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Locked Down, Locked Out: Why Prison Doesn't Work and How We Can Do Better
In Locked Down, Locked Out, award-winning journalist Maya Schenwar looks at how prison tears families and communities apart, creating a rippling effect that touches every corner of our society. Through the stories of prisoners and their families, as well as her own family's experience of her sister's incarceration, Schenwar shows how the institution that locks up 2.3 million Americans and decimates poor communities of color is shredding the ties that, if nurtured, could foster real collective safety. The destruction does not end upon exiting the prison walls: the 95 percent of prisoners who are released emerge with even fewer economic opportunities and fewer human connections on the outside than before. Locked Down, Locked Out shows how incarceration takes away the very things that might enable people to build better lives. Looking toward a future beyond imprisonment, Schenwar profiles community-based initiatives that foster antiracist, anticlassist, prohumanity approaches to justice. These programs successfully deal with problems both individual harm and larger social wrongs through connection rather than isolation, moving toward a safer future for all of us."
“This book has the power to transform hearts and minds, opening us to new ways of imagining what justice can mean for individuals, families, communities, and our nation as a whole. I turned the last page feeling nothing less than inspired.”
–Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow
“Maya Schenwar’s stories about prisoners, their families (including her own), and the thoroughly broken punishment system are rescued from any pessimism such narratives might inspire by the author’s brilliant juxtaposition of abolitionist imaginaries and radical political practices.”
–Angela Davis, author of Are Prisons Obsolete?
“A tour de force! Schenwar has written a must-read, damning account of the twisted philosophy and practice of incarceration…Until society changes its approach toward its ‘offenders,’ until we leaven punishment with forgiveness, reconciliation, and restorative justice, we are all guilty as charged.”
—Dennis J. Kucinich, US Congressman (1997–2013) and presidential candidate
“This book has the power to transform hearts and minds, opening us to new ways of imagining what justice can mean for individuals, families, communities, and our nation as a whole. I turned the last page feeling nothing less than inspired.”
–Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow
“Maya Schenwar’s stories about prisoners, their families (including her own), and the thoroughly broken punishment system are rescued from any pessimism such narratives might inspire by the author’s brilliant juxtaposition of abolitionist imaginaries and radical political practices.”
–Angela Davis, author of Are Prisons Obsolete?
“A tour de force! Schenwar has written a must-read, damning account of the twisted philosophy and practice of incarceration…Until society changes its approach toward its ‘offenders,’ until we leaven punishment with forgiveness, reconciliation, and restorative justice, we are all guilty as charged.”
—Dennis J. Kucinich, US Congressman (1997–2013) and presidential candidate
225 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
24 people are currently reading
1561 people want to read
About the author
Maya Schenwar
7 books142 followersMaya Schenwar is the coauthor of Prison by Any Other Name, author of Locked Down, Locked Out: Why Prison Doesn't Work and How We Can Do Better, and co-editor of Who Do You Serve, Who Do You Protect? She is also Editor-in-Chief of Truthout. She has written about the prison-industrial complex for Truthout, The New York Times, NBC News, The Guardian, The Nation, Salon, Ms. Magazine, and many others. She is the recipient of a Society of Professional Journalists Sigma Chi Award, an Independent Publisher Book Award, the Women's Prison Association's Sarah Powell Huntington Leadership Award, and a Lannan Residency Fellowship. Maya organizes with the Chicago-based abolitionist group Love & Protect and is a cofounder of the Chicago Community Bond Fund.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
November 10, 2014
I know many people who are skeptical of prison reform, specifically the idea that there can be alternatives for dealing with people who commit particularly "evil" crimes. I feel like this book is one which will open skeptical minds and get them thinking. The skeptics will not be able to just dismiss this book as bleeding-heart liberalism... because it's a book that refuses to dodge the tough questions.
What do I mean by this? Well, the opening scene of the introduction describes the author's mixed feelings when her heroin-addicted sister ends up in jail, (again). The author writes, "Later, when I pick up the phone and hear a robotic voice announce, 'You have a collect call from the Cook County Jail: press five to take the call,' I press the hang-up button and get back into bed."
As a whole, the book makes the argument that connection to friends, family, and community outside of prison is what rehabilitates people (and therefore the prison-industrial complex hobbles rehabilitation by making this connection difficult.) And yet the author opens the book with a scene where the task of connecting with her newly incarcerated sister, was something that was just too much to handle in that particular moment. What this honesty means to me, is the author is not white-washing the difficulty of pursuing the alternative solutions. The alternative solutions are hard.
But the status quo is one of tremendous cruelty, that doesn't even make us safer. The author shares compelling evidence that prison makes prisoners MORE likely, not less likely, to commit another crime. We're paying huge amounts of taxpayer dollars for a service that makes us LESS SAFE! That is just insane. What would be the easiest way to get safer? A disproportionate number of people in prison come from backgrounds of poverty, racism, and abuse- so fighting those problems, and helping people have better childhoods, might be the best investment in our safety we could make.
The entire second half of the book is about alternative solutions- not utopian ones the author has imagined, but ones that have actually been road-tested by a variety of nonprofit organizations. My favorite part of the book was reading about a Peace Room in an inner city high school. The Peace Room was always staffed by youth workers and whenever anyone started to have a fight or an argument that escalated, they would either get sent to the Peace Room, or their concerned friends would drag them there.
