System Overlooked by Nature

Human nature seems to have been parted into the extreme of innate behavior; some may see the innate goodness and others, the innate evilness of humanity. Many psychologists refer to two philosophers, Jean Jacques Rousseau and Thomas Hobbes. Rosseau theorized that humans are innately well-natured and harmonious, but the corruption of humans is due to our interactions with each other and the inability to lead a just ruling system of the government. Hobbes theorized that humans are innately evil and competitive, but rule and government had the ability to bring harmony and order. With such extreme theories, comes the debate of whether or not humans are capable of changing something that is innate, or whether they are indefinitely what they are at birth. However, blinded by the simplistic view of innateness within these theories, what many forget to consider are the systems within Jacques and Hobbes’s theories that affect human behavior, imply that humans behavior is a variable entity that can be changed by an overarching system and that it is innate within humans to react to their environment. If humans had the power to corrupt others, then they also had the power to encourage the well-being of others as well. We can apply these theories to those who have been within and affected by the criminal justice system.

In the case of those who have been convicted of a crime and given a sentence, there are two outcomes that the majority of inmates experience after release. The first is the best-case scenario, where inmates have a successful reintegration back into society without recidivism, which is reoffense. Often, this is due to resources outside of prison that grants them the opportunity for successful reentry. The other is what we, unfortunately, see the majority of the time in the American criminal justice system, is, in fact, recidivism. According to Prison Legal News, a long term study found that “The rate for state prisoners was 83% over a nine-year study period, while it was 39.8% for nonviolent and about 64% for violent federal prisoners over an eight-year period,” as Matthew Clarke, the article’s author, stated, alluding to the fact there’s a big problem that we aren’t addressing with enough concern in that we are not properly rehabilitating and preparing inmates for re-entry into society (Clarke, p. 2). The social effects of a system transcend beyond just individual actions and outcomes that these inmates face, rather it also affects the communities they go back to when they are released, contributing to the vicious cycle that is a crime. However, with these issues coming to light, programs, such as the Bard Prison Initiative, have been implementing methods of higher education that ultimately break the harsh American prison systems, showcased in a documentary series called College Behind Bars.

College Behind Bars is a documentary that showcases the lives and stories of prisoners enrolled in BPI, a program that brings traditional college education to inmates who wouldn’t be able to afford it, and their journies through the program. When initially watching the series, the students' engagement in the material they were studying particularly stood out to me. The majority of them were constantly making comments and voicing their opinions on matters such as politics and advanced literature. Many have commented on the difficulty of the material, however, this challenges their minds in ways they’ve never had before in schools outside of prison. Here, I am reminded of Patricia William’s “visionary pragmatism” from her book Another Kind of Public Education. Visionary pragmatism involves a vision that one entails utilizing their own personal beliefs and philosophies to create the change they want to see in the world. Tamika Graham, an AA student at BPI states, “We’re not looking at history the way it’s normally taught in school, we’re actually dissecting it ourselves…we’re breaking it down on our own and making our own inferences,” and through these types of endeavors, the students gain knowledge of the world, thus able to create their own self-values and principles that help to guide a vision for a successful academic career and future (College Behind Bars). The majority of these prisoners, particularly the ones we follow the stories of, grew up in impoverished neighborhoods, with poorly funded schools, housing, and where a disproportionate amount of violence is known to occur, such as downtown Albany in New York. Through this newfound understanding of their experiences, they are set free through the knowledge of processing their traumas and actions in relation to the larger society that more often punishes these communities for the poverty and violence that none chose to experience, and helps to implement thought for positive change in the communities these inmates come from.

Unfortunately and not surprisingly, many are opposed to providing free education to prisoners. They employ the mindset of “I deserve free education because I’m hardworking, prisoners who have only hurt others don’t deserve it.” Many of the students have come to realize how contradictive this statement is, as many of the people with this self-centric mindset are scared of prisoners because of their crimes. Yet, they feel that their tax dollars are wasted on such programs when these tax dollars keep going towards a system that doesn’t do the job of rehabilitating inmates. Lopez, a student in BPI states “…they named this thing the department of corrections. How could you correct someone if you’re taking the very tools that actually rehabilitate the individuals that you want to be protected from?” which he calls out the hypocrisy of such a title and the thoughts of people who do not believe in the provision of education in prison (College Behind Bars). Tamika Graham states, “Just because I’m in prison doesn’t mean I shouldn’t be able to go to school, doesn’t mean that I shouldn’t be able to pick up skill so I can work in a job somewhere legal,” (College Behind Bars). This self-realization is critical for the shift in the sentiments that take into account the situations of prisoners and the need for a system that provides instead of punishes, encouraging the rehabilitation and the well-being of its inhabitants.

Many of the students discussed their thoughts on their experiences on prison life in relation to their experiences, and they were often in opposition. All of the students were very appreciative of the opportunities for growth of the mind and self that BPI has offered, with the series depicting many of the inmates late-night studying in their cells, their fervent discussions of the material and readings, and their testimonies on the joys of discovery with each new material they pick up in the classroom. However, they couldn’t say the same for prison, with one prisoner describing it as “living in a bathroom” due to the small space, and the harsh punishments for actions that the prisoners and the environment that prison encourages, such as the replication of violence on the streets, fear-mongering due to the inhumane punishments, and general malaise. Spivey Jones, a student in BPI, stated, “When you have an absence of any programs in prison that facilitate any kind of growth, individuals are becoming, perhaps, disillusioned because they’re not being prepared for anything other than what they’ve already been doing, which is a crime,” which reveals the injustices of the people within these institutions when thrown into a system that they lack the tools to react to situations in ways that don’t send them back to prison (College Behind Bars). Jones’s statement parallels that of the philosopher’s theories where a system that many of these prisoners were in before corrupted their actions and mindset, violence was the only solution and then brought into an even furthering corrupting system which is the criminal justice system. However, education is the driving force for the re-establishment of the system that values equity and the well-being of human life.

