Pollard Memorial Library (Lowell)

Punishing the vulnerable, discrimination in American prisons, Jeremiah Wade-Olson

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

index present

non fiction

Punishing the vulnerable

bibliography

1081336683

Jeremiah Wade-Olson

discrimination in American prisons

The American Dream is that anyone who works hard enough can be successful. It is a dream premised on equal opportunity; however, millions of racial, ethnic, religious, and gender minorities have found their opportunities for success limited--even in prison. What accounts for the discriminatory treatment of people who are already imprisoned? Relying on national data and interviews conducted by the author, this book argues that American prisons are not a tool for justice but a tool for the persecution of the weak by the powerful. The book details how African American, American Indian, and Hispanic inmates receive harsher punishments, including solitary confinement, and fewer rehabilitative programs, such as substance abuse treatment and mental health counseling. It also examines other injustices, including how female inmates suffer from a lack of rehabilitative services, Muslim inmates are placed in solitary confinement for practicing their religious beliefs, American Indians are disproportionately punished, and undocumented immigrants are forced from prison to prison in the middle of the night

Introduction: America's prisons: a portrait of the vulnerable -- "Crime" and moral panics -- Discretion and punishment -- Punishing the poor -- Punishing the sick -- Punishing race -- Punishing immigrants -- Punishing drug use -- Punishing families -- Instead of prisons