The author shared a transcript of a conversation that took place in the Peace Room that made me feel very emotional because it reminded me of my time in youth counseling, both the humor and the difficulty of it. A teenager threw a carton of milk at another teenager, who took that as an insult to his honor and responded by menacingly stalking the milk-thrower. The adult counselors worked with both teenagers to help them understand the other's point of view (e.g. having milk thrown at you is super annoying, stalking is over-reacting.) If the milk-throwing incident had been allowed to escalate into violence it could have led to detention, suspension, which in turn leads to juvvie, which in turn leads to jail... the counselors were intervening before the whole vicious cycle could start, which was amazing. However, you could also tell it was extremely hard work. Getting the angry teenagers to understand their "enemy" was incredibly hard work.
"Hurt people hurt people," was one of the messages of the book, and I think that's incredibly true. Prison is where we stash people who's hurt is so bad, we just can't deal with it. It would be more courageous to turn to those people and try and heal their pain and straighten them out. Instead we put them in prison, where we can ignore them and not think about it. But it bites us on the butt when they come out of prison and re-offend.
This book makes me tremendously grateful for all the healers in the world who have the courage to face the pain of others (and the pain that resentful, hurting people inflict on would-be healers.) It also makes me reflect on the times in my life I have turned away from someone else's pain because it was just too much for me to handle. In the end, if helping someone else is hurting YOU, maybe it's not the wisest idea. But surely all of us could stand to give a little more than we currently do, to cure the ills of the world. Maybe if we did, there would be fewer people in jail.
What do I mean by this? Well, the opening scene of the introduction describes the author's mixed feelings when her heroin-addicted sister ends up in jail, (again). The author writes, "Later, when I pick up the phone and hear a robotic voice announce, 'You have a collect call from the Cook County Jail: press five to take the call,' I press the hang-up button and get back into bed."
As a whole, the book makes the argument that connection to friends, family, and community outside of prison is what rehabilitates people (and therefore the prison-industrial complex hobbles rehabilitation by making this connection difficult.) And yet the author opens the book with a scene where the task of connecting with her newly incarcerated sister, was something that was just too much to handle in that particular moment. What this honesty means to me, is the author is not white-washing the difficulty of pursuing the alternative solutions. The alternative solutions are hard.
But the status quo is one of tremendous cruelty, that doesn't even make us safer. The author shares compelling evidence that prison makes prisoners MORE likely, not less likely, to commit another crime. We're paying huge amounts of taxpayer dollars for a service that makes us LESS SAFE! That is just insane. What would be the easiest way to get safer? A disproportionate number of people in prison come from backgrounds of poverty, racism, and abuse- so fighting those problems, and helping people have better childhoods, might be the best investment in our safety we could make.
The entire second half of the book is about alternative solutions- not utopian ones the author has imagined, but ones that have actually been road-tested by a variety of nonprofit organizations. My favorite part of the book was reading about a Peace Room in an inner city high school. The Peace Room was always staffed by youth workers and whenever anyone started to have a fight or an argument that escalated, they would either get sent to the Peace Room, or their concerned friends would drag them there.
The author shared a transcript of a conversation that took place in the Peace Room that made me feel very emotional because it reminded me of my time in youth counseling, both the humor and the difficulty of it. A teenager threw a carton of milk at another teenager, who took that as an insult to his honor and responded by menacingly stalking the milk-thrower. The adult counselors worked with both teenagers to help them understand the other's point of view (e.g. having milk thrown at you is super annoying, stalking is over-reacting.) If the milk-throwing incident had been allowed to escalate into violence it could have led to detention, suspension, which in turn leads to juvvie, which in turn leads to jail... the counselors were intervening before the whole vicious cycle could start, which was amazing. However, you could also tell it was extremely hard work. Getting the angry teenagers to understand their "enemy" was incredibly hard work.
"Hurt people hurt people," was one of the messages of the book, and I think that's incredibly true. Prison is where we stash people who's hurt is so bad, we just can't deal with it. It would be more courageous to turn to those people and try and heal their pain and straighten them out. Instead we put them in prison, where we can ignore them and not think about it. But it bites us on the butt when they come out of prison and re-offend.
This book makes me tremendously grateful for all the healers in the world who have the courage to face the pain of others (and the pain that resentful, hurting people inflict on would-be healers.) It also makes me reflect on the times in my life I have turned away from someone else's pain because it was just too much for me to handle. In the end, if helping someone else is hurting YOU, maybe it's not the wisest idea. But surely all of us could stand to give a little more than we currently do, to cure the ills of the world. Maybe if we did, there would be fewer people in jail.
November 6, 2014
Maya Schenwar has written a compelling book that really needs to be read by everyone in the U.S. Our "justice" system has become a for-profit venue for retribution and revenge. There is little rehabilitation or actual justice. By locking millions of people in cages for an ever-growing variety of "crimes", we have effectively created a revolving door prison culture.
This book takes us inside and beyond those prison walls. Schenwar's writing style is conversational, making it an ideal read for people from any educational background. She takes us on a journey, using real and sometimes personal cases to spotlight the cracks, fissures, and major breaks in our prison system.