I had never personally met anyone who had been incarcerated before the Zoom meeting with Miguel and Ke. Throughout the documentary, the inmate’s stories before prison resonated with me and reminded me of the conditions both Miguel and Ke had faced before being incarcerated. In particular, Ke’s story about moving to San Francisco’s Mission District, which at his time of residency was considered an impoverished and dangerous neighborhood (I remember hearing many times to avoid this general area as a child), and becoming involved in gang violence that unfortunately ended in the loss of a life and prison sentence. He was placed under a system that not only discriminated him for his ethnicity but also taught and normalized violence as a means of survival, this “beat or be beaten” sentiment. Such systems were the contributors to Miguel and Ke’s sentences in prison. Another parallel between Miguel and Ke’s stories with the documentary was their descriptions of prison. One of the prisoners stated, “I don’t want to be some type of poster boy for what prison can do for you,” and this the sentiment Miguel and Ke were speaking to us about (College Behind Bars). When I asked the two about the purpose of prison, Miguel responded, “Prison is doing exactly what it’s meant to do, which intended for inmates to repeat the cycle of offense and keep money flowing within the system, not to rehabilitate,” which alludes to the prison-industrial complex that too many people shown within the documentary are angered about where their tax money is going. Through this and in connection with the documentary, Miguel and Ke wanted to reiterate that prison did not ultimately save them, rather, it was the opportunities that they were given after their release from prison, and the support they received from their families.

Personally hearing the stories of Miguel and Ke, as well as the journies of the prisoners in the documentary was more impactful than simply hearing about the crimes these people have committed. These were really grounding experiences, helping me to self-reflect on the opportunities and priveledges that I have been granted, and has helped to expound upon my own personal view on our current prison system, and how it can improve in the future. As someone going into a career that is built upon empathy, physical, and mental rehabilitation, educating myself on these topics motivates me to make an impact on systems that have been too long oppressed by the dominant groups who want to keep themselves at the top of the conceptual hierarchy. Through the care of those like myself in service positions, our actions in the provision of these factors such as healthcare and education, create a ripple effect in the system, for a change that influences the lives of the individuals within the community being affected by the criminal justice for the better.

On the thread of education, a program called College & Community Fellowship (CCF) located in New York, focuses its mission and efforts towards helping formerly incarcerated women receive college and graduate degrees. Back in 1999, Barbara Martinsons, a sociology professor at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, realized that the inmates that she worked with lacked the necessary resources to finish their degrees after being released, and so she envisioned a program that would provide mentorship and training for female inmates working towards their degree, and thus CCF was created. Their mission statement reads, “We believe that women with criminal justice histories are capable of achieving the dreams they had for themselves before they were ever impacted by the system,” achieving this mission through freeing women from the label of “criminal” that society has deemed them to be, and to conquer the status quo that only benefits the dominant group through the utilization of harmful stigmas and stereotypes embedded in our system (College & Community). Through CCF, formerly incarcerated women are provided the programs and resources that allow them to reach their academic potential and career goals, overcoming suppression by changing the narratives of incarcerated women through advocacy.

College & Community Fellowship supports women through their three pillars of service: Direct Services, Technical Assistance, and Policy & Advocacy. Direct Services are programs that center around academics and careers, such as their academic support, peer mentoring, and career advancement programs. In their academic support program, they provide the necessary tools for a successful college career, such as financial assistance in paying back debt, purchasing school supplies such as textbooks, and academic guidance counseling in applying to colleges or going through college. Their Technical Assistance THRIVE program works with colleges, nonprofits, and other institutions by implementing evidence-based practice and training institutions that are interested in working with those affected by the criminal justice system for their successful integration into society. In regards to the discussion of prison before, lack of access to quality resources is a large contributor to the lack of success that released prisoners face when they finish their sentences, often, battling the same oppressive system that put them into prison in the first place. With the amazing effects that we have seen with the Bard Prison Initiative, and the successes that prisoners who have graduated from the program have seen once released is a testament to how valuable education is in the freeing one’s mind from the view of a boxed world that circumstances within the American society have created for individuals. This is why NGS is such a valuable resource for the students of Marin. My student once told me that her parents worked long hour jobs to provide nor was able to receive the education that gave them challenging subjects at the level my student was taking. However, NGS allowed her to do well in her classes, and I was glad to be a part of that narrative. By providing the resources to the underrepresented communities of Marin as CCF does for the formerly incarcerated, the many doors of educational and career opportunities open for these students, allowing them to reach their goals.

Their final service tier, Policy & Advocacy, is a program that aims to spread the movement for education and job access to the formerly incarcerated. Through the increased access to higher education for impacted communities and advocacy skill training, this tier of service aims at giving voices to the formerly incarcerated women and ensuring that they’re represented in social justice reforms. For the longest time, the dominant groups have persecuted groups (such as minorities) through the means such as a corrupted criminal justice system that dehumanizes and leaves its victims and families with life-long trauma and a lack of tools to battle the conditions that have been put against them in this unfortunately conceptually accepted hierarchal society. However, with organizations such as CCF and their advocacy programs, there is a shift in the way we have seen social justice reform in the past, not just through harsh punishments of the prison cells, but through providing resources and priveledges to those who normally go without access. Giving advocacy skill training in order to conjunctively utilize their experiences within the system to advocate for change, but to also giving power to the most affected groups, by giving them a place on the stage that engages in freedom through education and a vision for a more equitable society.