Penitentiary Evolution: Rehabilitation and the Justice System

Davis discusses the history of the justice system and how the Penitentiary replaced capitol and corporal punishment. She defines Penitentiary as “Imprisonment was regarded as rehabilitative and the penitentiary prison was devised to provide convicts with the conditions for reflecting on their crimes and, through penitence, for reshaping their habits even their souls.3” though the idea of the penitentiary is arguable a new idea during the American Revolution. The penitentiary process was so that prisoners could learn from what they have done by a process of separation and rehabilitation. After slavery and during the early 20th century the level of crime rates rose during the early 1920’s to 1940’s. In the Article Less crime more punishment Adler4,

Thus, continuing to go through the continuous cycle of being incarcerated. Alexander explains that not just the justice system shows this racial bias against African Americans and Latinos, but as a second class society the convicted, are casted out through loosing the right to vote, having no where to work when leaving the prison. Similar to the early segregation system after slavery, she uses and example of the “Caste system.” An example to the caste system theory is that a prisoner’s great Grandfather was a slave and his father grew up during the Jim Crow era were segregation is similar to slavery and him being incarcerated and freed but now a second class citizen because of law. The caste system, explains how in poor neighborhoods families are being raised with multiple family members being “Locked up” and when children are raised in a system where going to prison, it is very likely of the same situation happening to them selves, Increase because of their race and where they are from. The examples used

The three-fifths compromise is very comparable when comparing to mass incarceration because prisoners are counted as state residents but are not allowed to vote. Representation. From the reconstruction to Modern history there has been little change in how African American’s are imprisoned and why they are targeted more than other ethnic groups Thus, allowing more power to states that have more political. The privatization of prisons is a major problem and the pay for prisoners is another loop whole escape for corporations to make more money. Mary Ann curtain explains the Corrections cooperation of America. The largest privatized prison corporation is paid per prisoner. If the supply dries up, or too many released too early their profits are affected…8” By engaging in a system of