Even if you believe - or maybe especially if you believe - that at least most people in prison deserve to be there, you need to read this book. Schenwar points out how the prison culture destroys the inmates' humanity, how merely surviving inside those walls requires a shutdown of the very qualities we should be nurturing. The type of change we are cultivating inside prisons is not what we want to set loose on society when these inmates are released.
While the first half of this book focuses on the problems of prison, the second half is all about ways to fix the breaks. These are not idealistic, far-fetched dreams, but actual programs that work and should absolutely be implemented everywhere.
Not everyone in prison is a cold-blooded killer. In fact, most are not. Yet we treat them all equally, like rabid animals in a war zone. Isn't it time we regained our humanity?
This book takes us inside and beyond those prison walls. Schenwar's writing style is conversational, making it an ideal read for people from any educational background. She takes us on a journey, using real and sometimes personal cases to spotlight the cracks, fissures, and major breaks in our prison system.
Even if you believe - or maybe especially if you believe - that at least most people in prison deserve to be there, you need to read this book. Schenwar points out how the prison culture destroys the inmates' humanity, how merely surviving inside those walls requires a shutdown of the very qualities we should be nurturing. The type of change we are cultivating inside prisons is not what we want to set loose on society when these inmates are released.
While the first half of this book focuses on the problems of prison, the second half is all about ways to fix the breaks. These are not idealistic, far-fetched dreams, but actual programs that work and should absolutely be implemented everywhere.
Not everyone in prison is a cold-blooded killer. In fact, most are not. Yet we treat them all equally, like rabid animals in a war zone. Isn't it time we regained our humanity?
November 27, 2014
Wow! Read this one.
Maya tells a very personal, powerful story by mixing first person narrative (Maya's sister has been in and out of jails and prisons for years), narratives taken from letters written by prisoners themselves, and facts and figures from academic research. Maya's well honed writing skills (her day job is Editor of Truthout) meld these disparate sources into a remarkably readable, and thought provoking, book.
If you are new to the issue of prison reform, Maya's book provides an excellent starting place. By filtering the stories she tells through her own personal experiences, she provides a "way in" to the prison system for those unfamiliar with that world. For those who have been in the struggle for years, the book is energizing, shedding new light on old problems in a manner that is both accessible and enraging.
But (and this is a minor "but" amongst many superlatives), the book's strength is also its weakness. Because so much of the narrative is filtered through Maya's personal lens, the reality of life behind bars is softened. There is a reference by Johnnie Walton to men at Tamms supermax cutting themselves, but the issue it is then dropped without exploring what this means, why they do it, how widespread it is, and what this says about supermax prisons. There are hints of untreated serious mental illness scattered through the book, but there are no details, and it appears Maya did not become close with any prisoner suffering from a serious mental illness (other than drug addiction--which is its own kind of hell). There is a suggestion that prison damages those we incarcerate, but the depth of the damage done, and the implications of that damage to society, are not explored. I eagerly await a book where the reader is taken into the "Belly of the Beast," as Jack Abbott so wonderfully phrased it.
This is not that book.
But it is a damn good start. Buy it. Read it. Share it. Send one to a prisoner.
Maya tells a very personal, powerful story by mixing first person narrative (Maya's sister has been in and out of jails and prisons for years), narratives taken from letters written by prisoners themselves, and facts and figures from academic research. Maya's well honed writing skills (her day job is Editor of Truthout) meld these disparate sources into a remarkably readable, and thought provoking, book.
If you are new to the issue of prison reform, Maya's book provides an excellent starting place. By filtering the stories she tells through her own personal experiences, she provides a "way in" to the prison system for those unfamiliar with that world. For those who have been in the struggle for years, the book is energizing, shedding new light on old problems in a manner that is both accessible and enraging.
But (and this is a minor "but" amongst many superlatives), the book's strength is also its weakness. Because so much of the narrative is filtered through Maya's personal lens, the reality of life behind bars is softened. There is a reference by Johnnie Walton to men at Tamms supermax cutting themselves, but the issue it is then dropped without exploring what this means, why they do it, how widespread it is, and what this says about supermax prisons. There are hints of untreated serious mental illness scattered through the book, but there are no details, and it appears Maya did not become close with any prisoner suffering from a serious mental illness (other than drug addiction--which is its own kind of hell). There is a suggestion that prison damages those we incarcerate, but the depth of the damage done, and the implications of that damage to society, are not explored. I eagerly await a book where the reader is taken into the "Belly of the Beast," as Jack Abbott so wonderfully phrased it.
This is not that book.
But it is a damn good start. Buy it. Read it. Share it. Send one to a prisoner.
February 22, 2016
The first half of this book discusses how the (American) prison system sabotages all the factors known to reduce recidivism rates among ex-inmates: family connections, interpersonal relationships, community engagement, education, and employment.
