Prisoner support
Encyclopedia
Prisoner support encompasses a variety of activities aimed a providing assistance to prisoner
s, particularly political prisoner
s. Many programs devoted to this purpose have quite limited resources; for instance, Nottingham Black Prisoner Support, with one staff worker, had 297 active cases in 1999. Black Prisoner Support groups such as Partners of Prisoners have sought to establish productive working relationships with prison staff. South Carolina
's Alston Wilkes Society is the largest statewide prison support organization in the United States, with a budget of $918,000 and a staff of 50. It operates two halfway house
s, arbitrates prisoner grievances, maintains a youth home, helps ex-inmates find work, and provides social services to prisoners' families. There are many special-interest prison support groups such as the Out of Control Lesbian Committee to Support Women in Prison. Some political movements find it to be in their interests to provide prisoner supports; Break the Chains argues, "Any movement that does not support its political internees is a movement destined to fail. When power is challenged, it inevitably turns to violent repression and imprisonment to maintain itself. In order to avoid defeat, movements must become organized and capable of combating the repression of the state apparatus, and they must be able to support their comrades and allies in the event that they are arrested or imprisoned. Few would commit themselves to a movement that would leave them behind prison walls, or a movement that is incapable of sustaining itself in the face of state intimidation." Ratner writes that the prisoner support movement has been hampered by "particularly strong public antipathy toward offenders who would deny culpability by assigning blame to the 'system'. This compromises the efforts of prisoner-support groups, who must rally public support in order to procure government funds. Such groups face the dilemma of rapidly losing their own legitimacy should they draw too closely to the very offenders whom they seek to help — offenders who are not perceived by the public as victims of injustice. Thus, many 'outside' groups are forced to shun the support of inmates who are in prison for violent offences, a serious ideological fracture of inside-outside alliances which limits the possibilities for prisoner politicization."
In the early 2000s, the United States Libertarian Party's California affiliate established a Political Prisoner Support Committee. It mostly served to support medical cannabis
patients. Spokesperson Ann McCormick opined, "we need not only to protect and care for our wounded, but to present them as patriots and heroes of 'the people'."
Prisoner
A prisoner is someone incarcerated in a prison, jail or similar facility.Prisoner or The Prisoner may also refer to:* Prisoner of war, a soldier in wartime, held as by an enemy* Political prisoner, someone held in prison for their ideology...
s, particularly political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s. Many programs devoted to this purpose have quite limited resources; for instance, Nottingham Black Prisoner Support, with one staff worker, had 297 active cases in 1999. Black Prisoner Support groups such as Partners of Prisoners have sought to establish productive working relationships with prison staff. South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
's Alston Wilkes Society is the largest statewide prison support organization in the United States, with a budget of $918,000 and a staff of 50. It operates two halfway house
Halfway house
The purpose of a halfway house, also called a recovery house or sober house, is generally to allow people to begin the process of reintegration with society, while still providing monitoring and support; this is generally believed to reduce the risk of recidivism or relapse when compared to a...
s, arbitrates prisoner grievances, maintains a youth home, helps ex-inmates find work, and provides social services to prisoners' families. There are many special-interest prison support groups such as the Out of Control Lesbian Committee to Support Women in Prison. Some political movements find it to be in their interests to provide prisoner supports; Break the Chains argues, "Any movement that does not support its political internees is a movement destined to fail. When power is challenged, it inevitably turns to violent repression and imprisonment to maintain itself. In order to avoid defeat, movements must become organized and capable of combating the repression of the state apparatus, and they must be able to support their comrades and allies in the event that they are arrested or imprisoned. Few would commit themselves to a movement that would leave them behind prison walls, or a movement that is incapable of sustaining itself in the face of state intimidation." Ratner writes that the prisoner support movement has been hampered by "particularly strong public antipathy toward offenders who would deny culpability by assigning blame to the 'system'. This compromises the efforts of prisoner-support groups, who must rally public support in order to procure government funds. Such groups face the dilemma of rapidly losing their own legitimacy should they draw too closely to the very offenders whom they seek to help — offenders who are not perceived by the public as victims of injustice. Thus, many 'outside' groups are forced to shun the support of inmates who are in prison for violent offences, a serious ideological fracture of inside-outside alliances which limits the possibilities for prisoner politicization."
In the early 2000s, the United States Libertarian Party's California affiliate established a Political Prisoner Support Committee. It mostly served to support medical cannabis
Medical cannabis
Medical cannabis refers to the use of parts of the herb cannabis as a physician-recommended form of medicine or herbal therapy, or to synthetic forms of specific cannabinoids such as THC as a physician-recommended form of medicine...
patients. Spokesperson Ann McCormick opined, "we need not only to protect and care for our wounded, but to present them as patriots and heroes of 'the people'."
See also
- Earth Liberation Prisoners Support NetworkEarth Liberation Prisoners Support NetworkThe Earth Liberation Prisoners Support Network , also known as Spirit of Freedom, is a network to provide information on people imprisoned for direct action relating to campaigns on Environmental and other issues...
- Vegan Prisoners Support GroupVegan Prisoners Support GroupThe Vegan Prisoners Support Group is an organization based in the United Kingdom that provides support for vegans in prison, primarily vegans who are imprisoned for animal rights activity...
- Prisoner Visitation and SupportPrisoner Visitation and SupportPrisoner Visitation and Support is a non-profit organization based in Philadelphia. PVS visitors visit prisoners in the United States Federal Prison system and Military prisons. They offer companionship and friendship, with no religious or other agenda...
- Concerned Group for Republican PrisonersConcerned Group for Republican PrisonersThe Concerned Group for Republican Prisoners was an Irish republican prisoners' support group.The CGRP was established on September 10, 2005 as the result of an internal dispute within the ranks of Continuity Irish Republican Army prisoners being held at Portlaoise Prison. That dispute led to a...
- Prison Dharma NetworkPrison Dharma NetworkThe Prison Dharma Network is a non-profit organization founded in 1989 with the mission of supporting prisoners and prison volunteers in transformation through meditation and contemplative spirituality in prisons...
- Citizens United for Rehabilitation of ErrantsCitizens United for Rehabilitation of ErrantsCitizens United for Rehabilitation of Errants, or CURE, is a United States prisoner support and prison reform organization that was founded by Charles and Pauline Sullivan in San Antonio, Texas. It has supported legislation such as the Second Chance Act and, most famously, the Federal Prison Work...