Decarcerating America: From Mass Punishment to Public Health

by Ernest Drucker (Editor)

“A powerful call for reform.”
― NPR

An all-star team of criminal justice experts present timely, innovative, and humane ways to end mass incarceration

Mass incarceration will end―there is an emerging consensus that we’ve been locking up too many people for too long. But with more than 2.2 million Americans behind bars right now, how do we go about bringing people home? Decarcerating America collects some of the leading thinkers in the criminal justice reform movement to strategize about how to cure America of its epidemic of mass punishment.

With sections on front-end approaches, as well as improving prison conditions and re-entry, the book includes pieces by leaders across the criminal justice reform Danielle Sered of Common Justice describes successful programs for youth with violent offenses; Robin Steinberg of the Bronx Defenders argues for more resources for defense attorneys to diminish plea bargains; Kathy Boudin suggests changes to the parole model; Jeannie Little offers an alternative for mental health and drug addiction issues; and Eric Lotke offers models of new industries to replace the prison economy. Editor Ernest Drucker applies the tools of epidemiology to help us cure what he calls "a plague of prisons."

Decarcerating America will be an indispensable roadmap as the movement to challenge incarceration in America gains critical mass―it shows us how to get people out of prisons, and the more appropriate responses to crime. The ideas presented in this volume are what we are fighting for when we fight against the New Jim Crow.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Social Justice, Sociology, Justice

320 pages, Hardcover

First published February 6, 2018

Reviews

[Martha Anne Toll]

Here's my review for NPR on this book. https://www.npr.org/2018/02/20/585781...

[Blythe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent read, thoughtfully organized into the three components of decarceration--primary prevention (less people in the system to start, less prison time); secondary prevention (giving people resources and safety while in the system); tertiary Prevention (preparing people for reentry, addressing the needs of the prison town).

I think my main takeaways were:
1) (well I already knew this but) America is not free-- it actually incarcerates more people than any other country. And we have spent and continue to spend tons of money locking way more people up than everybody else, skyrocketing in the 80s and 90s.
2) Prison does not rehabilitate. Prison is not designed to help you with your drug problems or emotional problems or your financial problems-- it only exacerbates them. The court system does not make victims feel heard and it does not make them feel safer because 95% of people are eventually released and no one thinks (accurately) that a person comes out better and more stable after being in the system.
3) We cannot exclude violent crimes when we talk about decarceration. Just as people with debilitating drug problems have underlying issues that cause the problem, people who commit violent crimes are often the victims of violence.
"Prison is also limited as a tool because incarceration treats violence as a problem of "dangerous" individuals and not as a problem of social context and history. Most violence is not just a matter of individual pathology-- it is created. Poverty drives violence. Inequity drives violence. Lack of opportunity drives violence. Shame and isolation drive violence. And like so many conditions known all too well to public health professionals, violence itself drives violence."
"The four core causes [of violence] are shame, isolation, exposure to violence, and diminished ability to meet one's economic needs... One might argue that the core defining features of prison are shame, isolation, exposure to violence, and diminished ability to meet one's economic needs."

Mostly it was just an in depth analysis of every perspective of the situation and a LOT of solutions that have been implemented, both by advocates, families and the incarcerated and formerly incarcerated. It addresses community needs-- those communities who are most affected by incarceration and those communities in which prison is the primary source of income for the town. It talked about what victims actually want-- to be heard, to understand what happened and to have it validated, to have amends made as much as possible, and to feel like it will never happen again to them or anyone else-- and how few of those needs are met with incarceration.

We just have to be merciful and forgiving and understanding. We have to! Even if you're only worried about money and your own personal safety, there is outrageous amounts of data backing up the reality that we're wasting TONS of money only to exacerbate the situation and punish people who are already being punished by life. But we could invest it in actual rehabilitation, which would be cheaper in the long run because more people could take care of themselves. We need to make our end goal entirely to achieve maximum safety and wellness for everyone, and not just feed our own desire to punish against all research and data and compassion. In the case of mass incarceration, I think we've proven ourselves to be sadistic.

I have by no means summarized the book. There is a lot of interesting data, and it certainly changed and broadened and deepened the way I think about incarceration as a concept.

I'll close with this:

"... the fundamental problem at the root of the mass incarceration crisis: the belief in revenge and permanent punishment as a path to public safety. "

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75-ish.

Interesting read on a very controversial, nuanced, and complicated topic. Contains a number of shorter essays from academics, activists, formerly incarcerated individuals, and others. Research heavy with piles of end notes in each section, this addresses the history, current state, and future of incarceration in the US as well as guidance to approach drug use and violence (causes for incarceration) from a public health perspective, not a criminal justice one. Additionally, this work looks at opportunities for a more holistic approach towards working with individuals that would otherwise end up in contact with the criminal justice / prison systems. Wraps up with an interesting perspective on the "pull" nature of incarceration and how small communities that rely on prisons as their major employer, have an out-sized influence on policies that lead to longer sentences and higher rates of incarceration, especially as it pertains to for-profit prisons.

Would recommend.

[Kerry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very informative collection of essays addressing the myriad of problems inherent to our penal system. Sorted into 3 sections: 1) Primary Prevention - how to trim the number of people incarcerated in the first place, includes suggestions like ending onerous bail requirements and improving holistic defense access to all those charged with crimes; 2) Secondary Prevention - consider the secondary impacts of incarceration, namely, the victims of crime as well as the children of perpetrators; and 3) Tertiary Prevention - once people are sentenced and incarcerated, then what? Details need for improvements in prison healthcare and harm reduction therapy offerings, but also discusses the need to remove the economic incentives for small towns across the US whose primary job creator is the local prison.

Overall a good, if frustrating and depressing, read that explains just how big of a task this country still faces, ten years removed from Michelle Alexander's "New Jim Crow" and all the public attention brought on these issues.

[Carl · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of articles by people variously familiar with different aspects of our system of mass incarceration. Topics include outlandishly (compared to the rest of the world) long sentencing, absence of rehabilitative services, difficulties imposed on the families, especially children, of the incarcerated, nonresponsiveness of parole boards, difficulties adjusting to conditions of release, kpeeing prisoners under lock & key who have long passed the age associated with violence & recidivism, and how to replace jobs & revenue from closed facilities of incarceration. Some articles are well reasoned and well written & some not so much.

[Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book will be relevant for years to come because it is solutions-focused rather than pure critique. well-organized without redundancies or overlap that are often pitfalls for easy collections. a great mix of authors, including a formerly incarcerated activist and judges, so perspective is a key element of interest for the reader. i would definitely recommend this as essential reading for anyone interested in issues of incarceration or abolition. looking forward to reading more drucker as well.

[Joelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

each chapter of this book lays out now only an irresistible case for ending mass incarceration but, the tangible steps and plans that activists, formerly incarcerated people, and researchers are already taking. particularly challenging around moving beyond solely focusing on ending the war on drugs or ending incarceration for only “non-violent offenders.” big recommendation from me, adding to the to-buy list.

[Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent overview of the issue of crime and punishment in the US with concrete examples of pathways to reform. Research based with plenty of footnotes for further study.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.