The author, Maya Schenwar, illustrates with examples from her own family's experience. Her sister was incarcerated multiple times and gave birth in prison. Schenwar explains that inmates are warehoused far from home, sometimes even out of state, making family visits prohibitively expensive or impossible for working-class and poor families, which is the majority of the affected families. If family makes it to the visitor center, long lines and short hours mean some won't get in. Phone call rates are extortionate; calls are monitored and interrupted; call privileges are subject to the whims of wardens and corrections officers. Mail, also monitored and censored, routinely goes "missing." Books are heavily sanctioned and may be taken from inmates for minor infractions. And once released from prison, a person's job prospects are dismal because their skills (if any) are out of date and few employers will accept an ex-con. Thus rather than rehabilitating, the system ensures that people leave prison worse off than they entered it, and therefore more likely to re-offend or fall afoul of parole restrictions.
Meanwhile, structural conditions that predispose people toward crime, such as racism and poverty, are fortified when the prison/legal system "disappears" millions of marginalized people for years or even lifetimes. Though the author is white, she is cognizant of that privilege and readily acknowledges how much worse the odds are for minorities of all kinds. She frequently turns over the bullhorn so those minorities can speak for themselves.
Schenwar doesn't ignore the abuses that inmates suffer from guards and other inmates, but she doesn't spend much time on it, either. This makes the book less upsetting than others in the genre.
The second half of the book focuses on decarceration, what we as individuals can do to dismantle the prison system. She encourages pen-pal programs and activism opportunities, but she also asks us to reconsider our understanding of crime (versus harm, for example) and whether we really need to bring police into situations. She also spends a fair amount of time on models of community-based justice (or transformative justice), with concrete examples of how schools and communities can address harmful behavior and remedy the underlying causes of violence without throwing people away.
This is a practical, personable book that is easy to read. A list of resources gives readers ideas for immediate action, and extensive bibliographic notes pave the way for further research.
The author, Maya Schenwar, illustrates with examples from her own family's experience. Her sister was incarcerated multiple times and gave birth in prison. Schenwar explains that inmates are warehoused far from home, sometimes even out of state, making family visits prohibitively expensive or impossible for working-class and poor families, which is the majority of the affected families. If family makes it to the visitor center, long lines and short hours mean some won't get in. Phone call rates are extortionate; calls are monitored and interrupted; call privileges are subject to the whims of wardens and corrections officers. Mail, also monitored and censored, routinely goes "missing." Books are heavily sanctioned and may be taken from inmates for minor infractions. And once released from prison, a person's job prospects are dismal because their skills (if any) are out of date and few employers will accept an ex-con. Thus rather than rehabilitating, the system ensures that people leave prison worse off than they entered it, and therefore more likely to re-offend or fall afoul of parole restrictions.
Meanwhile, structural conditions that predispose people toward crime, such as racism and poverty, are fortified when the prison/legal system "disappears" millions of marginalized people for years or even lifetimes. Though the author is white, she is cognizant of that privilege and readily acknowledges how much worse the odds are for minorities of all kinds. She frequently turns over the bullhorn so those minorities can speak for themselves.
Schenwar doesn't ignore the abuses that inmates suffer from guards and other inmates, but she doesn't spend much time on it, either. This makes the book less upsetting than others in the genre.
The second half of the book focuses on decarceration, what we as individuals can do to dismantle the prison system. She encourages pen-pal programs and activism opportunities, but she also asks us to reconsider our understanding of crime (versus harm, for example) and whether we really need to bring police into situations. She also spends a fair amount of time on models of community-based justice (or transformative justice), with concrete examples of how schools and communities can address harmful behavior and remedy the underlying causes of violence without throwing people away.
This is a practical, personable book that is easy to read. A list of resources gives readers ideas for immediate action, and extensive bibliographic notes pave the way for further research.
July 4, 2016
Reading this book, I realize how much I have to learn, even after decades of trying to understand power and oppression in the United States. When it comes to incarceration, my first reactions are liberal, which I define as wanting to make things better without doing the work to make things right. I read the first half of the book and felt proud of myself for getting a better understanding of the many ways people in prison and their families suffer. Then I hit the suggestions for change in the second half of the book, and to my surprise, I struggled with them.
Maya Schenwar makes a strong case that prisons do nobody any good. She shows how incarceration allows the rest of us to put the problems of poverty, domestic violence, unemployment, lack of education, mental illness, discrimination, housing that's not fit for human habitation--and so many others that contribute to people committing crimes--out of sight and out of mind.
I had to agree, and yet I kept wondering about the small group of people that would continue to victimize other people regardless. I don't want to be a victim of crime, and I don't want my wife to be a victim. That's natural, I think. But what is it in me that defaults to that line of thinking and doesn't let me keep my thoughts on the people who are victims of the criminal justice system? There are so many, and they are in pain every day...and a whole lot of them were victims first. "Hurt people hurt people."
The most important lesson I learned from this book is to ask not who committed a crime, but who harmed another human being. Crime has been and is continually defined in a way that allows the state to "discipline and punish" (borrowing from Michel Foucault here). Thinking about harm allows us to think about undoing the harm and restoring peace and justice between people (or creating it where it didn't previously exist).
I will be thinking about this book for a long time.
Maya Schenwar makes a strong case that prisons do nobody any good. She shows how incarceration allows the rest of us to put the problems of poverty, domestic violence, unemployment, lack of education, mental illness, discrimination, housing that's not fit for human habitation--and so many others that contribute to people committing crimes--out of sight and out of mind.
