What are prisons for?
Why are we going to ICIW?
How can this impact us and the women we encounter?
What do we expect? Hope will happen? Fear? What questions do we have?
I believe that prisons, according to original concept, were meant to temporarily remove citizens from a society they no longer fit into, rehabilitating them and training them to peacefully fit back into society. It seems that the literature about the steps leading to, or rather the consequences resulting from, misuse of prison structure is abundant. More often than not, it seems to be a sad story. Smaller prisons with specialty services seem to have better luck at getting the right people in the right positions---at least giving the possibility of securing some money for programming for prisoners or even structural reform of the prison itself...but in the end, prospects of reducing overpopulation of prisons and the disproportionality of black, poor, and mentally ill (as well as many other) persons seem slim. It was interesting to read on one website that R. posted that with Obama's presidency, advocates of prison reform found a bit of hope that he could begin to at least shine light on the prison problem. It seems to me that, once again, those in prison are still deemed unworthy of our attention. To be honest, they haven't received much of mine either.
I cannot say for certain what my goals are (or even my reasons) for going to ICIW. Maybe after the visit to the prison today I will have a better idea. At this point, I can't even begin to fathom what being imprisoned is like. I haven't seen or felt or smelled or touched the walls; I have no context. I am afraid that I will never be able to understand at a level where the women can actually take me as a legitimate person. I want these women to respect me....meaning, I want to have value for them. I want to be there for them, but if I were imprisoned, I am unsure whether I could ever trust. I am afraid that they will find me patronizing. Then again, I guess our purpose in volunteering has a specific goal. We are doing a class with these women, right? We're going to be having conversations and we'll all be sharing information. I will be so relieved when we're all on the same page. I think that as long as I can keep sight of the infinite variety of my identity and perspective, one that is much more than just being a 'free' person in society, I can drop some of the insecurities I have and just be a person who is making myself available to another.
I am also concerned that I will come off as patronizing and insensitive. If I were in prison, I'm not sure if I would appreciate or resent visitors who came to talk with me about my experiences and what life is like for women in prison. I think you make a good point that if we think of our identities from more than just the perspective of "free person" we open ourselves up to making better connections.
ReplyDeleteI typed a long comment and it never posted, new start I suppose!
ReplyDeleteI had the same worries to not come off patronizing and insensitive toward the women. I get a much different feeling after last week. The women appeared to be warm toward us and were constantly opening doors, the few told their stories briefly, and I think the women we will come in contact with will want to gain something just as I hope to gain something from the experience.
I also think it will be an incredibly interesting experiences between the two lives. Good Post!