Life Should Be Precious

What? One thing that stood out to me when reading “Is Prison Necessary?” is the first part of Gilmore’s conversation with the kids. She explained that in Spain life is precious so people are treated as such as the kids responded later with “it doesn’t seem like life is precious around here.” Another reading we had earlier discussed how minorities learn very young that they are subordinate. Especially in poor areas, people learn that they are at the bottom and there is not a good way to get to the top. They are used to people dying in violent ways around them. Life is not seen as precious. When a neighbor gets shot in gang violence and your father is incarcerated for just being black, life seems the opposite of precious for these kids. People need to be seen as human beings and be reassured that they matter and that their life is precious. This is relevant to my learning in this class this semester because whether people are undocumented immigrants, a part of a minority, or maybe a little different from the status quo, it is very important that they realize their worth. Every person has a purpose even if they have to go through tough times to find it. Our society has a bad habit of judging people based on appearance and our founders’ biased views. These preconceived notions have been around for hundreds of years with no real explanation. The more people develop their critical consciousness the closer we can become to making a change.

Another thing that stood out to me was how a lack of resources is often a cause of crime. In the article, it mentions that Gilmore wants everybody to be provided with the elements that are required for a violence-free life. Because of the root issue of systemic oppression, many minorities often end up living in poorer neighborhoods. Families don’t have equal opportunities so it can become difficult to provide for a family. The education in poorer neighborhoods is also lacking and maybe students end up dropping out. Kids who have experienced abuse or their parents dying or going to jail may end up involved with gangs because they want to feel like they belong somewhere. However, gang life comes with drugs, alcohol, and violence. If poorer areas were given better job opportunities, education, housing, and healthcare, many kids would not end up in the gang lifestyle and therefore would be less likely to commit a violent crime. However, no matter how many resources an area has it will still be considered subordinate if we do not change our thinking. People need to educate themselves about the history of the subordinate groups and how they feel. For example, black people do not want to be seen as threats. They do not want people to cross the street to avoid simply passing them on the sidewalk. If people begin to develop their critical consciousness, they will be able to make a change in their own lives and therefore change will expand.

So What? ACLU Smart Justice is fighting the issues of mass incarceration and racial disparities in the criminal justice system. It seems like they are fairly sustainable. Most of their funding comes from donations and they have over 850,000 supporters. One of the issues they tackle is bail reform. They fight for reform bills to help their community locally and nationwide. They have a representative in every state. As I have browsed through their website they bring up a lot of issues we have talked about in class. For example, they discuss immigrants’ rights, juvenile justice, capital punishment, and prisoners’ rights. They have their latest accomplishments posted and there is a news article about them almost every day. Now they are focusing on the COVID-19 crisis and how it is affecting prisons. They seem to be very successful in getting their message across. Since they speak to all 50 states they are making a larger impact.

Now What? Most Americans take their freedom for granted. Since I have been forced to stay home I have been thinking about the people we are learning about in class. Even though we have to stay home, we still have much more freedom than people that are incarcerated. We can sit on our comfortable couches and watch our favorite TV show while in our fuzzy pj's eating our favorite ice cream and face timing our friends and family. However, those incarcerated don’t get to do any of that. More of their freedom has been stripped away when they didn’t have much, to begin with. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, visitors at prisons have been severely limited to no longer allowed depending on the area. Inmates don’t get to see their family or friends because they are required to stay home. They are confined to their cells the entire day now to reduce the risk of spreading the virus as much as possible. We complain about going crazy in our homes with fully stocked fridges and internet connection when inmates have been living like that for maybe even most of their lives. It makes me think about how many of those incarcerated probably do not even deserve to be there and many of the crimes committed by the inmates who do could be prevented. Even though our society is theoretically innocent until proven guilty even though it is blurry at times, I think prevention methods could benefit people and keep them out of jail. People who are involved with drugs, gangs, and the mentally ill could get proper help and support to lower the risk of that person committing a crime and ending up in prison for the rest of their lives.