I had to agree, and yet I kept wondering about the small group of people that would continue to victimize other people regardless. I don't want to be a victim of crime, and I don't want my wife to be a victim. That's natural, I think. But what is it in me that defaults to that line of thinking and doesn't let me keep my thoughts on the people who are victims of the criminal justice system? There are so many, and they are in pain every day...and a whole lot of them were victims first. "Hurt people hurt people."
The most important lesson I learned from this book is to ask not who committed a crime, but who harmed another human being. Crime has been and is continually defined in a way that allows the state to "discipline and punish" (borrowing from Michel Foucault here). Thinking about harm allows us to think about undoing the harm and restoring peace and justice between people (or creating it where it didn't previously exist).
I will be thinking about this book for a long time.
August 1, 2020
This is the PERFECT first thing to read if you range from completely ignorant about the reality of prisons to if you're slightly on the fence about abolition.
So comprehensive, not just in the racist, classist, etc. failings of the current system of carceral institutions, but also in options for replacing that with transformative/restorative justice that focuses on holistically healing the social situations that cause crime, humanizing + acknowledging the needs of people who cause harm, and also working with victims/survivors/communities to ensure they get what they need out of the process.
So good, so highly recommended.
So comprehensive, not just in the racist, classist, etc. failings of the current system of carceral institutions, but also in options for replacing that with transformative/restorative justice that focuses on holistically healing the social situations that cause crime, humanizing + acknowledging the needs of people who cause harm, and also working with victims/survivors/communities to ensure they get what they need out of the process.
So good, so highly recommended.
September 6, 2017
The first half of the book is a thoughtful discussion of how prisons impact prisoners, their families, and communities. The book demonstrates many ways that prisons don't serve useful social functions, but instead cause harm and exacerbate social problems.
The second half talks about new ways of thinking about and addressing conflicts and harm that don't rely on criminalization. There is a lot of in-depth and amazing work being done and these chapters take what could be written of as pie-in-the-sky ideas and ground them in the ongoing work of organizations and individuals working towards both decarceration as well as alternative practices of restorative and transformative justice.
Its a great overview and also provides suggestions for additional resources so you learn more!
The second half talks about new ways of thinking about and addressing conflicts and harm that don't rely on criminalization. There is a lot of in-depth and amazing work being done and these chapters take what could be written of as pie-in-the-sky ideas and ground them in the ongoing work of organizations and individuals working towards both decarceration as well as alternative practices of restorative and transformative justice.
Its a great overview and also provides suggestions for additional resources so you learn more!
June 30, 2020
I found this to be a good account of how bad the US prison system can be, as well as bringing light to complicated issues such as pregnancy during incarceration, drug addiction and job prospects or former inmates. It also helped shed light on the different ways people of colour can be negatively discriminated against by the system.
I found the book to be a little too US-centric for my liking, I think it would have benefited from a comparison of the US prison system with those present in other developed countries. I didn't find the community based alternatives to the US justice system to be particularly convincing, but I do agree that reforming the justice system to become more restorative instead of punitive would be beneficial.
I found the book to be a little too US-centric for my liking, I think it would have benefited from a comparison of the US prison system with those present in other developed countries. I didn't find the community based alternatives to the US justice system to be particularly convincing, but I do agree that reforming the justice system to become more restorative instead of punitive would be beneficial.
February 6, 2025
an insightful introduction to the prison-industrial complex and why pursuing alternatives is so important! Schenwar did an excellent job of describing current conditions and then presenting reformative and transformative methods to turn to instead. I really liked how she used anecdotes, from her own life and from others’, both inside and outside, to make the information more digestible and to center the book on our shared humanity. I will definitely be coming back to this book throughout the semester!
*read book online
*read book online
May 22, 2025
Locked Down, Locked Out looks at how prison impacts families and communities nationwide. Maya speaks from both a personal (as her sister has been in and out of systems) and from a policy based perspective.
Throughout the book, Schenwar makes str0ng arguments for the benefits of community ties and shifts easily from impact to prisoners and their families in the first half to new ways of addressing harm throughout the second half.
Great narration throughout and the entire book was thoughtful and balanced.
Throughout the book, Schenwar makes str0ng arguments for the benefits of community ties and shifts easily from impact to prisoners and their families in the first half to new ways of addressing harm throughout the second half.
Great narration throughout and the entire book was thoughtful and balanced.
December 28, 2019
Such an important read! Maya is able to show us why prisons and policing don’t produce safety while also showing us how to build up transformative practices that do. She reminds us that abolition isn’t only about tearing down harmful structures, but also about building up healing ones. This book should be in every abolitionist toolkit.
November 18, 2014
This book is fascinating. It delves into the effects of the US prison system on the inmate population at large while simultaneously providing a riveting account of the author's relationship with her sister and her sister's experience in a variety of prisons - not to mention the author's various "pen pals". I
The current prison system is clearly broken and Schenwar's potential solutions are spot on. A must-read for any U.S. citizen.
The current prison system is clearly broken and Schenwar's potential solutions are spot on. A must-read for any U.S. citizen.
March 30, 2015
Awesome, like a prison studies primer. If your shelf is full of weighty, statistics-heavy prison studies resources that you feel like you'll never get to, this is a totally accessible way in. It goes over a lot of aspects of PIC, and there is also a family memoir element, explaining the author's personal investment in this area of activism. Loved it.
