WRTC 426
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Throughout this prison writing class the theme of grief has found its way into the material and discourse. Although not necessarily directly, like the emotion itself, it has a lingering presence. Through my newly developed exposure to and interest in the intricacies of the prison system, I came to the realization that when a person is incarcerated, the emotional stages they go through are similar to the five stages of grief: Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance. Seven million incarcerated Americans have experienced or are experiencing a similar mental suffering or distress over affliction or loss; sharp sorrow and painful regret. These emotions are the defining characteristics of grief. If you aren't on death row and staring at the face of death, you are experiences some form of deprivation, some kind of loss. Loss of one’s self, family, homeland, freedom, sanity and even basic human rights.
For me this class has exposed me to truths, most of which are depressing realizations. I have become aware of the imbalances within the justice system that privilege the rich and disregard the poor; the glimpses of recurrent white supremacy, with African American being incarcerated seven times the rate of Caucasians; the issue of overcrowding which is a product of outrageous drug laws, and stumbled a upon dirty laundry of lobbyists and private prisons gaining profit from prison capacity, or commonly overcapacity. This class has exposed me to the immorality of solitary confinement and the psychological damage it causes; the common focus on punishment over rehabilitation; and the application of strict formulations over compassion during sentencing. I have learnt that imprisonment or execution of a person does not just represent one man’s incarceration or death for a hair-raising crime, it can signify social injustice, police brutality, the inhumane conditions of prisons, the muted issue of the poverty across America, the forbidding apathy of politicians, and the unfair breakdown of government power and resources. All of these issues are incriminatory in themselves, yet as a society we are so easily willing to imprison or execute an imperfect person in the pursuit of justice in an imperfect and unjust state.
What I have taken away from this course is that the American prison and judicial system is broken. It contains many immoral issues that need to be fixed, yet there is no miracle, all-encompassing solution - there are many. I believe the first of which is exposure. We need to lift the lid on these issues and make them dinner conversations across America. Change has to start at a local level.
On a grander level, the media so easily manipulates and perpetuates peoples view of prison to appeal to consumer appetite. It plays off the safe and uneventful lives of white people by depicting the violence, suffering, corruption, and terror within the system. Because it can be so easily extorted, we need to transcend this fascination into better forms; we need to solve these deep issues rather than glamorizing them.
I find myself constantly bringing up what I have learnt in this class to my family and friends, which exemplifies the significant role of education in the spreading of knowledge. This type of promotion is what is needed to instigate change. I have come out of this class a more enlightened citizen – a quality that James Madison University upholds in it's Mission Statement and a commitment they vow to it's students. It makes sense now.
For me this class has exposed me to truths, most of which are depressing realizations. I have become aware of the imbalances within the justice system that privilege the rich and disregard the poor; the glimpses of recurrent white supremacy, with African American being incarcerated seven times the rate of Caucasians; the issue of overcrowding which is a product of outrageous drug laws, and stumbled a upon dirty laundry of lobbyists and private prisons gaining profit from prison capacity, or commonly overcapacity. This class has exposed me to the immorality of solitary confinement and the psychological damage it causes; the common focus on punishment over rehabilitation; and the application of strict formulations over compassion during sentencing. I have learnt that imprisonment or execution of a person does not just represent one man’s incarceration or death for a hair-raising crime, it can signify social injustice, police brutality, the inhumane conditions of prisons, the muted issue of the poverty across America, the forbidding apathy of politicians, and the unfair breakdown of government power and resources. All of these issues are incriminatory in themselves, yet as a society we are so easily willing to imprison or execute an imperfect person in the pursuit of justice in an imperfect and unjust state.
What I have taken away from this course is that the American prison and judicial system is broken. It contains many immoral issues that need to be fixed, yet there is no miracle, all-encompassing solution - there are many. I believe the first of which is exposure. We need to lift the lid on these issues and make them dinner conversations across America. Change has to start at a local level.
On a grander level, the media so easily manipulates and perpetuates peoples view of prison to appeal to consumer appetite. It plays off the safe and uneventful lives of white people by depicting the violence, suffering, corruption, and terror within the system. Because it can be so easily extorted, we need to transcend this fascination into better forms; we need to solve these deep issues rather than glamorizing them.
I find myself constantly bringing up what I have learnt in this class to my family and friends, which exemplifies the significant role of education in the spreading of knowledge. This type of promotion is what is needed to instigate change. I have come out of this class a more enlightened citizen – a quality that James Madison University upholds in it's Mission Statement and a commitment they vow to it's students. It makes sense now.