Racism And Sexism In Prison Case Study

Cavadino and Dignan (2007) state that there are issues with the conditions of prisons as many prisoners are held in insufficient, old, rotten cells as they were built many years ago. A report provided by the HM inspectors in 2013 revealed that in HMP Bristol the living conditions are regarded as awful. Many prisoners complained of cockroach infestations, less time out of their cell than required and lack of windows in their cells. Bennett et al. (2013) find that most prisons are unhygienic and overcrowded, which leads to a continuous lack of privacy for inmates. Furthermore, Bennett et al. (2013) highlight that there was limited care for those who are regarded as a mental risk to themselves and many suicides were not prevented effectively. The lack of care varied from misdiagnosis to inappropriate treatment, which affected many prisoners (Collins and Burns 1992; Bennett et al. 2013).

Regarding the misuse of treatment from staff to prisoners, Carceral (2006) states that there is a high prevalence of racism and sexism within prison environments. A report of an unannounced inspection at HMP Dartmoor (2010) revealed that there were unlawful attitudes of members of staff treating a minority of inmates unsuitably. They found that some staff was making various comments and gestures with reference to homophobic and discriminative natures. This caused concerns about the lack of respect, welfare and health and safety of BME and homosexual inmates. This reflects an exploitation of power, in which Crewe (2013) argues that officers use their authority to their advantage. Evidence of this has been provided during an unannounced inspection of HMP Risley in 2013. The report uncovered that prisoners were treated unsatisfactorily and strip-searche...

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...uence on our perceptions. The public are purely receivers of ‘span’ stories and subjected to digestion of a populist portrayal. This can possibly lead to a misunderstanding and a selective view of reality. Therefore, we do not see prison as a deterrent. The phenomenon of prison conditions is understood as 'appearances' rather than 'experiences'.

The public seem to have lost sight of the true function of a prison and the focus is on something that solely punishes. This could explain perhaps, why many people throughout Britain feel dissatisfied and distrustful towards the penal system. This research provides an ideal opportunity to investigate the consensus of views and feelings amongst the public and how the media influences them. The outcome of this investigation will hopefully allow a formulation of a range of recommendations to deal with the potential result.