March 25, 2024
I would give "Locked Down, Locked Out" by Maya Schenwar a solid 4 stars. Schenwar offers a refreshing perspective on the issue of incarceration, considering alternative programs and options with depth and nuance.
The book's conversational writing style makes it highly engaging and accessible, allowing readers to connect with the material on a personal level. Despite its accessibility, "Locked Down, Locked Out" is clearly well-researched, drawing on a wealth of information to support its arguments and insights.
One of the book's strengths lies in Schenwar's ability to balance factual information with poignant personal stories (her own and those of incarcerated individuals), effectively illustrating the human impact of incarceration. Through these narratives, she sheds light on the struggles and abuses faced by inmates, fostering empathy and understanding among readers.
While Schenwar explores alternative programs and options for reforming the criminal justice system, she acknowledges the inherent challenges and complexities of finding alternatives for the most serious offenders. Likewise, she is honest about the difficulties facing a large-scale shift in the "prison nation". This honest assessment adds depth to the discussion and encourages readers to grapple with the complexities of the issue.
Additionally, the book provides numerous references and resources for further research, empowering readers to delve deeper into the topic and take action. Overall, "Locked Down, Locked Out" is a thought-provoking and informative read that offers valuable insights into the realities of incarceration and the urgent need for reform.
The book's conversational writing style makes it highly engaging and accessible, allowing readers to connect with the material on a personal level. Despite its accessibility, "Locked Down, Locked Out" is clearly well-researched, drawing on a wealth of information to support its arguments and insights.
One of the book's strengths lies in Schenwar's ability to balance factual information with poignant personal stories (her own and those of incarcerated individuals), effectively illustrating the human impact of incarceration. Through these narratives, she sheds light on the struggles and abuses faced by inmates, fostering empathy and understanding among readers.
While Schenwar explores alternative programs and options for reforming the criminal justice system, she acknowledges the inherent challenges and complexities of finding alternatives for the most serious offenders. Likewise, she is honest about the difficulties facing a large-scale shift in the "prison nation". This honest assessment adds depth to the discussion and encourages readers to grapple with the complexities of the issue.
Additionally, the book provides numerous references and resources for further research, empowering readers to delve deeper into the topic and take action. Overall, "Locked Down, Locked Out" is a thought-provoking and informative read that offers valuable insights into the realities of incarceration and the urgent need for reform.
November 20, 2015
I'm probably the "minority" on how I feel about this book. The author has many facts & sources for these facts, along with statistics but I'm just a reader with my own feelings on this topic. Who do I feel the worst for? The families!! Most definitely not the prisoner
One of the first facts thrown out in the book is that USA has the highest amount of people incarcerated. I'm sure we are!! These criminals should actually feel somewhat relieved they live is USA & committed their crimes here rather in other countries. Other countries don't deal with criminals like we do. If you're caught stealing --you could lose your hand, arm or more!! Is that what the author would think is better? Other crimes the criminal will be executed as soon as caught--is that what the author thinks is better??
Here in USA we have so much crime because the criminals know the justice system inside and out. They know they'll get 3 meals/day ( might be awful but it's better than starving) they also have a roof over their head they're not paying for & a bed to sleep in at night. They have privileges in some jails that make me sometimes feel like committing a crime. When an inmate can get gender reassignment surgery while carrying a life sentence--I'm ready to commit & maybe I can get that tummy tuck I'd like
The next part I'm a bit more sympathetic about but again, more for the family than the criminal. Visitation---the family's sometimes travel many miles , are treated like prisoners with pat downs, long lines, getting yelled at for violating a rule etc. I'm sure all the prisoner themselves can think about is ...themselves. Hey, I'm getting visitors!! I doubt they think much about the process & long drives their loved ones must go through just to see their criminal family member
Of course you can't write a book like this without involving race. The facts about race, or people of color other than white, are higher. Why is this? Ok facts say they're poorer & less educated. Ok but why? They have access to public schools just like the rest of us. I've read many memoirs about people of color who were brought up in poverty and managed to graduate from an Ivy League college!! Why aren't these facts put in this book? They might not be as numerous & also that would mean this type book couldn't use the race "fact". I really do get tired of the old "race card". We are all humans & if in USA , you should be going to public school at very minimum & either from school, family & other sources, we all know in our hearts right from wrong ( unless we are talking about mentally challenged, that's different). Why do I,lily white from birth, middle class income family, know not to commit a criminal act? Maybe because I have respect for both myself & other people living in this world. My conscience would kill me before jail time would! Don't forget I'm in need of a tummy tuck & after reading this book, I'm still NOT considering becoming a criminal
This book bleeds pro-crime & how to make jail time better. Why? I keep asking myself this over & over!! Ask 50% of those incarcerated now, if they'd rather serve the penalty for their crime in a different country? I know what the answer would be I think everybody knows what their answer would be too. Why are our jails filled to capacity? Why is there over crowding? It's because we treat our criminals too good!! Ok I know having a bologna sandwich isn't everyone's ideal lunch meal but it's food & they're not paying for it or making it so what's the complaint?! Should we start serving gourmet meals? Talk about prison over crowding. They complain they were sent to a facility too far that their family can't visit them Well some of those people are incarcerated for murder---what about their families? They'll never see the victim again If they're not in because of murder but still don't see their family whose fault is it really?? They're the one who committed the crime. Why should their family feel like prisoners. When they get released, they can quick visit their family before committing their next crime that gets them incarcerated again. Also if they did their crime in other countries --you think anyone would care about family visits ?? They might be so busy working in a hard labor camp that they're just happy to be finished for the day & happy if they even got to eat a bologna sandwich
