My paper addresses racially oriented prison gangs. The current situation with overcrowding and increased gang violence in penitentiaries across the United States have many corrections officials, politicians and members of the public desperately searching for a solution. In an attempt to try and control this epidemic officials have tried several measures including: segregating prisoners, isolating them, integrating them, transferring known gang leaders out of state and counseling.
My thesis will be: Although none of these methods yield a conclusive solution, mandating the integration of all prisoners is the only plausible resolution.
Out of curiosity, has segregating prisoners worked to reduce violence/gang activity?
ReplyDeleteSimply put, No. Some prison officials in California have argued that it is successful in terms of reducing violence, but many critics point out that this is only a short term solution. Although it temporarily prevents some violence, it is by no means a cure. Gang activity is not really affected by the segregation. These inmates are just as violent when they do see gang members of different races because their anger is basically bottled up from being surrounded by other racists. Some of the research I have found has shown that integrating prisoners, through sports for example, allows them to learn how to tolerate each other, thus reducing the violence in the long run.
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