maximum-security prison at Bedford Hills staged what is known as the August Rebellion. Protesting the brutal beating of a fellow prisoner, the women fought off guards, holding seven of them hostage, and took over sections of the prison. While many have heard of the 1971 Attica prison uprising, the August Rebellion remains relatively unknown even in activist circles. Resistance Behind Bars is determined to challenge and change such oversights. As it examines daily struggles against appalling prison conditions and injustices, Resistance documents both collective organizing and individual resistance among women incarcerated in the U.S. Emphasizing women’s agency in resisting the conditions of their confinement through forming peer education groups, clandestinely arranging ways for children to visit mothers in distant prisons and raising public awareness about their lives, Resistance seeks to spark further discussion and research into the lives of incarcerated women and galvanize much-needed outside support for their struggles. This updated and revised edition of the 2009 PASS Award winning book includes a new chapter about transgender, transsexual, intersex, and gender-variant people in prison.

Download or read book Women Exiting Prison written by Bree Carlton and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-05-02 with total page 239 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Women’s incarceration is on the rise globally and this has significant intergenerational, economic and humanitarian costs for communities across the world. While there have been efforts to implement reform, particularly in countries such as Canada, UK, US and Australia, the growing evidence suggests women’s prisons and the support structures surrounding them are in crisis. This collection of critical essays presents groundbreaking research on women’s post-imprisonment policy, practice and experiences. It is the first collection to offer international perspectives on gender, criminalisation, the effects of imprisonment and women-centred approaches to the short and long-term support of women exiting prison. It offers cutting-edge insights into contemporary policy developments and women’s experiences across the US, the UK, Australia, Canada and Northern Ireland. The collection makes two important contributions. First, it marks a departure from an instrumental and individual focus on ‘what works’ to reduce women’s offending and re-offending behaviour - a prevailing approach within competing collections focused on post-release issues. Second, it presents critical, original research with robust empirical foundations to revive feminist criminological engagement around gender, imprisonment, and most critically, post-release management, support and survival. The collection will appeal to academics and community-based advocates, activists, lawyers and practitioners engaged in advocacy and service provision for imprisoned women. It is also an important and unique analysis for undergraduate and postgraduate students studying criminological and social science courses particularly those related to gender and crime, imprisonment and correctional policy and qualitative research methods.

Download or read book Chained in Silence written by Talitha L. LeFlouria and published by UNC Press Books. This book was released on 2015-04-27 with total page 275 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1868, the state of Georgia began to make its rapidly growing population of prisoners available for hire. The resulting convict leasing system ensnared not only men but also African American women, who were forced to labor in camps and factories to make profits for private investors. In this vivid work of history, Talitha L. LeFlouria draws from a rich array of primary sources to piece together the stories of these women, recounting what they endured in Georgia's prison system and what their labor accomplished. LeFlouria argues that African American women's presence within the convict lease and chain-gang systems of Georgia helped to modernize the South by creating a new and dynamic set of skills for black women. At the same time, female inmates struggled to resist physical and sexual exploitation and to preserve their human dignity within a hostile climate of terror. This revealing history redefines the social context of black women's lives and labor in the New South and allows their stories to be told for the first time.

Download or read book Female Offenders written by American Bar Association. Female Offender Resource Center and published by . This book was released on 1976 with total page 72 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book You Don t Know Me written by Wally Lamb and published by Counterpoint LLC. This book was released on 2019 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In a new collection of essays,New York Times bestselling author Wally Lamb guides the writing of the inmates at York Correctional Institution into moments of honesty and revelation, presenting the truths discovered during incarceration An adopted woman searching for her origins discovers she was born in prison. A bank robber reminisces about her first theft in kindergarten. A prisoner serving a life sentence examines the nature of time. A young woman dreams of escape not from prison but from addiction and will sadly fail at both. These are just a few of the stories found inYou Don't Know Me: The Incarcerated Women of York Prison Voice Their Truths. For more than twenty years,New York Times bestselling novelist Wally Lamb has led a writing workshop for the women at the York Correctional Institution, Connecticut's only prison for women. InYou Don't Know Me, their autobiographical essays challenge our assumptions about the incarcerated and the criminal justice system. The fifteen stories presented here offer an honest look at a group of women who write to confront and transcend their histories and their lives in prison, gaining valuable insight along the way. Alongside the women's writing is Lamb's own chapter devoted to his reunion with several of his former students--ex-offenders who discuss their lives after prison and their reentry into aworld dramatically changed by technology, altered family dynamics, and cultural shifts. In discussion with Lamb, the women movingly recount their reintegration into society, the challenges of finding work, the value of family and support systems, and the ways in which their writing enhanced their rehabilitation. Tackling timely themes and centered on the important issues of mass incarceration and draconian sentencing practices,You Don't Know Me is a bracing call for rehabilitation and reform using stories that underline the humanity within us all.