I could keep going on but even with what I wrote now I'll have people wanting to find my home to burn it down but I can't sit back & read a book like this & NOT express my feelings. I'm in USA & I have the freedom of speech especially since I haven't committed any crimes. Our jails are becoming more & more like country clubs Not all, but some & I think they should be happy they have a place to live. The book will tell you otherwise & all the wrongness in our jails & prisons & that we are just hiding our "bad eggs" as the book called them
For those with mental disabilities, I don't agree with my own thoughts about the criminals in jails. I know many State Hospitals closed & now these people who had been taken care of all their lives have no idea how to live on their own in the outside world & this then leads them to being placed in jails with criminals. This is not a fair & just system for these individuals & I don't have answers for what or where to place them. I'd say reopen some State Hospitals but allow them more freedoms & try to teach those who might be able to learn, how to do basic life skills so they could possibly live their lives in homes overseen by medical personnel & government agencies. Check in on them to make sure they're doing their best & not starving because they don't know how to make an egg or a sandwich
This type book I believe the reactions will either be with the author, or like myself , not exactly with. There are some things I agree with when reading but most is just fuel
I won this book in Goodreads giveaway in return for honest review. Many thanks to publisher & author & I guess I best fireproof my home now
One of the first facts thrown out in the book is that USA has the highest amount of people incarcerated. I'm sure we are!! These criminals should actually feel somewhat relieved they live is USA & committed their crimes here rather in other countries. Other countries don't deal with criminals like we do. If you're caught stealing --you could lose your hand, arm or more!! Is that what the author would think is better? Other crimes the criminal will be executed as soon as caught--is that what the author thinks is better??
Here in USA we have so much crime because the criminals know the justice system inside and out. They know they'll get 3 meals/day ( might be awful but it's better than starving) they also have a roof over their head they're not paying for & a bed to sleep in at night. They have privileges in some jails that make me sometimes feel like committing a crime. When an inmate can get gender reassignment surgery while carrying a life sentence--I'm ready to commit & maybe I can get that tummy tuck I'd like
The next part I'm a bit more sympathetic about but again, more for the family than the criminal. Visitation---the family's sometimes travel many miles , are treated like prisoners with pat downs, long lines, getting yelled at for violating a rule etc. I'm sure all the prisoner themselves can think about is ...themselves. Hey, I'm getting visitors!! I doubt they think much about the process & long drives their loved ones must go through just to see their criminal family member
Of course you can't write a book like this without involving race. The facts about race, or people of color other than white, are higher. Why is this? Ok facts say they're poorer & less educated. Ok but why? They have access to public schools just like the rest of us. I've read many memoirs about people of color who were brought up in poverty and managed to graduate from an Ivy League college!! Why aren't these facts put in this book? They might not be as numerous & also that would mean this type book couldn't use the race "fact". I really do get tired of the old "race card". We are all humans & if in USA , you should be going to public school at very minimum & either from school, family & other sources, we all know in our hearts right from wrong ( unless we are talking about mentally challenged, that's different). Why do I,lily white from birth, middle class income family, know not to commit a criminal act? Maybe because I have respect for both myself & other people living in this world. My conscience would kill me before jail time would! Don't forget I'm in need of a tummy tuck & after reading this book, I'm still NOT considering becoming a criminal
This book bleeds pro-crime & how to make jail time better. Why? I keep asking myself this over & over!! Ask 50% of those incarcerated now, if they'd rather serve the penalty for their crime in a different country? I know what the answer would be I think everybody knows what their answer would be too. Why are our jails filled to capacity? Why is there over crowding? It's because we treat our criminals too good!! Ok I know having a bologna sandwich isn't everyone's ideal lunch meal but it's food & they're not paying for it or making it so what's the complaint?! Should we start serving gourmet meals? Talk about prison over crowding. They complain they were sent to a facility too far that their family can't visit them Well some of those people are incarcerated for murder---what about their families? They'll never see the victim again If they're not in because of murder but still don't see their family whose fault is it really?? They're the one who committed the crime. Why should their family feel like prisoners. When they get released, they can quick visit their family before committing their next crime that gets them incarcerated again. Also if they did their crime in other countries --you think anyone would care about family visits ?? They might be so busy working in a hard labor camp that they're just happy to be finished for the day & happy if they even got to eat a bologna sandwich
I could keep going on but even with what I wrote now I'll have people wanting to find my home to burn it down but I can't sit back & read a book like this & NOT express my feelings. I'm in USA & I have the freedom of speech especially since I haven't committed any crimes. Our jails are becoming more & more like country clubs Not all, but some & I think they should be happy they have a place to live. The book will tell you otherwise & all the wrongness in our jails & prisons & that we are just hiding our "bad eggs" as the book called them
For those with mental disabilities, I don't agree with my own thoughts about the criminals in jails. I know many State Hospitals closed & now these people who had been taken care of all their lives have no idea how to live on their own in the outside world & this then leads them to being placed in jails with criminals. This is not a fair & just system for these individuals & I don't have answers for what or where to place them. I'd say reopen some State Hospitals but allow them more freedoms & try to teach those who might be able to learn, how to do basic life skills so they could possibly live their lives in homes overseen by medical personnel & government agencies. Check in on them to make sure they're doing their best & not starving because they don't know how to make an egg or a sandwich
This type book I believe the reactions will either be with the author, or like myself , not exactly with. There are some things I agree with when reading but most is just fuel
I won this book in Goodreads giveaway in return for honest review. Many thanks to publisher & author & I guess I best fireproof my home now
August 14, 2020
Incredible resources and examples to guide us on the path to a world beyond policing, incarceration, and the school-to-prison pipeline. Her writing is engaging and weaves in a beautiful narrative about her family's own relationship with incarceration.
