[raisins]

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There isnt too much talk about prison reform because it mostly effects poor people, who are of course the most likely to commit a crime.

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Prison reform has been discussed and implemented to some degree semi regularly over the last 100 or so years; in that period there has been more emphasis on rehabilitation. It most recently received attention in the 60s. In the 60s many radicals thought rehabilitation was subverted by too harsh of a structure in the California prisons and worked to chage it. Rules mellowed and prison guards were given less discretion and stricter procedures for handling inmates. Racism of the guards was one of the justifications in putting in these procedures. There is a good argument to be made that weakening the autonomy of the guards allowed the prison gangs to flourish to an unprecedented level. One example of this is the network between prison reformers, George Jackson / the Black Guerilla Family and the Black Panthers. You might find the book the Road to Hell interesting. It talks a little bit about the above but it is mostly the story of George Jackson and the bloodiest inmate uprising at San Quentin.

Not all reform was that ineffective, a good example would be Texas. They were run by the trusty system where the most hardened and institutionalized convicts were given positions of authority and kept order. Some weaker inmates were held in sexual slavery. The trusty system was eventually overcome and changed due to the efforts of reformers. I wonder though if that really changed the level of violence in the prisons.

The book 20,000 Years in Sing Sing was written by Lewis E. Lawes. He was the warden during the 20s and 30s and was a major reformer in bringing some of the focus of prison time to rehabilitating the inmate. He speaks to some of the issues you bring up. I think the audience at that time was less skeptical than we are about the willingness of the criminal to change. It was fairly common to view men as being beaten down by social forces outside of their control and to think that if conditions were different the men would be too.

Both eras mentioned above were liberal in the progressive sense. I don't think too much happens in terms of prison reform when the mood of the country is conservative. I think the best that could be hoped for is the elimination of mandatory minimums and maybe a halt to the drug war. Even that though is wildly optimistic. If the U.S.A. was only fiscally conservative I could see it but we are more socially conservative than fiscally.

regards,

raisins