The Stanford Prison Experiment

prisoners all looked alike, wearing orange jumpsuits, or naked; there was not any form of individualization. I can relate this to the abuse, and torture that took place at the prison complex in Abu Ghraib, Iraq. Unfortunately, this prison camp was a real depiction of the Stanford Prison Experiment. In October 2003, the 372nd reservists were assigned duty at Abu Ghraib. It was their duty to oversee Iraqis prisoners that were being held at the detention center. The prison was located 20 miles west of Baghdad and was on 280 acres. At one point, the prison held more than 3,800 detainees. The abuse that took place at the prison was horrific, there were countless events of misconduct, and corruption. It is unfortunate that eleven U.S. soldiers

They were carrying out the orders of their superiors, in particular, that of the military intelligence. The soldiers even stated that they were given encouragement pertaining to the abuse, and told that as a result of the punishment, they were obtaining good results, and the prisoners were beginning to talk. The oldest member of the 372nd was Chip Fredrick, who had faced criminal charges. However, he seemed proud of the response that he had been receiving from the military intelligence. It one email Fredrick writes, “They usually don’t allow others to watch them interrogate, but since they like the way I run the prison, they make an exception. We have a very high success rate with our style of getting them to break. They usually end up breaking within a couple of hours” (Fredrick 4). On the other hand, it was also noted that Fredrick, at times did question the mistreatment of the prisoners. He was told that it was how the military intelligence wanted it done and not to worry about it. Going against the conscience of his own, Fredrick was able to commit acts of abuse, and torture because ultimately he gained positive reinforcement. The men and women of the 372nd, before the crimes took place, were seemingly loving, good natured people. Fredrick, his uncle insists, was far from a prisoner abuser back home but “actually saved the life of a prisoner who was hanging himself. He got down and got him breathing” (Lawson 5). It was suggested that although not an excuse, these soldiers were doing what they were told to do. It was also noted that the types of torture that were inflicted by the unit had to have been taught. It was not the things that they would have known to do, or had learned at home. Nonetheless, the men and women of the unit were capable of committing the horrid acts under the direction of someone in power. Proof that most abuse can be traced to group dynamics, and