The author comes from an abolitionist perspective and her writing really calls you to action (and provides you with a litany of ways to get involved). This book makes you feel that transformative justice in an overly punitive society is possible if we fight for it.
The author comes from an abolitionist perspective and her writing really calls you to action (and provides you with a litany of ways to get involved). This book makes you feel that transformative justice in an overly punitive society is possible if we fight for it.
January 21, 2023
The horrors of prison and isolation
This personalized story of a relative being in and out of prison and then a new born to be considered, shows the myriad of problems with our prison system. The cruelty of our whole “justice system “ is portrayed from the arrest to the parole and all the isolating horrors in between. Many solutions are described and it thankfully ends on a note of hope.
This personalized story of a relative being in and out of prison and then a new born to be considered, shows the myriad of problems with our prison system. The cruelty of our whole “justice system “ is portrayed from the arrest to the parole and all the isolating horrors in between. Many solutions are described and it thankfully ends on a note of hope.
June 22, 2017
Such an insightful, well-written, engaging, and personal account of the stories of prisoners and their families, her own sister's incarceration, and the broken punitive system that we live in. Maya Schenwar leaves you feeling angry, hopeful, and ready for restorative/transformative change. This is an important book, something that everyone should read.
December 23, 2017
Confession: often, when I read general non-fiction, I put the book down somewhere in the middle and never pick it back up. That didn't happen for Locked Down, Locked Out. in fact, I found myself carrying it around the house and reading "just one more page." It was well-written, personal, both well-researched and anecdotal, persuasive and often heartbreaking.
June 20, 2019
Great, fast read on prison abolition. Concrete recommendations like inside-outside pen pal partnerships as a crucial form of connection that forges bond which move us closer to the world in which prison abolition becomes a reality. (I still need to read "Are Prisons Obsolete?" by Angela Davis, which seems to be the best primer to all prison abolition books.)
June 9, 2018
Prison is a relatively new institution in our society, and an aggressively harmful one. This covers some of that harm and how and why it works the way it does, and also addresses the prison abolition movement and restorative justice and other prison alternatives. Very well done.
December 27, 2021
great first book about the prison industrial complex and why our criminal legal system and prisons do not work. would recommend to anyone who wants to know more about why prisons do not work and actually create a more vicious cycle of harm.
March 16, 2022
So thankful for Maya Schenwar’s work, heartbroken for our incarcerated and their families, and hopeful for the future of imagining beyond our criminal “justice” system to something better — particularly for poor communities and black and brown communities.
January 4, 2024
A mix of personal experience and research into the prison industrial complex, which can be a pretty depressing read. Among the many brutal stories, what stood out the most to me was the ridiculous books that were banned in prisons.
February 16, 2020
Mixing personal story with an exploration of the prison system with a variety of movements and programs offering alternatives to expansion of a failing system, the author communicates hope.
November 13, 2024
There’s a lot of things that have stuck with me after reading this book. Horrible knowledge about the justice system that should be known by the American public.
September 13, 2018
I should have read this way sooner. Extremely grateful to Maya Schenwar for weaving an abolitionist framework throughout this book. She highlights some very exciting alternatives to punishment and imprisonment while also providing necessary critique of commonly-accepted "reforms." For example, she pays attention to the impacts of home detention and questions whether reforms such as these are really challenging the system or if they're just expanding the reach of the carceral state. Maya reminds us that we must keep questioning morality politics and how we've come to define things as "criminal" while other harms (e.g. financial crimes and government negligence) remain unobserved. Throughout her book, we hear the collateral consequences of mass incarceration and a prison industrial complex that continues to militarize and monetize surveillance against poor and communities of color. Alternatives like restorative and transformative justice and critiques such as these need to continue to be elevated in the media and public discourses.
February 4, 2017
This book presents the basics of how our mass incarceration system is failing all the people whose lives are touched by it. The unflinching look at the heroin epidemic - as viewed by supportive family members - will be easy to relate to for a growing number of families.
This book is accessible to a broad audience but also directs interested readers to sources for more; more reading as well as more action.
This book is accessible to a broad audience but also directs interested readers to sources for more; more reading as well as more action.
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