Essay on Women’s Role in Corrections: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

When the criminal justice system was established, the main objective was to create neutrality and fairness between the sexes. Even though people might believe that there is no such thing as ‘stereotyping’ in the criminal justice system, it is quite obvious that women are constantly being look down upon because of their sex. In general, women tend to be treated like fragile objects that could break at any moment; the truth is that women can be strong and courageous just like men. Society stereotypes women and the criminal justice system is no different.

For the past centuries, women have been fighting for their rights, from their right to vote to equal rights in the workplace. Women resistance is the act of opposing those in power, so women can have a voice in the world. Women in prison are often overlooked. In the 1970s, the women prisoners’ rights movement began, and it is still going on today. The number of incarcerated females is rapidly growing compared to men. According to Victoria Law, a prison rights activist, she stated that the percentage of female prisoners increased 108%. This struggle is significant because women in prison are being silenced; they are the most vulnerable people in our country (Siegal, 1998). Women prisoners have the highest rate of suicide because they are

The number of women incarcerated is growing at a rapid pace. This calls for a reevaluation of our correction institutions to deal with women’s involvement in crime. Increasing numbers of arrests for property crime and public order offenses are outpacing that of men. The “War on Drugs” has a big influence on why our prisons have become overcrowded in the last 25 years. Women are impacted more than ever because they are being convicted equally for drug and other offenses. Female criminal behavior has always been identified as minor compared to Male’s criminal behavior. Over the years women have made up only small part of the offender populations. There is still only a small

women has increased significantly, increasing at a rate double to the rate of male incarceration since 1980 (Covington & Bloom, 2006). Braithwaite, Treadwell and Arriola note that incarcerated women have historically been a forgotten population, and despite the rapid growth of the population, their needs have continued to be ignored (2005). In addition to the stigma that comes with being or having been incarcerated,

It used to be that only nursing, teaching, and clerical positions were open to women. A small number of women worked as correctional officers and their assignments were usually limited to peripheral tasks. The integration of women into law enforcement positions can be considered a large

Male prisoners also continue to make up the majority of the prison population. However, women prisoner rates have been on the rise and have exceeded that of male growth rates since 1995. In fact, due to the increase of the women prison population, various issues have arisen which require women to be treated differently from men. Such issues correctional facility’s face because of this increase include program delivery, housing conditions, medical care, staffing, and security (American Corrections, 2016). These problems are in part due to the different social and economic differences women are faced with in prison and while preparing for their release back to society.

Before the 1820s, most prisons resembled classrooms where inmates lived in large rooms together like a dormitory. The newer prisons of the era, like New York’s Auburn Prison, shepherded men into individual cells at night and silent labor during the day, a model that would prove enduring. Women at Auburn, however, lived in a small attic room above

It has already been established that the prison population for female offenders is growing, but the complexity of the population is changing as well. Special populations make up the group of female offenders, specifically including middle-aged inmates, physically ill inmates, and of course mentally ill inmates (Lewis, 200). The pathology of these women vary, many struggle or previously struggled with substance abuse, psychosis,

With the authors of this journal being registered nurses and having seen the first-hand accounts of these disparities, how these cries continued to be ignored. With these female inmates coming from low-income backgrounds, being often undereducated, and having few work skills (Hatton and Fisher, 1305), many of the stresses of life added on to the societal expectations of women can easily manifest into a valid psychological defect that can hinder them for the rest of their lives. Reports also show extensive histories of “childhood and adult violence, including both physical and sexual assault” (Hatton and Fisher, 1305), adding to the stressors, and causing an even worse decline in mental health. Yet, the lack of awareness and/or contributions to a fixable solution is as prevalent as mental illness amongst these imprisoned women. The goal of these institutions should be rehabilitation of these individuals, giving them a second chance, though it has fallen from its original purpose and now has become about control and power.

The United States criminal justice system, an outwardly fair organization of integrity and justice, is a perfect example of a seemingly equal situation, which turns out to be anything but for women. The policies imposed in the criminal justice system affect men and women in extremely dissimilar manners. I plan to examine how gender intersects with the understanding of crime and the criminal justice system. Gender plays a significant role in understanding who commits what types of crimes, why they do so, who is most often victimized, and how the criminal justice system responds to these victims and offenders. In order to understand the current state of women and the way in which gender relates to crime and criminal justice, it is first

Simply because inmates are smaller, weaker, or more intimidated by the cell and cellmates they are assigned, they are ultimately categorized as “victims” of these ghastly assaults and thus, their “femininity” determines their fate. Despite the high number of these crimes committed each year, the flawed system in which these facilities are run have yet to truly recognize the danger and harm that is placed upon these male prisoners. Joanne Mariner’s article is therefore an effective attempt to spark reform within the system; just because these inmates have been convicted of crimes does not mean they should not get the proper treatment and justice they too deserve.

This research paper consists of brief history of how female correctional officers came to be in the system and the court cases that hindered and helped their process. It also consists of the stereotypes and struggles the officers are faced with in this line of work; such as weaknesses and home life association. Sexual harassment and discrimination is a problematic topic that is unavoidable. Statistics will also be mentioned and explained throughout the paper. Being a female correctional officer is extremely difficult and is not encouraged, but it is possible.

The criminal justice system is a male dominated occupation. For many years women have tried to break down the barrier and some have succeeded. But unlike men, women have to fight to be respected and to be heard. There has always been a gender bias. Women have decided to work outside the home and “move in” on careers that were specified as male professions. Females unfortunately have to

In the past prisoners, both male and females, were simply treated as slaves of the state. Wardens had the freedom and discretion to maintain prisons as they wanted. This meant there was no outside interference. That definition for prisoners was derived in the case Ruffin v. Commonwealth (1871). The Supreme Court decided that forfeiting liberties and personal rights were consequences of the crime committed. Prisoners were viewed as slaves. In addition, losing citizenship rights meant losing the ability to complain about living conditions (Peak, 2010). Women and men were subjected to horrible prison conditions in which the living conditions were fifthly, overcrowded and harsh. Often times they were beaten and sexual abused by male

For centuries the general public have perceived that the deep horrors of the prison system only existed within the majority of incarcerated male inmates. However now due to recent investigations researchers are finding that this is not the case. For a lengthened period of time the female prison system have been given low attention in comparison to male inmates