Download or read book Programs and Services Helping Women Ex offenders to Help Themselves and Become Self supporting written by Women's Justice Services and published by . This book was released on 1975 with total page 6 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Alternatives to Women s Imprisonment written by Pat Carlen and published by . This book was released on 1990 with total page 162 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Carlen (criminology, U. of Keele, UK) examines some of the fundamental issues concerning custodial and non-custodial penalties. She reports on existing provisions for women in England and Wales, innovative projects in other countries, and the impediments, both ideological and political, to reducing the female prison population. Finally, she outlines a strategy for the abolition of women's imprisonment. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Download or read book Integrating Substance Abuse Treatment and Vocational Services written by Nancy K. Young and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Women After Prison written by Mary Eaton and published by . This book was released on 1993 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book After Prison written by David J. Harding and published by Russell Sage Foundation. This book was released on 2020-08-31 with total page 350 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The incarceration rate in the United States is the highest of any developed nation, with a prison population of approximately 2.3 million in 2016. Over 700,000 prisoners are released each year, and most face significant educational, economic, and social disadvantages. In After Prison, sociologist David Harding and criminologist Heather Harris provide a comprehensive account of young men’s experiences of reentry and reintegration in the era of mass incarceration. They focus on the unique challenges faced by 1,300 black and white youth aged 18 to 25 who were released from Michigan prisons in 2003, investigating the lives of those who achieved some measure of success after leaving prison as well as those who struggled with the challenges of creating new lives for themselves. The transition to young adulthood typically includes school completion, full-time employment, leaving the childhood home, marriage, and childbearing, events that are disrupted by incarceration. While one quarter of the young men who participated in the study successfully transitioned into adulthood—achieving employment and residential independence and avoiding arrest and incarceration—the same number of young men remained deeply involved with the criminal justice system, spending on average four out of the seven years after their initial release re-incarcerated. Not surprisingly, whites are more likely to experience success after prison. The authors attribute this racial disparity to the increased stigma of criminal records for blacks, racial discrimination, and differing levels of social network support that connect whites to higher quality jobs. Black men earn less than white men, are more concentrated in industries characterized by low wages and job insecurity, and are less likely to remain employed once they have a job. The authors demonstrate that families, social networks, neighborhoods, and labor market, educational, and criminal justice institutions can have a profound impact on young people’s lives. Their research indicates that residential stability is key to the transition to adulthood. Harding and Harris make the case for helping families, municipalities, and non-profit organizations provide formerly incarcerated young people access to long-term supportive housing and public housing. A remarkably large number of men in this study eventually enrolled in college, reflecting the growing recognition of college as a gateway to living wage work. But the young men in the study spent only brief spells in college, and the majority failed to earn degrees. They were most likely to enroll in community colleges, trade schools, and for-profit institutions, suggesting that interventions focused on these kinds of schools are more likely to be effective. The authors suggest that, in addition to helping students find employment, educational institutions can aid reentry efforts for the formerly incarcerated by providing supports like childcare and paid apprenticeships. After Prison offers a set of targeted policy interventions to improve these young people’s chances: lifting restrictions on federal financial aid for education, encouraging criminal record sealing and expungement, and reducing the use of incarceration in response to technical parole violations. This book will be an important contribution to the fields of scholarly work on the criminal justice system and disconnected youth.